This is the time of the semester where I am utterly drained and ready for everything to end. I’m sure it doesn’t help that I had an absolutely inhuman workload this semester (dissertation, teaching 3 classes, lab work, and job hunting) and the end of the semester marks the beginning of an awesome trip to SE Asia. 7 more working days until I’m free. 7 more….7 more…
My university (and my college in particular) uses two online systems with which to organize course materials, submit assignments, and track student progress. No doubt many of you in higher education are familiar with the demons LiveText and/or eLearning. Now that many of my students’ assignments are rolling in, I’m beginning to see what poorly designed, expensive overpriced pieces of shit these platforms truly are. As much as my students have grumbled about how much they hate these systems, I’ve assured them that it’s infinitely worse on my side of the coin. Not only have I had to wrestle with the inconsistencies and minutiae of such clumsy beasts and battled intermittent outages, but I also had to endure a few hours’ of “training” at the onset of the academic year. Yes, hours. The few morsels of information gleaned from these so-called training sessions could have been bestowed via a brief e-mail, so of course it made sense for me to waste a few perfectly good hours with Captain Incompetent at the helm. These training sessions were obviously for people who still think AOL is at the cutting edge of computing. It sickens me that someone, somewhere is making an obscene amount of money, profiting from my (and others’) misery, all in the name of this elusive goal of “accountability.”
If anything, this semester has taught me why so many of the professors I know drink the way they do. Sigh.
This information was prepared by the Latvian Ministry of Economics.
On 29 September, the Ministry of Economics informed the Cabinet of Ministers on Latvia’s macroeconomic situation and stressed that further growth and economic recovery would be determined not only by global economic recovery, but also by the effectiveness of the Latvian government’s economic policies.
According to the International Monetary Fund’s corrected prognoses, the world’s economy has begun to recover from the unprecedented recession of the last decades. Nevertheless stabilization is not unequivocal and the expected recovery is going slowly. Financial conditions have improved faster than expected mainly due to active measures undertaken by countries. New data indicates that the shrinking of the economy has slowed down. Notwithstanding positive tendencies, the global recession has not been fully overcome, recovery is slow, and financial systems have not fully stabilized.
The Economics Ministry’s economic prognosis for 2009 and 2010 is based on weak external demand and a shrinking internal demand. If the 2008 economic recession was determined by a decrease in internal demand, then the main factor in 2009 has been reduced external demand. Most likely, the 3rd quarter of 2009 will reveal a sharper GDP decrease then first two quarters. However, it is anticipated that GDP reductions will gradually diminish until mid-2010, when Latvia’s economy will hit the lowest point of its recession. Compared to the previous report on the macro economic situation Latvia, the prognosis for 2009 remains constant, and anticipates an 18% decrease of GDP. The government will continue to consolidate the state budget in 2010 and plans to substantially reduce government expenditure. As the result government and private expenditures will continue to fall. Restricted access to credit will restrict investment. Weak internal demand will decrease the volume of imports. On the other hand, as external demand grows in the second half of 2010 and manufacturer competitiveness improves, it is expected that export levels will exceed the 2009 figures. Despite positive tendencies for the second half of 2010, overall GDP could face a 4% decline in comparison with 2009.
Latvia’s economic recovery could begin in 2011, if the world’s financial markets fully stabilize andcredit availability is renewed. This would provide a positive stimulus for domestic business and
ensure a steady growth in demand for products and services in Latvia’s primary export market countries. GDP growth in 2011 is expected to increase by 1,5% in comparison with 2010. According to Economics Ministry’s experts, labour market recovery is expected a year later then the recovery of overall economic growth. It will be based on productivity and not on the number of employed. Social problems related to low employment will remain an issue for the next 3 to 4 years. The decrease in demand for labour will experience its biggest reduction in 2009 and 2010.
It is projected, that in 2009 the number of people employed will decrease in all sectors, and unemployment figures, in comparison with 2008, will increase sharply.
I think we all need to try something new every now and again. I’m a fan of it, aren’t you?
So in the spirit of trying something new, I’m looking around for a new path. A new career perhaps? A new way of getting things done. And I’m not sure where this new search is headed.
I’m looking at going back to school. Need to solidify that this next week, but it is a real possibility. And if I get all the paperwork done correctly, I’ll be going back to school to learn something completely unrelated to anything I’ve ever done in the past.
Something entirely new.
I’m looking at jobs I never thought I’d look at. Desperation? Perhaps. But perhaps it is time to look under a new leaf.
I had a friend who up and quit a decent job to try something new. His new path has been rocky and unsure, but I can honestly say I’ve never seen him happier. He quit lots of things he was really really good at to go off and do something he really really wanted.
He’s one of my heroes for that. He chose it, I’ve had it forced off onto me. But we have to play the cards life gives us, because leaving the table isn’t an option.
I’ve had a few friends, some quite close, decide to leave the table. I don’t think it worked they way they intended. It is messy, it doesn’t ever work the way you intended. Or at least I hope not. I’d hate to think my friends intended to leave the mess they did.
So I’m looking down a new path, and right now it has lots of twists and turns. I’m still not sure where it is taking me, nor am I sure where I’ll end up. But do we ever?
Lately I have been working on a few webpage concepts for the Radioactive Energy Drink. I have created a set of six designs over the past three-and-a-half weeks. Each set was designed in Photoshop with a final copy as both JPG and PNG files. I did not find anything task too difficult while designing these concepts. I take that back; I did have a compression issue. I am not able to compress the raw PSD file small enough to send via email. However, the JPG and PNG files were sent with ease. Now it is a matter of waiting for client approval.
Some people will try to get away with not wearing necessary safety equipment because of the added costs. While they may get away with it for a while, eventually luck will run out. We can only hope that it isn’t serious. However, there are several ways companies and individuals can save money on coveralls, plastic aprons, and other safety items.
Consider Using Disposable Coveralls And Safety Items
There is a significant difference in price when comparing traditional safety clothing to disposable items like plastic aprons. If they’re used wisely, have good quality, and can be purchased for a reasonable price, disposable safety clothing items can be far more affordable. This is particularly true when working with substances like oil, which can completely ruin fabric clothing in a relatively short amount of time.
Also, just because disposable safety garments are disposable doesn’t mean they can’t be reused. As long as they aren’t soiled, torn, or damaged to the point that the level of safety has been hindered, plastic aprons, coveralls, and other items are fine to reuse. To prevent cross-contamination onto other surfaces, simply take off the plastic aprons and protective gear and place them in a sealable plastic bag until needed again.
Getting More From Steel Toed Shoes In An Indoor Setting
Steel-toed shoes are extra heavy and have the extra protection workers need in an industrial setting. However, some of the chemicals, liquids, and even particulates can find their way inside, ruining the shoes. This can translate into a lot of money wasted replacing safety equipment that would otherwise still be quite usable.
To prevent this problem, throwaway shoe covers are ideal. They slip right up and over the bottom portion of shoes, easily keeping out particulate matter such as sawdust and protecting against chemical spills. Also, because they’re easily put on and taken off, the mess can be kept to the work area, eliminating the need to replace carpets, tiles, or other flooring.
Purchasing Separates Instead Of One Piece Suits
In some instances, such as in a paint booth for example, one half of the suit gets far more soiled and requires replacing much sooner than the rest of the outfit. Instead of wasting money and throwing out the entire thing, consider purchasing the pants and shirt separately. This way, the wearer only needs to replace the damaged half and can reuse the other half. This can end up saving thousands of dollars every year, but keep in mind that it depends on the job being performed. If it involves particulate matter or dangerous gasses, it might still be wise to use a one-piece suit to ensure these substances can’t make contact with the skin.
Protective garments such as coveralls should always be used with safety in mind first, but that doesn’t mean that it’s impossible to save money. With these tips, companies and individuals from all industries can save a significant portion of their budget to spend on other things.
job
employment
employment
Chris Harmen writes for MPE Safety Apparel, a provider of plastic aprons and safety garments. They have sold disposable Tyvek coveralls since 1987.
Application deadline – Friday 4 December 2009, 12 noon.
The Audience Business, Edinburgh’s audience development agency for the arts and cultural sector, is recruiting an Administrative Assistant to provide wide-ranging operational support, including financial administration, office management and company communications.
The successful candidate will be a proactive and efficient person, an excellent communicator with the ability to prioritise a busy workload, and will have experience in office administration and database maintenance.
For more information and an application form, visit www.tab.org.uk , call 0131 243 1430 or email alexandra@tab.org.uk
Fixed term contract : January 2010 to March 2011(initially 21 hrs. per week, full time from April 2010)
Salary scale: £12 – 14k p.a. (depending on experience)
The Audience Business strives to be an equal opportunities employer.
It can be hard to find something to be thankful for during this current economic recession. Perhaps you or someone you know is struggling to stay employed or worse, the job you had is no longer there. Some Thanksgiving celebration it’ll be. Or will it? I guess it depends on your perspective. It reminds me of a short story I wrote several years ago that might help put some perspective on the employment uncertainties we are all facing and maybe help you find some additional things to be thankful for this week. Happy Thanksgiving!
It’s What We Do – A Short Story by Paul Kulpinski
The town of Billet Falls has always been this way for as long as anyone can remember. It’s a town, not unlike many others. It’s full of people who are all busy doing the things they do in the places they do them. There’s the banker who works at the bank. The butcher who works at the market. The nurse who works at the hospital and of course the Mayor who works at City Hall all working to keep things running along smoothly and without disruption, because that’s the way it’s always been done. The people of Billet Falls liked living life that way and no one ever dared to try living life any differently.
It was the first warm day after a particularly long cold winter when Mr. Lincoln and his family moved to Billet Falls. Their home, while new to them, had previously been occupied by the dry cleaner who ran the laundry near city hall. It was a beautiful house, located right in the heart of town. So it was that after unpacking their belongings, Mr. Lincoln decided to conduct some business and establish themselves as the town’s newest residents. His first chore was to open a bank account, so he went to the bank and met the banker.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Lincoln”, said the banker. What do you do?”
Mr. Lincoln noticed the family pictures on the banker’s desk and replied, “I do the same things you do.”
“Oh, you’re a banker too?” asked the banker with a tone of concern.
“Not at all. I rear two beautiful children with the help of my lovely wife,” said Mr. Lincoln.
This puzzled the banker who replied, “Oh, that’s nice, I guess.”
The next morning, Mr. Lincoln decided to buy some fresh bread and pastries for his family’s breakfast. So he ventured out early to the bakery where he met the baker.
“Welcome to Billet Falls Mr. Lincoln”, said the baker. What do you do?”
“I am a father.” replied Mr. Lincoln.
The baker chuckled, “I see, and do you do any work?”
“Oh, there is a lot of work to do rearing two beautiful children. Without the help of my lovely wife, I don’t know that I could get all of the work done!” exclaimed Mr. Lincoln.
This confused the baker who was left to wonder as Mr. Lincoln walked back to his home in the heart of town with his fresh bread and pastries whistling a happy tune in the morning sunlight.
By the third day, Mr. Lincoln began preparing for a far-away trip he had scheduled so he stopped by the barber shop where he met the barber.
“Have a seat, Mr. Lincoln” said the barber inviting him into the chair by the front window. “I’ve heard all about you.” As indeed word was spreading about the strange ways of Mr. Lincoln and his family.
“Oh, that’s wonderful,” said Mr. Lincoln. “Then you know about what I do.”
“Well, no not exactly. What is it that you do?” asked the barber as his scissors began snipping away around Mr. Lincoln’s head.
“I’m the husband of a beautiful lady who has the deepest green eyes and who embodies that joyful feeling of a cool summer breeze,” said Mr. Lincoln with admiration.
“That doesn’t sound like a lot of work,” commented the barber as his scissors snipped on around Mr. Lincoln’s right ear.
“We’re quite busy actually, what with our two little one’s there’s barely a moment where we’re not doing something new and amazing!”
This wasn’t quite good enough for the barber so he pressed on. “That’s nice, but what’s your real job,” he asked.
“I can’t think of any more important job than that!” Mr. Lincoln thought for a moment then said, “Perhaps after the children are grown, I’ll find one.”
After Mr. Lincoln left with his fresh haircut, the barber turned the sign on his door to “CLOSED” and collapsed into his barber chair, stunned by what he had just heard. If what Mr. Lincoln had said was true, this wasn’t good for Billet Falls. For as long as anyone could remember, the people of Billet Falls knew each other by what they did and the very important titles they held because of it, like the banker, the baker and of course the barber. What could it mean to be just a father? The barber thought long and hard and it could only mean one thing. So he went to the police station where the police officer worked and after talking for a moment, they went to the hospital where the doctor worked and after a while they went to the accountant’s office where the CPA worked and soon a large crowd of the people of Billet Falls, not knowing what to do about this new threat to their way of life went to City Hall where the Mayor worked.
The Mayor was outraged to learn that there could even be one citizen of Billet Falls who was not working at doing something productive. So the Mayor marched off to Mr. Lincoln’s house in the heart of town followed by the banker, the baker, the barber, the policeman, the doctor, the accountant and the large mob of the other townspeople of Billet Falls which had become quite agitated.
The Mayor pounded on the door of Mr. Lincoln’s home. When the door opened he demanded to know what Mr. Lincoln did.
Once again, Mr. Lincoln calmly replied, “I am rearing two beautiful children with the help of my lovely wife.”
“What does it mean to rear two beautiful children with the help of your lovely wife?” blurted the Mayor.
“It means that I build model rockets with my son. It means that I have tea parties with my daughter. It means that my two beautiful children, my lovely wife and I take regular picnics in the parks around Billet Falls. It’s that simple,” said Mr. Lincoln.
“Ah, ha. So you are unemployed!” the Mayor said accusingly.
“No, not at all! I fly airplanes for the airline at the airport.” declared Mr. Lincoln.
The townspeople gasp in unison and then shouted in relief, “Oh, you’re a pilot!”
“No, I’m a father,” insisted Mr. Lincoln. “It just so happens that I fly airplanes to earn money.”
A low murmer arose from the crowd as they grew uneasy again. “I am no different from any of you,” Mr. Lincoln added.
But this did nothing to calm the crowd, until the fireman spoke up, slowly. “So, you’re saying that because I am rearing my son that I am a father, who happens to put out fires for money”?
“Exactly,” said Mr. Lincoln.
Then the nurse spoke up, “I don’t have any children, Mr. Lincoln. Does this mean that I am no body?” There was a great commotion, as the crowd now believed that Mr. Lincoln had been defeated and maybe life could return to normal.
“Not at all,” said Mr. Lincoln. “You’re someone’s daughter and perhaps even someone’s friend, correct?”
“Yes” she said.
“Then you are a daughter of two people who love you very much, who happens to take care of sick people for money,” said Mr. Lincoln.
The Mayor, still frantic about maintaining order in his town shouted, “How can we have a town full of fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, friends and neighbors? We will never get anything done! The town will collapse!”
But Mr. Lincoln knew that would never happen. “Mr. Mayor” he said, “jobs come and go but the relationships you have with your family, friends and neighbors will outlast them all.” Then Mr. Lincoln extended his hand to the Mayor, “my name’s Tom. Tom Lincoln.”
The Mayor stammered slightly, then with a laugh he shook Mr. Lincoln’s hand firmly and replied, “my name’s Robert James Turner. My friends call me R.J.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, R.J.,” said Mr. Lincoln.
And with that handshake, the matter was settled. Before long, the people of Billet Falls began to think of themselves as fathers, mothers, sons and daughters; friends and neighbors all of whom did this or that for money. Did the town collapse? On the contrary. It thrived as an amazing thing happened – some people actually decided to swap the jobs they did for money, because the banker really didn’t like banking and the plumber hated water. What would have been the scandal of all scandals in the history of Billet Falls in the past, was now a minor event because Susan was a better banker than she ever was a plumber and Henry became the best plumber the town of Billet Falls had ever known.
In Job 22:5, Eliphaz, one of Job’s “friends” says to him “Is not your evil abundant? There is no end to your iniquities.” Hmmm, probably not the best example for us to follow when visiting a friend who is suffering! Can we learn something from Job’s friends about how to help the hurting?
John Piper’s answer (from “Ask Pastor John”):
Absolutely. Those first seven days were their golden hour. If they had stopped there they would have been heroes, I think, because they would have shown compassion and patience. And that’s what we should learn.
When you walk into a horrific calamity you should be really slow to speak and quick to listen. You should be quick to cry, quick to hold, and quick to meet needs, bring meals, and wait upon the Lord. The theological wrestling comes later, probably. It’s different with different people.
But I think the lesson we learn from the progress of the book of Job is that while those three friends—Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar—were sitting in dust and ashes, aching with their friend Job, he was helped by them. And many people are helped just by the loving presence of another.
I don’t think this nullifies the importance of truth. Let me give you an example.
I’m a colleague here with Tom Steller, who has been with me for 24 years. And Tom and I have sometimes said to each other, “It would be great to stay together long enough to die together, Tom.” And depending upon which one of us comes to visit the other in the hospital at our dying moment, we know, because of 24 or (perhaps by then) 54 years together, we don’t have to say a word. It’s all been said. We have a common theology. Neither of us will have to preach to the other in order to fix their ideas. We will all know that God reigns, God is good, God is loving, and God is wise. We’re perplexed, but you don’t need to preach. Let’s just take each other’s hands and pray and fight this fight of faith together.
Am by default o problema cu cei de la resurse umane. Cu cei de la HR din companii. Putini am intalnit sa fie cu adevarat oameni de HR. Mostly, pitzi type.
Well, am primit o frumusete de email in urma cu cateva minute astazi. Email care descrie un interviu de care sunt absolut convins ca e adevarat
Enjoy!
“Stimate domnule Director,
In 19 septembrie 2009 am participat la un interviu pentru postul de
Director de dezvoltare in cadrul companiei dvs. Conform spuselor doamnei
de la Resurse Umane ce m-a intervievat, pe 25 septembrie ar fi trebuit
sa primesc un raspuns, raspuns ce nu a sosit pina astazi dar este
predictibil.
Duminica, facind o tetracapilarotomie – adica despicarea firului in
patru, am ajuns la concluzia ca nu am fost decit un pion in economia
unui interviu cu castigator aprioric cunoscut, interviul avind rolul de
a justifica activitatea doamnei de la resurse umane si de a va oferi dvs
un simulacru de testare a candidatilor.
Iata cum stau faptele.
Cu citeva zile inainte de 19 septembrie doamna de la Resurse Umane din
firma dvs. m-a contactat telefonic intrebindu-ma daca eu din xxxxxxxx
sint dispus sa ma relochez in yyyyy si sa merg in deplasari dese in
interesul serviciului. Am raspuns afirmativ si de comun acord am
stabilit interviul pentru simbata 19 septembrie, urmind ca respectiva
doamna sa imi comunice prin e-mail locul adresa la care va avea loc
interviul deoarece in momentul discutie telefonice nu aveam
posibilitatea sa o notez. Probabil ca raspunsurile mele au fost
neasteptate si au emotionat-o pe distinsa doamna incit a uitat sa imi
trimita e-mailul, desi am mai sunat de 2-3 ori cerind acest lucru. In
cele din urma, telefonic, am aflat adresa la care sa ma prezint pentru
interviu.
Avind in vedere dezinteresul si lipsa de respecta doamnei respective ce
reprezinta firma dvs, pentru un raspuns la interviul la care am venit de
la xxxxxx presupun ca nu corespund postului. Principalul motiv pentru
acest insucces al meu este, cred eu, faptul ca nu am stiu sa ma comport
la un interviu inedit.
Doamna de la resurse umane, al carei nume nu il retin si nu avea o carte
de vizita, mi-a testat rezistenta la stress si capacitatea de
concentrare aducind si pe fiul dansei, un baietel de altfel foarte
reusit si simpatic,in varsta de 3-4 ani, deoarece nu avea cu cine sa il
lase. Recunosc ca este prima data cind mi se intimpla sa fiu supus unui
astfel de interviu, motiv pentru care va felicit pentru metoda aleasa de
doamna si tolerata de dvs. ca director.
Va mai felicit de asemeni si pentru permisivitatea pe care o acordati
salariatilor dvs de a-si aduce membrii familie la serviciu si implicare
lor in jobul salariatului. Cred ca ar trebui sa faceti un minim efort si
sa brevetati metodele la OSIM, mai ales ca in materie de resurse umane,
recruiterii inventeaza metode de testare nebanuite iar imaginea si
awarnessul brandului dvs – ceea ce, teoretic, se reflecta si in
vanzarile directe – ar atinge inaltimi abisale, daca ma pot exprima asa
si iata ca pot.
Am mai participat la interviuri unde mai erau si alte persoane in
incapere dar scopul acestei situatii era sa verifice capacitatea mea de
a ma focusa asupra subiectului discutat in prezenta factorilor
perturbatori normali intr-un birou. Ori la dvs nu am aplicat pentru
postul de Director de dezvoltare – Divizia Gradinita.
Interviul s-a desfasurat aproximativ astfel:
- Imi puteti spune care au fost realizarile dvs ca director comer…
Stefanita, te rog sa stai cuminte!
- Am crescut vanzarile cu …
- Stefanita, nu o mai musca pe mama!
- … 8% in in 5 luni ca urmare a politicii mele de…
- Stefanita, vrei sa desenezi? Uite ai creioanele aici!
- .. vanzari si a strategie …
- Mami, dar domnul de ce e aici?
Il felicit pe Stefanita pentru precocitate si intrebarea existentiala.
Chiar, ce cautam eu acolo?
Va scriu pentru ca doresc sa va fac cunoscuta opinia mea despre modul
total neprofesionist in care s-a desfasurat interviul la firma dvs,
incepind de la stabilirea intilnirii, desfasurarea acesteia si
comunicarea rezultatului. Si eu am fost in situatia angajatorului dar
intervievatului i-am acordat in timpul interviului atentia si respectul
cuvenite unui om ce se prezinta la solicitarea mea, unui posibil coleg.
Chiar daca nu corespundea profesional il informam despre rezultat.
Respectul aratat altuia este si respectul de sine, face parte din
cultura profesionala a fiecarui desi este in principal o problema de
educatie.
Voi mai aplica la joburi disponibile in firma dvs (da, sint perseverent
in atingerea scopului) si am rugamintea ca la urmatorul interviu , daca
voi mai fi chemat, sa imi permiteti sa imi aduc cainele, deoarece nici
eu nu am cu cine sa il las. Este un Beagle de 1 an si 5 luni, brownian
(*) in atitudine si nu as vrea sa il las singur de teama ca pune mana pe
chibrit si da foc la casa sau se inhaiteaza cu maidanezii din cartier,
organizind orgii sexuale insotite de consum de alcool si/sau tras
prafuri pe nara . In plus as vrea sa vad capacitatea de concentrare a
doamnei de la resurse umane cind va simti cainele pe gamba dansei
simulind copulatia canina (doggy style – pour les connaisseurs).
Cu retinut respect,
Cxxxx Lxxxx
07.xxxxxxx
PS: pentru doamna de la resurse umane: brownian vine la miscarea
browniana si nu de la Sandra Brown.”
Ray Stedman, in a sermon, “Why Doesn’t God Intervene?”:
In Chapter 21 we get Job’s very reasoned reply. There are times when Job speaks rather testily, rather sharply, to his friends, and other times, perhaps when the pain is not as intense, he is able to speak more calmly and dispassionately. And here, in Chapter 21, you see a careful attempt on his part to answer these arguments. He begins with his appeal for a hearing.
Then Job answered:
“Listen carefully to my words,
and let this be your consolation.
Bear with me, and I will speak,
and after I have spoken, mock on.
As for me, is my complaint against man?
Why should I not be impatient?
Look at me, and be appalled,
and lay your hand upon your mouth [i.e., with astonishment].
When I think of it I am dismayed,
and shuddering seizes my flesh.” (Job 21:1-6 RSV)
Basically he is saying here, “If you can’t help me, at least listen to me; that can be your consolation. You’re trying to console me, and that’s not helping a bit, but if you would listen to what I have to say, that would be some help from you. You are not a problem; it is God who is my problem,” he suggests. “Not man, but God. I don’t understand him.” Then he says, “It is my condition, my pain and anguish, that forces me so to search and try to come to answers.” With that as an introduction, he now examines the argument of these friends, that punishment is always the result of sin.
In Verses 7-13 he says that the facts contradict what these friends say. In fact, he says, the whole lives of the wicked are often untroubled.
“Why do the wicked live,
reach old age, and grow mighty in power?
Their children are established in their presence,
and their offspring before their eyes.
Their houses are safe from fear,
and no rod of God is upon them.
Their bull breeds without fail;
their cow calves, and does not cast her calf.
They send forth their little ones like a flock,
and their children dance.
They sing to the tambourine and the lyre,
and rejoice to the sound of the pipe.
They spend their days in prosperity
and in peace they go down to Sheol.” (Job 21:7-13 RSV)
Their whole life is lived, Job argues, and nothing ever seems to trouble them. They are outwardly and openly wicked, and yet they are happy, their families grow up well, and they seem to be free from difficulty.
Many of us have felt this way. We see those we think ought to be under the judgment of God, but they are not; they seem to be untroubled. We are faced with this question of the fairness of God. His second argument is that they even defy God, and they prosper, Verses 14-16:
“They say to God, ‘Depart from us!
We do not desire the knowledge of thy ways.
What is the Almighty, that we should serve him?
And what profit do we get if we pray to him?’
Behold, is not their prosperity in their hand?
The counsel of the wicked is far from me.” (Job 21:14-16)
“I do not agree with this,” he says, “but that is what they actually say. They defy God; they ask him to get out of their lives; they resist him, and God lets it be. Nothing ever happens to them, they seem to live untroubled lives, and God does not strike them down.” He goes on to point out that God’s judgment is very infrequent, Verses 17-18:
“How often is it that the lamp of the wicked is put out?
That their calamity comes upon them?
That God distributes pains in his anger?
That they are like straw before the wind,
and like chaff that the storm carries away?” (Job 21:17-18 RSV)
Many people who deserve punishment from God’s hand seem to live without ever being touched, he says. Then he argues, God’s judgment is delayed (Verses 19-21), and, finally, God’s judgment is very uneven, Verses 22-26:
“Will any teach God knowledge,
seeing that he judges those that are on high?
One dies in full prosperity being wholly at ease and secure,
his body full of fat and the marrow of his bones moist.
Another dies in bitterness of soul,
never having tasted of good.
They lie down alike in the dust,
and the worms cover them.” (Job 21:22-26)
Life seems to be unfair. There is a basic unfairness at the root of things, and this is what causes many people to be troubled by the claims of Christians about a loving, faithful, just, and holy God. You often hear the question raised, “If there is a good God why does he let this kind of thing happen?” Job is raising the same question. He says to these pious, respectable friends, “Your arguments do not square with the facts. You say God always visits wrath upon the wicked. What about these wicked people who live without a touch? God never does a thing to them. What about the fact that he seems to treat people very unfairly? Folks who seem to deserve nothing but the grace of God, who are loving, gentle, kind people, have endless problems, and die forsaken. And some who are selfish and cruel and self centered are the ones who seem to be able to live without struggle. What about this?”
Then he turns to examine his friends themselves, and points out the falseness of their friendship, Verses 27-28:
“Behold, I know your thoughts,
and your schemes to wrong me.
For you say, ‘Where is the house of the prince?
Where is the tent in which the wicked dwelt?’” (Job 21:27-28 RSV)
They were referring, of course, to Job. He says, “I know you’re thinking that I am a good example of the truth of your argument because God has taken away my wealth, my family. my possessions, and you’re saying to yourself, ‘Ah! Where is all the wealth of this man? Here is proof right here that what we say is true.’” And, though they were not saying it quite as baldly, Job says, “I know what you are thinking, your hidden surmisings. I know also your unsupported convictions here.” Verses 29-33:
“Have you not asked those who travel the roads,
and do you not accept their testimony
that the wicked man is spared in the day of calamity,
that he is rescued in the day of wrath?
Who declares his way to his face,
and who requites him for what he has done?
When he is borne to the grave,
watch is kept over his tomb.
The clods of the valley are sweet to him;
all men follow after him,
and those who go before him are innumerable.” (Job 21:29-33 RSV)
He tells his friends, “If you’ll just inquire around among the traveling salesmen, the people who get around and see life, you’ll find that they support what I’m saying. The wicked often escape the day of calamity. It’s not just true around here, this is true everywhere. The wicked live above the law, and nobody says to them that they’re doing wrong. They get by with it. They die highly honored in their death and their graves are adorned and guarded and God does nothing about that.” So he says at last, Verse 34:
“How then will you comfort me with empty nothings?
There is nothing left of your answers but falsehood.” (Job 21:34 RSV)
If you intend to argue with Job you had better get your arguments well in hand. This man is able to see through the error of logic in these people’s position. They have a theology that does not square with experience, and that is where the problem lies.
These friends represent people — and there are many around today — who have God in a box. They have what they think is a clear understanding of all the ways of God and they can predict how he is going to act, but when he acts in a way that they do not understand and do not expect, they have no way of handling it because it is their creed they have faith in and not in God himself.
This is what Job is learning. His creed has been demolished by his experiences. He has had to file his theology in the wastebasket because it did not fit what he w as going through.Someone has well said that a man with a true experience is never at the mercy of a man with an argument. These men are unable to answer Job because his experience rings true. That concludes the second round of addresses, and in Chapter 22 we begin the third and final round where only two of these friends speak.
2 “Keep listening to my words,
and let this be your comfort.
3 Bear with me, and I will speak,
and after I have spoken, mock on.
4 As for me, is my complaint against man?
Why should I not be impatient?
5 Look at me and be appalled,
and lay your hand over your mouth.
6 When I remember, I am dismayed,
and shuddering seizes my flesh.
7 Why do the wicked live,
reach old age, and grow mighty in power?
8 Their offspring are established in their presence,
and their descendants before their eyes.
9 Their houses are safe from fear,
and no rod of God is upon them.
10 Their bull breeds without fail;
their cow calves and does not miscarry.
11 They send out their little boys like a flock,
and their children dance.
12 They sing to the tambourine and the lyre
and rejoice to the sound of the pipe.
13 They spend their days in prosperity,
and in peace they go down to Sheol.
14 They say to God, ‘Depart from us!
We do not desire the knowledge of your ways.
15 What is the Almighty, that we should serve him?
And what profit do we get if we pray to him?’
16 Behold, is not their prosperity in their hand?
The counsel of the wicked is far from me.
17 “How often is it that the lamp of the wicked is put out?
That their calamity comes upon them?
That God [1] distributes pains in his anger?
18 That they are like straw before the wind,
and like chaff that the storm carries away?
19 You say, ‘God stores up their iniquity for their children.’
Let him pay it out to them, that they may know it.
20 Let their own eyes see their destruction,
and let them drink of the wrath of the Almighty.
21 For what do they care for their houses after them,
when the number of their months is cut off?
Hands up how many of us have sat in an interview and sweated, cringed and stumbled over what we really wanted to say? I know I have! And the only outcome is you don’t get the job (unless you’re really lucky) and you beat yourself up over it for days after. So, I’ve put together 3 top tips to help avoid the nervous verbal incompetence!
1. Prepare for the inevitable stumbling question ‘So tell us a little about you’.
All an interviewer really wants to know when they ask this is how well do you work with other people, are you friendly, patient, and can you use your own initiative as well as working in a team. The only way to give a really good answer to this is to prepare it first! Jot down a few points about how great you are and practice putting into coherent sentences. Don’t get too well rehearsed – they don’t want to hear you just reel off a speech in the interview!
2. ‘What are your weaknesses?’
This sounds like a horrid question to get in an interview, but you can make it work to your advantage if you’ve done your preparation. The interviewer is looking to see if you can be analytical about your own behaviour and objective enough to take action. The best way to counter this question is give a specific example of when you have been weak in a situation and give an explanation of how you would have handled things differently. Make sure they understand that you can learn from your experience and take change on onboard.
3. ‘What would you do in this situation: (fill in an awkward example relevant to the position you’re going for!)?”
This boils down to making sure you know your subject! Be on the ball with new policy, practices and health & safety. Make sure your clinical knowledge is really top notch and that you can be concise and calm when presented with a difficult situation. If you don’t understand the scenario given, feel free to ask qualifying questions to be sure you understand exactly what they are presenting you with. The only preparation you can do for this is to think through and practice speaking through different scenarios that might occur in your new role (which if course you will get!).
All that remains is not to panic. If you naturally panic, sweat and go into meltdown before an interview be sure that you shower before you go, use a strong deodorant, don’t wear clothes you aren’t comfortable in, do you hair early so it’s not fly away when you arrive and most importantly walk into the building with your head held high. An air of confidence is very reassuring and even if you don’t feel it inside, it can be projected so your body language displays it.
Dr. Kim Riddlebarger:
One thing is now becoming clear–Job, the sufferer, is now longing to probe deeper into the mysteries of God’s providence, while Job’s friends focus entirely on the their distorted views of the suffering of the wicked. Bildad is clearly resentful of Job’s low estimate of his three friends’ theological abilities.Whereas Eliphaz tried to moderate his speech, Bildad is much more cantankerous. In verses 1-4 of Job 18, Bildad responds to Job with words which reflect his growing frustration and anger. “Then Bildad the Shuhite replied: `When will you end these speeches? Be sensible, and then we can talk. Why are we regarded as cattle and considered stupid in your sight? You who tear yourself to pieces in your anger, is the earth to be abandoned for your sake? Or must the rocks be moved from their place?” If the law of divine retribution is immutable, and if he refuses to repent, Job will just continue to throw himself against the fixed law that God must punish all sin. How dare Job think that he is above fixed laws!
2 “How long will you hunt for words?
Consider, and then we will speak.
3 Why are we counted as cattle?
Why are we stupid in your sight?
4 You who tear yourself in your anger,
shall the earth be forsaken for you,
or the rock be removed out of its place?
5 “Indeed, the light of the wicked is put out,
and the flame of his fire does not shine.
6 The light is dark in his tent,
and his lamp above him is put out.
7 His strong steps are shortened,
and his own schemes throw him down.
8 For he is cast into a net by his own feet,
and he walks on its mesh.
9 A trap seizes him by the heel;
a snare lays hold of him.
10 A rope is hidden for him in the ground,
a trap for him in the path.
11 Terrors frighten him on every side,
and chase him at his heels.
12 His strength is famished,
and calamity is ready for his stumbling.
13 It consumes the parts of his skin;
the firstborn of death consumes his limbs.
14 He is torn from the tent in which he trusted
and is brought to the king of terrors.
15 In his tent dwells that which is none of his;
sulfur is scattered over his habitation.
16 His roots dry up beneath,
and his branches wither above.
17 His memory perishes from the earth,
and he has no name in the street.
18 He is thrust from light into darkness,
and driven out of the world.
19 He has no posterity or progeny among his people,
and no survivor where he used to live.
20 They of the west are appalled at his day,
and horror seizes them of the east.
21 Surely such are the dwellings of the unrighteous,
such is the place of him who knows not God.”
Langsam wird die Arbeit doch sehr viel und neue Videos werden schon erwartet. Mit nur einem Redakteur kann man jedoch unser Projekt nicht am Leben erhalten, deswegen greift unser Kollege von EE-Games Joe uns unter die Arme und wird regelmäßig Artikel verfassen. Doch da er auch noch sein eigenes Projekt leitet, möchten wir ihn dabei nicht zu sehr zur Last fallen, weswegen wir noch mehr Autoren suchen!
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Wow I am just learning so much about blogging and writting for different online papers. I guess time will tell if it goes anywhere, but for now Im having a blast. I am such a busy person since I quit my job. How ironic is that? I have been trying to get a catalog business off the ground for quite some time now, but it just isnt moving very much. Well when I lost my cool, and just couldnt stay at that crazy place called Wal-Mart another minute. I had to figure out something. I decided to go back to old faithful. I am now selling avon again and doing very well at it I must say. I have increased these two weeks in sales. Very proud of myself. And of course I do trade shows and flea markets too. I also make my own jewelry which I will post on here from time to time. Like I said since I quit my real job I have gotten really really busy. Hope you have enjoyed my rambling, I will try to have more organized thoughts next time.
Dr. Kim Riddlebarger continues his commentary on Job, Chapter 16:
As we see in verses 9-14, Job feels like God has turned against him. “God assails me and tears me in his anger and gnashes his teeth at me; my opponent fastens on me his piercing eyes. Men open their mouths to jeer at me; they strike my cheek in scorn and unite together against me. God has turned me over to evil men and thrown me into the clutches of the wicked. All was well with me, but he shattered me; he seized me by the neck and crushed me. He has made me his target; his archers surround me. Without pity, he pierces my kidneys and spills my gall on the ground. Again and again he bursts upon me; he rushes at me like a warrior.” While this is not the case–we know this to be true from the heavenly scene in the prologue (Job 1 and 2)–we can understand why Job feels the way he does. He’s lost everything. He is sick and miserable. He is an outcast. His friends are now accusing him of something he did not do.
Yet, despite all appearances to the contrary, God is for Job. And Job still hopes for vindication. In Job 16:18:-17:3, we see not only the glowing embers of faith, but the beginning of hope. “O earth, do not cover my blood; may my cry never be laid to rest! Even now my witness is in heaven; my advocate is on high. My intercessor is my friend as my eyes pour out tears to God; on behalf of a man he pleads with God as a man pleads for his friend. `Only a few years will pass before I go on the journey of no return. My spirit is broken, my days are cut short, the grave awaits me. Surely mockers surround me; my eyes must dwell on their hostility. `Give me, O God, the pledge you demand. Who else will put up security for me?’” Job now starts to realize that both his answer to the question, “why?” and his ultimate vindication might not come until his own death. Job will get his answer and he will be vindicated, if not in this life, certainly in the next! Job’s eschatology is much better than Eliphaz’s!
As a waiter, you are the very last QC engineer before the guest gets their food. Obviously, if your restaurant uses food runners exclusively, this doesn’t apply to you, but if you run your own or other waiters’ food, you should always make sure that the plate looks like it should. Are all of the garnishes present? Check. Does the plate rim have parsley (if required)? Check. Are there any sauce drips on the rim? Quick wipe. Has a skin formed on the sauce? Have the chef fix it or run a toothpick or knife through it. Is the lettuce on the burger starting to wilt? Swap it out.
I know that it gets hectic and sometimes we just pick up and run, but we are literally the last chance to assure that the plate of food that the guest is getting is to spec. It’s part of your job to make sure that the product matches the promise.
If your burger looks like this, you should fix it or get it fixed:
Sam Storms comments on Eliphaz’s Second Speech (Job 15)
A. A rebuke – 15:1-16
1. for Job’s irreverent talk – vv. 1-6
He ridicules Job, insisting that his words flow from a belly filled with hot air rather than from his mind or heart, the center of reason. “You have belched out useless words that will serve only to undermine the faith of others. Your words are causing others to stumble, so shut up!”
2. for Job’s unwarranted claim to be wise – vv. 7-13
3. for Job’s unwarranted claim to be pure – vv. 14-16
These verses are accurate in their portrayal of man’s total depravity apart from divine grace, but to apply them to Job as an explanation of why he is suffering is contrary to the evidence of Job’s life.
2 “Should a wise man answer with windy knowledge,
and fill his belly with the east wind?
3 Should he argue in unprofitable talk,
or in words with which he can do no good?
4 But you are doing away with the fear of God [1]
and hindering meditation before God.
5 For your iniquity teaches your mouth,
and you choose the tongue of the crafty.
6 Your own mouth condemns you, and not I;
your own lips testify against you.
7 “Are you the first man who was born?
Or were you brought forth before the hills?
8 Have you listened in the council of God?
And do you limit wisdom to yourself?
9 What do you know that we do not know?
What do you understand that is not clear to us?
10 Both the gray-haired and the aged are among us,
older than your father.
11 Are the comforts of God too small for you,
or the word that deals gently with you?
12 Why does your heart carry you away,
and why do your eyes flash,
13 that you turn your spirit against God
and bring such words out of your mouth?
14 What is man, that he can be pure?
Or he who is born of a woman, that he can be righteous?
15 Behold, God [2] puts no trust in his holy ones,
and the heavens are not pure in his sight;
16 how much less one who is abominable and corrupt,
a man who drinks injustice like water!
Hi, my name is Pam and I was a student in Suzanne’s Love Your Job Search course in the early fall. I had just gotten back from teaching in Japan through the JET Programme and was looking for a job for almost four months. Last week, I finally found my dream job, working in university student services. Here are a few things I learned along the way…
Know your weaknesses and strengths. This is something we focused on during the LYJ class. I’m pretty good at writing (solid cover letter/résumé- check!) and I have a good amount of experience and demonstrated interest in my field. But I would get really flustered and tongue-tied when trying to present myself in person.
Practice, practice, practice. Because I knew I stank at interviewing, I found a list of practice interview questions, wrote out answers to each one (this took a few days), practiced out loud in front of a mirror (yeah, it’s pretty awkward). Then, I asked my sisters and friends to mock interview me. The first time, it was embarrassing and nerve-wracking, but eventually I got a lot better. (For help, check Chapter 9 of the Idealist’s Guide to Careers in Non-Profits for First Time Job Seekers – an excellent resource!)
Do research on them (but no need to go overboard). You definitely want to go in with a list of thoughtful questions to show your interest in the position. I had interviews where they asked me two questions and the rest of the interview was pretty much all me. However, don’t do what I did- I asked one interviewer about a specific article he had written. It turned out okay, but he could have easily pegged me as a creepy Google stalker.
Don’t forget that thank you note! I used to send pretty handwritten notes, but Suzanne suggested type-written letters on nice paper for formal interviews. I’ve tried to send them within 2-3 days- just enough time to write something coherent but soon enough where they don’t forget who I am.
Be picky. Don’t just choose a job because it pays well or you feel like you really need to work right this second. Do it because you know this is the right job for you. I found a job after looking for about 2 months. The people were super nice, the pay was decent, and it seemed like a good job. The thing is, I had interviewed for my dream position and hadn’t heard back for about 3 weeks. So I emailed the dream office and told them about the job offer. Immediately, they offered a second interview. It wasn’t a sure bet, but I decided to politely decline the first offer to get a chance at the job I really wanted. It ended up working out, but even if it hadn’t, I think it still would have been the right decision.
Do informational interviews. Lots of them! The JET Program Alumni Association asked me to interview people in my field (university administration/international education) to post on their blog, JETWit. Suzanne was also nice enough to recommend a few of her contacts. There are tons of ways to find people to talk to. Make sure to ask the all-important question: “Who else would you recommend that I speak to?”
Reach out to your references/former co-workers/friends/family. First off, make sure you have 3 up-to-date references that know about your current job search. Next, don’t be afraid to let everyone know that you’re looking for work. Make sure you tell them specifically what kinds of jobs you’re searching for. I got an interview because a college friend of my high school friend had an opening in her office.
Make yourself busy. Treat “funemployment” like a self-improvement vacation. When else will you have this much free time? Get involved with your alumni association, hang out with your friends (lunch break date, anyone?), do volunteer work, go to conferences, take classes (like Love Your Job!). I was lucky enough to have a pretty good amount of savings to rely on but there’s tons of free stuff to do too. I loved going to the book buffet (a.k.a. my local library) and catching up on all the reading I never had time to do. I also finally got my email inbox to zero- and am trying to keep it there.
(Bonus) While you have the time, get your personal finances in order. I recommend Ramit Sethi’s book, I Will Teach You to Be Rich. You can get it from the library or check out his blog. It’s a fun read and he gives you solid advice that you can put into action right away.
If you have any tips or advice that you’ve learned in your own job search process, please let me (and everyone) know by posting in the Comments section. Arigatou (“Thanks” in Japanese)!
There’s a vacancy in a Travel Agency in Segambut, K.L.
Administration & Data Entry.
It doesn’t require a degree, SPM qualification is sufficient.Listening skill is important and willing to learn. Please acknowledge if you have friends or relative who would like to fill in this post.
The boss prefer to look at the date of birth and (no offense), he only prefer workers with the date of birth other than the 1st.
I am Ibrahim Okoth, 18 years of age and am currently completing my secondary education this year. I live with my single mother at Kawangware slums.
I am a member of an association known as Deliverance Youth Association (DYA). We are
Concerned about the environment around us and we are trying to make it conducive for every one by making it clean.
The association members raise money to enable them buy sufficient cleaning materials for clean ups in the community where we live and we do this at least two times in a month. We also help our fellow brothers and sisters who live on the streets by giving economical support, give them advice on how to better their lives.
We raise money by selling water and supplying it to people in the community who can not manage to fetch water by themselves.
Undugu Society of Kenya is an NGO that helps and advises us. They come to our meetings and encourage and train us on life skills and how to be better people in the community.
In my leisure time I compose music and perfect my talent as an artist. The association also organizes plays and programs that teach people how to live in peace and harmony amongst ourselves.
All in all our aim is to change the environment and each and every one to have a better life in our community and societies that we live in.
It’s Wednesday and harder than I thought to write on a consistent basis. Whew! Hats off to you real bloggers. And for someone who has so much to say this should be a no brainer for me.LoL.
Anyway, to catch up my assignment ended on the last day of October, so I’ve been home last and this week. I really didn’t expect to have this lay over and have had some mixed feeling about it especiall in regards to the Law of Attraction and my practice of allowing. I mean did I attract being unemployed? I can after some jounaling and intense window shopping at a local luxury mall I think I have the answer.
I did want to work closer to home and in order to do that I would have to leave my current job. Gotta leave one to get to the other. My commute was an hour and a half each way, making my days way too long, like 12 hours and leaving too little time for V. So I understood that since I was very clear.
So the part I understand. But not going right back to work was a hard pill to swallow and something I never expected. I thought I was thinking the right thoughts and had my feelings going down stream until further examination. I knew I wanted to work close to home, but I also wanted more money and to do work that engaged me in the best way possible. Now understand I said I WANTED it. I didnt say I believed I could have it. And there in lies the problem. To be perfectly honest somewhere in me I felt I was asking for too much. I was sending mixed signals and got mixed results. All along I was really telling myself I can do with out this or that as long as I went back to work that was most important. And there’s nothing wrong with that. After all, it is true. The bills have got to be paid and baby has got to eat.
So I decided to accept what I believe and stop reaching to a thought that I wasn’t in full alignment with. And guess what, when I did that my agency sent me an email saying they had a client who wanted to interview me THE SAME DAY! What a wonderful confirmation. And it didnt stop there. I got a piece of mail from a company I used to work for letting me know the balance of some stock I had purchased when I worked for them over a year ago. And guess what I called them and am going to sell my 25 shares and $100 will be in my account by C.O.B. Monday.
Yep, it really does work. My interview went well, so well they called me in the next day for a second to meet with the guy I’d be supporting. And to top it off, my commute would be cut in half.
I will say briefly and with little to know power behind it, (just so you can see where I’m coming from) it is also not some of the things I didnt want, if that makes any sense. You know how Abraham can say something with out making it seem up stream….in plain talk, the pay is a little less than what I was making and the job has more demands than my previous. But its okay because it only serves as a valuable reflection letting me know where I am and that is always welcomed into my reality.
Hello, today I start working in another company. My… 5th perhaps, I will list them out then, to make it easier. Listing listing listing (those name are confidential, couldn’t publish it that easily)
I’ve guessed it correct. This is my fifth. Number two and fifth company considered big company. Though, I find something interesting, that in big company, its not always better than small. And in my case, my forth company, the smallest of all five, is the BEST one. You know why, they have good working environment, everybody care about each other, and very very very friendly boss.
I will try to list what thing I considered as factors to make a job , a good job.
First , I need a Good working environment. Yes, with this, you will (or I will) feel comfortable being there for long time.
Then, friendly mates and superior. Yes, for my forth company, the boss is very very very motivating. He didn’t scold staff. He have his way of communicating that make the staff feel that they should do good in the job.
Then the Stage to prove that you are good. For me, its important. Because with a good stage, you will be able to show people who you are and what you can do at maximum. My term stage refer to the job description of your job. Smaller stage, and you wont grow. The task is too easy for you to be finished. Oversize stage also will gives you fear. And you will be stressed out and missed deadlines. But for me, I prefer oversize than smaller stage.
Next, I think Working standard will play important roles as well. What I mean standard, is about the ethics. There is one company I work with, they look down on staff that go home ONTIME. Exactly 8 hours. They think that you are not working hard. But you know what, I think 80% of companies nowadays hoping that you work overtime. Over 8 hours is good for them. But actually, WRONG. At least for me, its wrong.
Im not a CEO that have many staff under me, but I know BRAIN will lust if we use it too much. 8 hours Is a good duration. More than that, it will be processed lower than usual. Think about PC, if we already use it too much, it will became slow. And us, our brain, wont be effective after 8 hours usage. and is it better to use it while its slow for a long time, or use it when its prime for shorter period?
Ever hear something said, ‘Work hard, play hard’ ? my superior in my current company certainly didn’t know that. Or atleast, didn’t understand its meaning. He said something like ‘You are young but you come, Pee and go back home’. He referring to my objection of working overtime. I choose not to waste my time explaining about this work hard play hard.
Think about it, if I play after that 8 hours of working, then I will be happy. Good mood will produce better productivity.
Ah well. I don’t care about what other think about what im doing. As long as im happy and that didn’t hurt them. Job, you can find it. Money, you can find it. But happiness, its not that easy to be found.
Job 27:5,6 I will never admit you are in the right; till I die, I will not deny my integrity. I will maintain my righteousness and never let go of it; my conscience will not reproach me as long as I live.
We now come to a long discourse by Job that runs from chapter 26 through to 31. Starting at the beginning of chapter 26, Job chides the friends with cynicism: “How you have helped the powerless! How you have saved the arm that is feeble!” (26:2) which of course means exactly the opposite – you haven’t helped one bit! And when he goes on, “Who has helped you utter these words? And whose spirit spoke from your mouth?” (26:4) it’s like we might say, “Wherever did you get all this drivel from? When he continues, “The dead are in deep anguish, those beneath the waters and all that live in them.” (26:5) it’s like he is saying, “Well you have really comforted the dead, writing off all of their previous existence by the way you put down their lives!
Look, he says, moving into a longer section that exalts God’s greatness, “Death is naked before God.” (26:6) i.e. God sees everything, the dead included. In verses 7 to 13 that follow he extols the Lord who has created all things and is Lord over all. He concludes, “Who then can understand the thunder of his power?” (26:14c) In other words, God is so great you’ll never be able to understand it all, so (implied) your attempts to rationalize His activity will fail.
In chapter 27 he maintains his integrity and his righteousness. When he says, “As surely as the Lord lives,” it is like an oath, and he moves in to the strong words we have as our verses today. In this he is quite remarkable. This is the heart of his cries – I am righteous; this is not because of my sin – THAT IS the truth!
Verses 7 to 10 are a call for justice, for God’s wrath to come down on those who are against him: “May my enemies be like the wicked, my adversaries like the unjust!” (27:7) Is this a reference to his ‘friends’ who have become his adversaries? He wants those who are against him to know the hopelessness that is usually associated with the godless: “For what hope has the godless when he is cut off, when God takes away his life?” (27:8). He wants them to experience the same awfulness that he has known of crying to God and not being heard: “Does God listen to his cry when distress comes upon him?” (27:9). He wants them to know the experience of almost coming to the point when he virtually gives up even calling out to God: “Will he find delight in the Almighty? Will he call upon God at all times?” (27:10) Within these words there is, indirectly, the reminder of the anguish that he himself has been going through.
Look, he says, you clever people, “I will teach you about the power of God; the ways of the Almighty I will not conceal.” (27:11) You want to know about the reality of all this? I will tell you! “You have all seen this yourselves. Why then this meaningless talk?” (27:12) I’m the one who has been going through all this, I’m the one who knows the reality of it, so why have you been uttering meaningless words that don’t come from experience (implied)?
The rest of the chapter is given over to his agreement that God does indeed judge the wicked (but that doesn’t include him!) He speaks about the wicked and ruthless (v.13) and how their sin will bring judgment down on their families to the next generations (v.14,15). It doesn’t matter what the wicked save up, it will be taken away (v.16,17). He may think he is building security in his great house but it will all be taken (v.18,19) All this, his very life, will be snatched away in the twinkling of an eye (v.20-23). Oh yes, Job has orthodox beliefs about what will happen to the wicked, but the only thing is that he is absolutely certain that that doesn’t include him. Yes, he subtly agrees that this is all that has happened to him and so (implied) he understands where they are coming from. It is an understandable mistake, because that is how it usually works – the Lord does judge the wicked and take away what they have. Yes, that is a truth, but he has just maintained his crucial belief – I am righteous! This has not happened to me because I have sinned.
Now we may think Job is going over the top in this but he is doing no more than speaking the truth. We know from the Lord’s earlier description of him – blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil (1:8 & 2:3) – that he had NOT sinned. This test was not about his sin. It was all about whether he would remain faithful to God in the face of all that Satan could throw at him this side of death. There is a strong lesson here about not letting the enemy dump guilt upon you when you are not guilty! Don’t let him do it!
It’s been 18 hours now since i’ve had tea all i can say is cold turkey on the caffeine blows. I’m tired, so tired, with a good 9 hour sleep under my belt the past few days. I’m not irritable yet but i expect to be so shortly, couldn’t help but think this guy’s boring when i was talking a close friend.
It’s a dilemma, do i lose a dare to my mother, do i lie or do i just become irritating overnight?
I have a phone interview tomorrow and i want to be myself not some tea-deprived irritating twit
Hope I’m less dependent on caffeine by morning as the orange squash isn’t doing it’s job.
Gisteren twee avondmaalsdiensten mogen voorgaan in onze eigen gemeente. Dat was erg waardevol. ’s Morgens heb ik ervoor gekozen om de spanning die Paulus in Romeinen 8 beschrijft verder uit te werken: de spanning tussen het vlees (of: de natuur, NBV) en de geest. In de verschillende vertalingen van een schitterende tekst uit Job komt deze spanning ook naar voren. In Job 19,26 staat in de Nieuwe bijbelvertaling: “in dit lichaam zal ik God aanschouwen.” In de NBG staat: “uit dit lichaam zal ik God aanschouwen.” En in de Leidse vertaling staat: “als ik van dit vlees beroofd ben, zal ik God aanschouwen.” De vraag die ik gesteld heb is deze: “hoe kun je God ervaren?” Moet je dan heel zweverig, geestelijk zijn, of heeft dit lichaam, het aardse er ook alles mee te maken?
De dienst is hier te beluisteren: http://www.kerkomroep.nl/#prov.php?pr=ZH (Onder Lexmond; 8-11 start 9:58 uur), de preek begint vanaf de 32e minuut). Ook kun je hier de avonddienst beluisteren.
Some time ago – probably back in 2007 – I bought a book called ‘365 Ways to Change the World,’ by Michael Norton. I wanted to make a difference in the world in which I live – to give something back as it where. As a Christian there are many ways for me to do so, but I also wanted to make a difference in more mundane matters and ways also. Of course I know that Christians are able and currently do make a difference in a variety and plethora of ways. I was looking for something a little different to the norm I guess.
Anyhow, I came across this book and thought that this would be a great book to read one day at a time – as the book suggests one action/theme for each day of the year. This book would give me plenty of food for thought and there would have to be many things that I could do or participate in to make a difference.
Not long after I bought the book my world was turned upside down and became something totally different to what I had up till then been living. Totally is probably not the right word, as some things didn’t change – but it was certainly life-changing.
I chose to leave my job in an organisation for which I had worked for nearly twenty years, the last few of which I was a manager. My health was terrible, with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome causing absolute havoc. I moved from the area in which I was living to a totally different location and under different circumstances, and that without a job. Life had changed tremendously for me and all of my belongings were locked away in a storage shed until I could sort my life out and start afresh.
I got another job which was completely different to the one I had before. My health seemed to improve dramatically and the dreaded illness which had plagued for two decades seemed to finally disappear. Then I had a terrible car accident which almost killed me and prolonged this transitory period of my life.
Now finally, I have recently been able to get all my belongings out of storage – including this book by Michael Norton. It is therefore now time to start again what I had originally planned to do and had begun back in 2007. I will read the section of the book marked out for each calendar day and consider what I shall do with the actions/themes for that day. It may be that there will be days that I will not take up the suggested action or activity, while on other days I may very well throw myself into the suggested action or activity. What I am hopeful of is finding at least one action or activity, though I am fairly sure there will be far more than one action or activity that I will participate in to some extent.
I will probably report my attempts or at least my resolutions to engage in actions and activities here, as a way of showing whether this book is useful for assisting people in making a difference. After all, its subtitle is ‘How to make a difference – one day at a time.’ As I set out on my journey with this book, I am quite excited by the prospect of making that difference and becoming more engaged with the world in which I live – in a positive manner.
I think the book is a brilliant idea and something that most people would find helpful – even if they do everything that is suggested in the book. It is certainly packed with ideas and suggestions.
There is also a web site to use along with the book:
http://www.365act.com
All of the ideas in the book are included in the web site and many more according to the book. There is also an ‘ideas bank’ on ways of changing the world for the better – which also seems to be a brilliant idea I think.
OK, I will now look at today’s idea.
My copy of the book (paperback) is by Penguin Books ( www.penguin.com.au ) and was printed in 2006.
Having a plan is important, working the plan is essential. I set time for each part of my plan (calls, in person meetings, emails, planning). When I’m on the road, those have only three parts — eg meetings and returning emails/calls and notes/planning. During each block of time, I work that part of my plan. For example, when I am scheduled to make calls — no matter what, I sit down at my desk and start making calls. I don’t spend time checking my email, I don’t get sidetracked reading industry blogs or surfing the web or gabbing with my co-workers. Nothing is more important than making the calls. I use calls as the most important piece to start with each day because most of us are phone phobic and would rather email or noodle around on the internet. Jump in and get it done. Some days, I set my plan to start with a “warm” call — someone I know will take my call and get me jump started on positive vibes. Then, I just keep moving down my list from call to call or task to task, until I’ve completed my plan for the day.
Thanks again to Denise Palmieri from Pinnacle Group International
L’impact de la crise sur les travailleurs Plus de 1 travailleur sur 2 déclare de ressentir directement l’impact de la crise. La peur de perdre son emploi et l’augmentation du stress ont des conséquences sur la motivation des travailleurs.
Telle est la conclusion de la troisième édition du guide des salaires OfficeTeam qui donne un aperçu détaillé de la rémunération et des avantages complémentaires des professionnels administratifs en Belgique. Le « 2010 OfficeTeam Salary Guide » repose sur une enquête menée en Belgique auprès de 900 professionnels administratifs.
On ne peut nier que, suite à la crise économique, les investissements dans la rétention des collaborateurs et les campagnes d’employer branding (image de l’employeur) sont passés à l’arrière-plan. Toutefois, l’enquête met au jour les conséquences négatives claires de la récession sur la qualité de vie des travailleurs sur le lieu de travail et dans la vie privée.
Plus de la moitié des personnes interrogées confirment en effet ressentir physiquement les conséquences de la crise, car elles ont peur de perdre leur emploi et ressentent plus de stress en raison de l’augmentation de la pression au travail. Lire l’article complet : 6 minutes Business Le guide des salaires OfficeTeam
Job cannot take anymore. And so in 6:1-7:2, he responds to his friend. Eliphaz’s words do not bring Job comfort. Instead, they bring forth an emotional outbrust and protest from Job against the insinuation that there is some hidden sin in his life which has caused God to punish him. Knowing he has done nothing wrong, Job’s reaction is to cry out in terror because he feels like God has become his enemy. In Job 6:2-4 we hear haunting words from Job. “If only my anguish could be weighed and all my misery be placed on the scales! It would surely outweigh the sand of the seas- no wonder my words have been impetuous. The arrows of the Almighty are in me, my spirit drinks in their poison; God’s terrors are marshaled against me. The Hebrew text speaks of the armaments of God in a battle array against him. The thought of God bringing an army against Job brings terror to his heart.
In 6:14, Job speaks directly to his counselor. “A despairing man should have the devotion of his friends, even though he forsakes the fear of the Almighty. But my brothers are as undependable as intermittent streams, as the streams that overflow when darkened by thawing ice and swollen with melting snow, but that cease to flow in the dry season, and in the heat vanish from their channels.” Job will not let this go–he will defend himself. As he points out in 6:25 and following, “How painful are honest words! But what do your arguments prove? Do you mean to correct what I say, and treat the words of a despairing man as wind? You would even cast lots for the fatherless and barter away your friend. `But now be so kind as to look at me. Would I lie to your face? Relent, do not be unjust; reconsider, for my integrity is at stake. Is there any wickedness on my lips? Can my mouth not discern malice
?” Job has done nothing wrong. He has not spoken evil, nor done evil. He now tells Eliphaz to relent and back off. Job’s integrity is at stake.
Today’s Hump Day Quote Day theme is Work Ethic. You can check out last weeks theme, Teamwork, here. Next weeks quote theme will be Imagination.
Definition of Work Ethic: A set of values based on the moral virtues of hard work and diligence.
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I’ve always loved this old war propaganda poster trying to get women out into the workforce while their men were out on the battlefields. It makes me giggle.
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“The Devil finds work for idle hands.”
- Proverb 1721
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“If a task has once begun.
Never leave it till it’s done.
Be the labor great or small.
Do it well or not at all.”
- Anon.
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“We have too many people who live without working, and we have altogether too many who work without living.”
- Charles R. Brown
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“Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.”
- Thomas Edison
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“Hard work spotlights the character of people: some turn up their sleeves, some turn up their noses, and some don’t turn up at all.”
- Sam Ewig
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“The object of living is work, experience, happiness. There is joy in work. All that money can do is buy us someone else’s work in exchange for our own. There is no happiness except in the realization that we have accomplished something.”
- Henry Ford
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“Talent is cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work.”
- Stephen King
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Source: Off the Mark
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What do you think? Does good work ethic come naturally to you or is it something you’ve had to struggle with? Do you enjoy your job?
Dr. Kim Riddlebarger preached a sermon series in Job, and here is an excerpt from Job 4-14, “Though He Slay Me”
There is a reason why we use the phrase “Job’s Counselors” when we speak of people whose well-intended words only add insult to injury. Having spent a week in mourning with their friend Job, and having heard his lament in which he curses the day of his birth, Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar now seek to “comfort” their heartbroken friend. But they will utterly fail, as their misguided words only bring pain to Job. As they attempt to show Job the error of his ways, they instead provoke a defiant outburst of protest, the subject of this sermon.
We now turn to an extended dialogue/debate which runs from Job 4-14. In the first of three cycles of speeches we will hear from each of Job’s friends as well as from Job himself. Context is critical. In the prologue (chapters 1-2), we met Job, learned of his great piety as well as the critical fact that underlies what follows. Job’s trial by ordeal has come about because God directed Satan’s attention to Job, a man who was blameless and upright, who feared God and shunned evil. When Satan posed the idea that Job’s piety is self-serving, and that if all of the good things God had given him were taken away, Job will no longer worship God, but curse him, Job’s ordeal began in earnest. But when Job’s possessions are gone and when his children are killed, Job does not curse God. Instead, he praises God. Satan tries again. Only this time Satan wants to attack Job’s health. Take away Job’s health–Satan reasons–and Job will curse God to his face. Now afflicted with a horrible skin disease, still Job does not curse God. Job is an outcast, covered with sores, a miserable wretch, sitting on the town dunghill. He has lost everything. And all the people who saw him surely were thinking, “what sin did Job commit which brought down God’s wrath upon him?”
Having heard of the disaster that had befallen their friend, Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar set out from their homes to comfort their friend. Between the time Job lost everything and the time his three friends arrive, Job’s emotional state deteriorated greatly. He has reached the point where he curses the day of his own birth. In the lament of Job 3, Job repeatedly asks the question “why did all of these horrible things come to pass?” Yet, the trigger which sets Job off is the arrival of his three friends, who, out of their deep respect for Job, sat silently with him throughout a week of mourning. Knowing that his friends must be thinking that he must have committed some secret sin which brought about God’s judgment, Job knows that he has done nothing wrong. This is why Job’s inner turmoil is so great and the story so compelling.
As we turn to the dialogue which follows, we need to be aware that Job’s suffering is viewed from two completely different perspectives. From the fact of his suffering, Job’s friends all infer that Job has committed some great sin. In this, they are completely orthodox in their theology. They know that God is holy and must punish sin. In their minds, Job’s ordeal is evidence that Job is being punished. The conclusion is obvious. Job has sinned. But from Job’s perspective the issue is completely different. Since Job is innocent–despite the opinion of his friends–the fact that he is suffering calls into question God’s justice. How can God be just if he’s punishing the innocent?1 This dilemma explains why Job is not focused on the loss of his possessions and family, nearly as much as he is focused upon the loss of his relationship with God. How can God treat Job like an enemy when Job has done nothing wrong? Job’s lament (Job 3) ends the silence of the period of mourning and provokes the three cycles of speeches from his three friends, to which Job responds. The three opening speeches (cycle one) are the longest and most carefully reasoned. The second cycle of speeches in Job 15-21 are somewhat shorter, while the third cycle of speeches in Job 22-26 are the shortest and most intense. As the debates and speeches become more heated, the four men seem to run out of steam.2 The dialogue begins with Job’s three friends offering him pastoral advice, but the speeches quickly take on the air of a courtroom drama, as though Job were on trial and his friends take on the role of a council of elders who pass judgment on Job. Job refuses to agree with their verdict.3 Yet his friends will not budge from their view that God is holy and must punish all sin. Therefore, Job’s plight is indicative that he has sinned.
2 “If one ventures a word with you, will you be impatient?
Yet who can keep from speaking?
3 Behold, you have instructed many,
and you have strengthened the weak hands.
4 Your words have upheld him who was stumbling,
and you have made firm the feeble knees.
5 But now it has come to you, and you are impatient;
it touches you, and you are dismayed.
6 Is not your fear of God [1] your confidence,
and the integrity of your ways your hope?
7 “Remember: who that was innocent ever perished?
Or where were the upright cut off?
8 As I have seen, those who plow iniquity
and sow trouble reap the same.
9 By the breath of God they perish,
and by the blast of his anger they are consumed.
10 The roar of the lion, the voice of the fierce lion,
the teeth of the young lions are broken.
11 The strong lion perishes for lack of prey,
and the cubs of the lioness are scattered.
12 “Now a word was brought to me stealthily;
my ear received the whisper of it.
13 Amid thoughts from visions of the night,
when deep sleep falls on men,
14 dread came upon me, and trembling,
which made all my bones shake.
15 A spirit glided past my face;
the hair of my flesh stood up.
16 It stood still,
but I could not discern its appearance.
A form was before my eyes;
there was silence, then I heard a voice:
17 ‘Can mortal man be in the right before [2] God?
Can a man be pure before his Maker?
18 Even in his servants he puts no trust,
and his angels he charges with error;
19 how much more those who dwell in houses of clay,
whose foundation is in the dust,
who are crushed like the moth.
20 Between morning and evening they are beaten to pieces;
they perish forever without anyone regarding it.
21 Is not their tent-cord plucked up within them,
do they not die, and that without wisdom?’
I still think it’s difficult to find a job these days but I think the world wide web is always look for people who knows about computers and programming, making games and creating public social network. If you are that type of person, you can always look at the IT job search. I wish it is my thing but I am not smart enough when it comes to computers. I know there are people who are gifted with it and know the stuff immediately. The nice about it is working at home or in an office and maybe at your own time. That is a dream job!
John Piper, from Part 1 of a sermon series on Job, “Reverent in Suffering”:
Did you notice that in the two heavenly scenes God handed Job over to Satan’s power? But when Satan had done his work of taking Job’s wealth and family, Job said in 1:21, “The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.”
Job says that it was ultimately the Lord himself who took away his family and wealth. Then the inspired writer of the book makes a comment to avoid a misunderstanding. Lest anyone say that Job should not have attributed Satan’s work to God, he writes (v. 22), “In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong.” It is not sin to say that what Satan did, God ultimately did, because God rules Satan.
Similarly in the second heavenly scene God says (2:6) to Satan, “Behold, he is in your power, only spare his life.” Then verse 7 makes it very explicit that “Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord, and afflicted Job with loathsome sores.”
But again in verse 10 Job says, “Shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?” In other words Job again goes all the way up to the sovereignty of God over Satan and says that his sickness is from God. Satan may have been the nearer cause, but ultimately it is from God.
And again the inspired writer warns us not to criticize Job here. He writes at the end of verse 10, “In all this Job did not sin with his lips.” It is not a sin to say that a sickness that Satan causes is “from the Lord.”
Job’s rock of refuge and hope when everything else seemed to be crumbling was the absolute sovereignty of God. Which leads me finally to . . .
Three Personal Implications
1. Let us join with Job and affirm with all our hearts the absolute sovereignty of God.
Let us say with the psalmist (115:3), “Our God is in the heavens; he does whatever he pleases.” Let us say with Daniel (4:35), “He does according to his will in the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, ‘What doest thou?’” Let us make the absolute sovereignty of God the rock on which we build our lives and our church.
2. Let your tears flow freely when your calamity comes.
“Job arose, rent his robe, and shaved his head, and fell upon his face” (1:20). The sobs of grief and pain are not the sign of unbelief. Job knows nothing of a flippant, insensitive, superficial “Praise God anyhow” response to suffering. The magnificence of his worship is because it was in grief, not because it replaced grief. Let your tears flow freely when your calamity comes. And let the rest of us weep with those who weep.
3. Trust in the goodness of God, and let him be your treasure and your joy.
Even if God had let Satan take Job’s life, we know what Job would have said. He would have said Psalm 63:3, “The steadfast love of the Lord is better than life.”
When your calamity comes, may the Lord give you the grace to affirm the sovereignty of God, let your tears flow freely, and let God himself be your treasure and your joy. Amen.
2:1 Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them to present himself before the Lord. 2 And the Lord said to Satan, “From where have you come?” Satan answered the Lord and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.” 3 And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil? He still holds fast his integrity, although you incited me against him to destroy him without reason.” 4 Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “Skin for skin! All that a man has he will give for his life. 5 But stretch out your hand and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face.” 6 And the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your hand; only spare his life.”
7 So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and struck Job with loathsome sores from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. 8 And he took a piece of broken pottery with which to scrape himself while he sat in the ashes.
9 Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die.” 10 But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women would speak. Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” [1] In all this Job did not sin with his lips.
Job’s Three Friends
11 Now when Job’s three friends heard of all this evil that had come upon him, they came each from his own place, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite. They made an appointment together to come to show him sympathy and comfort him. 12 And when they saw him from a distance, they did not recognize him. And they raised their voices and wept, and they tore their robes and sprinkled dust on their heads toward heaven. 13 And they sat with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his suffering was very great.
This is the time of the semester where I am utterly drained and ready for everything to end. I’m sure it doesn’t help that I had an absolutely inhuman workload this semester (dissertation, teaching 3 classes, lab work, and job hunting) and the end of the semester marks the beginning of an awesome trip to SE Asia. 7 more working days until I’m free. 7 more….7 more…
The town of Billet Falls has always been this way for as long as anyone can remember. It’s a town, not unlike many others. It’s full of people who are all busy doing the things they do in the places they do them. There’s the banker who works at the bank. The butcher who works at the market. The nurse who works at the hospital and of course the Mayor who works at City Hall all working to keep things running along smoothly and without disruption, because that’s the way it’s always been done. The people of Billet Falls liked living life that way and no one ever dared to try living life any differently.