text:
LandSurvival.com
4 Season Survival for Planet Earth ≧✯◡✯≦
HFS Share
Siddhattha
Tonido
Interswitch
November 19, 2020 Tim Dempsey
African cross-border fintech startup Chipper Cash has raised a $30 million Series B funding round led by Ribbit Capital with participation of Bezos Expeditions — the personal VC fund of Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.
Chipper Cash was founded in San Francisco in 2018 by Ugandan Ham Serunjogi and Ghanaian Maijid Moujaled. The company offers mobile-based, no fee, P2P payment services in seven countries: Ghana, Uganda, Nigeria, Tanzania, Rwanda, South Africa and Kenya.
Parallel to its P2P app, the startup also runs Chipper Checkout — a merchant-focused, fee-based payment product that generates the revenue to support Chipper Cash's free mobile-money business. The company has scaled to 3 million users on its platform and processes an average of 80,000 transactions daily. In June 2020, Chipper Cash reached a monthly payments value of $100 million, according to CEO Ham Serunjogi .
As part of the Series B raise, the startup plans to expand its products and geographic scope. On the product side, that entails offering more business payment solutions, crypto-currency trading options, and investment services.
"We'll always be a P2P financial transfer platform at our core. But we've had demand from our users to offer other value services…like purchasing cryptocurrency assets and making investments in stocks," Serunjogi told TechCrunch on a call.
Image Credits: Chipper Cash
Chipper Cash has added beta dropdowns on its website and app to buy and sell Bitcoin and invest in U.S. stocks from Africa — the latter through a partnership with U.S. financial services company DriveWealth.
"We'll launch [the stock product] in Nigeria first so Nigerians have the option to buy fractional stocks — Tesla shares, Apple shares or Amazon shares and others — through our app. We'll expand into other countries thereafter," said Serunjogi.
On the business financial services side, the startup plans to offer more API payments solutions. "We've been getting a lot of requests from people on our P2P platform, who also have business enterprises, to be able to collect payments for sale of goods," explained Serunjogi.
Chipper Cash also plans to use its Series B financing for additional country expansion, which the company will announce by the end of 2021.
Jeff Bezos's backing of Chipper Cash follows a recent string of events that has elevated the visibility of Africa's startup scene. Over the past decade, the continent's tech ecosystem has been one of the fastest growing in the world by year year-over-year expansion in venture capital and startup formation, concentrated in countries such as Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa.
Image Credits: TechCrunch/Bryce Durbin
Bringing Africa's large unbanked population and underbanked consumers and SMEs online has factored prominently. Roughly 66% of Sub-Saharan Africa's 1 billion people don't have a bank account, according to World Bank data.
As such, fintech has become Africa's highest-funded tech sector, receiving the bulk of an estimated $2 billion in VC that went to startups in 2019. Even with the rapid venture funding growth over the last decade, Africa's tech scene had been performance light, with only one known unicorn (e-commerce venture Jumia) a handful of exits, and no major public share offerings. That changed last year.
In April 2019, Jumia — backed by investors including Goldman Sachs and Mastercard — went public in an NYSE IPO. Later in the year, Nigerian fintech company Interswitch achieved unicorn status after a $200 million investment by Visa.
This year, Network International purchased East African payments startup DPO for $288 million and in August WorldRemit acquired Africa focused remittance company Sendwave for $500 million.
Stripe acquires Nigeria's Paystack for $200M+ to expand into the African continent
One of the more significant liquidity events in African tech occurred last month, when Stripe acquired Nigerian payment gateway startup Paystack for a reported $200 million.
In an email to TechCrunch, a spokesperson for Bezos Expeditions confirmed the fund's investment in Chipper Cash, but declined to comment on further plans to back African startups. Per Crunchbase data, the investment would be the first in Africa for the fund. It's worth noting Bezos Expeditions is not connected to Jeff Bezo's hallmark business venture, Amazon.
For Chipper Cash, the $30 million Series B raise caps an event-filled two years for the San Francisco-based payments company and founders Ham Serunjogi and Maijid Moujaled. The two came to America for academics, met in Iowa while studying at Grinnell College and ventured out to Silicon Valley for stints in big tech: Facebook for Serunjogi and Flickr and Yahoo! for Moujaled.
Chipper Cash founders Ham Serunjogi (R) and Maijid Moujaled; Image Credits: Chipper Cash
The startup call beckoned and after launching Chipper Cash in 2018, the duo convinced 500 Startups and Liquid 2 Ventures — co-founded by American football legend Joe Montana — to back their company with seed funds. The startup expanded into Nigeria and Southern Africa in 2019, entered a payments partnership with Visa in April and raised a $13.8 million Series A in June.
Chipper Cash founder Ham Serunjogi believes the backing of his company by a notable tech figure, such as Jeff Bezos (the world's richest person), has benefits beyond his venture.
"It's a big deal when a world class investor like Bezos or Ribbit goes out of their sweet spot to a new area where they previously haven't done investments," he said. "Ultimately, the winner of those things happening is the African tech ecosystem overall, as it will bring more investment from firms of that caliber to African startups."
Visa's Africa strategy banks on startup partnerships
500 startups, Africa, Amazon, America, Apple, Banking, Bezos Expeditions, Chipper Cash, E Commerce, Facebook, financial services, Ghana, goldman sachs, Ham Serunjogi, hsbc, Interswitch, Iowa, jeff bezos, joe montana, kenya, liquid 2 ventures, Maijid Moujaled, Mastercard, mobile payments, nigeria, Online Payments, p2p, paystack, Ribbit, Ribbit Capital, Rwanda, san francisco, series B, South Africa, stripe, Tanzania, TC, Tesla, Uganda, United States, Venture Capital, Visa, worldremit, Yahoo	Tech Crunch
Did African startups raise $496M, $1B or $2B in 2019?
March 5, 2020 Tim Dempsey
Five years ago, it was hard to come by any numbers for annual VC investment in Africa. These days the challenge is choosing which number to follow.
That's the case for three venture funding studies for Africa that turned up varied results.
The numbers and variance
Investment stats released by media outlet Disrupt Africa, data-base WeeTracker and Africa focused fund Partech have left some people scratching their heads.
From high to low, Partech pegged total 2019 VC for African startups at $2 billion, compared to WeeTracker's $1.3 billion estimate and Disrupt Africa's $496 million.
That's a fairly substantial spread of $1.5 billion between the assessments. The variance filtered down to country VC valuations, though it was a little less sharp.
Partech and WeeTracker shared the same top-three countries for 2019 VC investment in Africa — Nigeria, Kenya, and Egypt — but with hundred-million dollar differences.
Disrupt Africa came up with a different lead market for startup investment on the continent — Kenya — though its $149 million estimate for the East African country was some $500 million lower than Partech and WeeTracker's VC leader, Nigeria.
So what accounts for the big deviations? TechCrunch spoke to each organization (and reviewed the reports) and found the contrasting stats derive from different methodologies — namely defining what constitutes a startup and an African startup.
Partech's larger overall VC valuation for the continent comes from broader parameters for companies and quantifying investment.
"We do not limit the definition of startups by age of the incorporation or size of funds raised," Partech General Partner Tidjane Deme told TechCrunch.
This led the fund, for example, to include Visa's $200 million investment in Nigerian financial-services company Interswitch . The corporate round was certainly tech-related, though few would classify Interswitch — which launched in 2002, acquires companies, and has a venture fund — as a startup.
Nigeria's Interswitch confirms $1B valuation after Visa investment
Partech's higher annual VC value for Africa's startups could also connect to tallying confidential investment data.
"We…collect and analyze undisclosed deals, accessing more detailed information thanks to our relationships within the ecosystem," the fund's report disclosed.
WeeTracker's methodology also included data on undisclosed startup investments and opened up the count to funding sources beyond VC.
"Debt/loans, grants/awards/prizes/non-equity assistance, crowdfunding, [and] ICOs are included," WeeTracker clarified in a methodology note.
Disrupt Africa used a more conservative approach across companies and investment. "We are a bit more narrow on what we consider a startup to be," the site's co-founder Tom Jackson told TechCrunch.
"In the clearest scenario, an African startup would be headquartered in Africa, founded by an African, and have Africa as its primary market," Disrupt Africa's report stated — though Jackson noted all these factors don't always align.
"Disrupt Africa tackles this issue on a case-by-case basis," he said.
Partech was more liberal in its definition of an African startup, including investment for tech-companies that count Africa as their primary market, but not insisting they be incorporated or operate HQs on the continent.
That opened up inclusion of large 2019 rounds to Africa focused, New York headquartered tech-talent accelerator Andela and investment to Opera's verticals, such as OPay in Nigeria.
In addition to following a more conservative definition of African startup, Disrupt Africa's report was more particular to early-stage ventures. The site's report primarily counted investment for companies founded within the last five year and excluded "spin-offs of corporates or any other large entity…that [has]…developed past the point of being a startup."
Commonalities across reports
For all the differences on annual VC counts for Africa, there were some common threads across WeeTracker, Partech, and Disrupt Africa's investment reports.
The first was the rise of Nigeria — which has Africa's largest population and economy — as the top destination for startup VC investment on the continent.
The second was the prominence of fintech as the most funded startup sector across Africa, gaining 54% of all VC in Partech's report and $678 million of the $1.3 billion to startups in WeeTracker's study.
VC inequality
An unfortunate commonality in each report was the preponderance of startup investment going to English speaking Africa. No francophone country made it into the the top five in any of the three reports. Only Senegal registered on Partech's country-list, with a small $16 million in VC in 2019.
The Dakar Angel Network launched last year to bridge the resource gap for startups in French-speaking African countries.
Final sum
There may not be a right or wrong stat for annual investment to African startups, just three reports with different methodologies that capture unique snapshots.
Partech and WeeTracker offer a broader view of multiple types of financial support going to tech companies operating in Africa. Disrupt Africa's assessment is more specific to a standard definition of VC going to startups originating and operating in Africa.
Three reports with varying numbers on the continent's startup investment is a definite upgrade to what was available not so long ago: little to no formal data on VC in Africa.
Dakar Network Angels begins startup investments in francophone Africa
Africa, Co-founder, corporate finance, economy, Egypt, entrepreneurship, finance, Interswitch, kenya, Money, New York, nigeria, Partech, partech ventures, Private Equity, South Africa, spin offs, Startup company, TC, TechCrunch, Venture Capital	Tech Crunch
Nigeria is becoming Africa's unofficial tech capital
February 3, 2020 Tim Dempsey
Africa has one of the world's fastest growing tech markets and Nigeria is becoming its unofficial capital.
While the West African nation is commonly associated with negative cliches around corruption and terrorism — which persist as serious problems, and influenced the Trump administration's recent restrictions on Nigerian immigration to the U.S.
Even so, there's more to the country than Boko Haram or fictitious princes with inheritances.
Nigeria has become a magnet for VC, a hotbed for startup formation and a strategic entry point for Silicon Valley. As a frontier market, there is certainly a volatility to the country's political and economic trajectory. The nation teeters back and forth between its stereotypical basket-case status and getting its act together to become Africa's unrivaled superpower.
The upside of that pendulum is why — despite its problems — so much American, Chinese and African tech capital is gravitating to Nigeria.
"Whatever you think of Africa, you can't ignore the numbers," Africa's richest man Aliko Dangote told me in 2015, noting that demographics are creating an imperative for global businesses to enter the continent.
Africa, Andela, china, Chipper Cash, Cisco, finance, fintech startup, flutterwave, goldman sachs, Ham Serunjogi, Interswitch, iROKOtv, Jack Dorsey, Jason Njoku, kenya, kobo360, Lagos, Nairobi, nigeria, partech ventures, Sim Shagaya, South Africa, Tayo Oviosu, TC, VC, Venture Capital, Worldpay	Tech Crunch
Africa Roundup: Nigerian fintech gets $360M, mints unicorn, draws Chinese VC
December 2, 2019 Tim Dempsey
November 2019 could mark when Nigeria (arguably) became Africa's unofficial capital for fintech investment and digital finance startups.
The month saw $360 million invested in Nigerian focused payment ventures. That is equivalent to roughly one-third of all the startup VC raised for the entire continent in 2018, according to Partech stats.
A notable trend-within-the-trend is that more than half — or $170 million — of the funding to Nigerian fintech ventures in November came from Chinese investors. This marks a pivot in China's engagement with Africa to tech. We'll get to that.
Before the big Chinese backed rounds, one of Nigeria's earliest fintech companies, Interswitch, confirmed its $1 billion valuation after Visa took a minority stake in the company. Interswitch would not disclose the amount to TechCrunch, but Sky News reporting pegged it at $200 million for 20%.
Founded in 2002 by Mitchell Elegbe, Interswitch pioneered the infrastructure to digitize Nigeria's then predominantly paper-ledger and cash-based economy.
The company now provides much of the tech-wiring for Nigeria's online banking system that serves Africa's largest economy and population. Interswitch offers a number of personal and business finance products, including its Verve payment cards and Quickteller payment app.
The financial services firm has expanded its physical presence to Uganda, Gambia and Kenya . The Nigerian company also sells its products in 23 African countries and launched a partnership in August for Verve cardholders to make payments on Discover's global network.
Visa and Interswitch touted the equity investment as a strategic collaboration between the two companies, without a lot of detail on what that will mean.
One point TechCrunch did lock down is Interswitch's (long-awaited) and imminent IPO. A source close to the matter said the company will list on a major exchange by mid-2020.
For the near to medium-term, Interswitch could stand as Africa's sole tech-unicorn, as e-commerce venture Jumia's volatile share-price and declining market-cap — since an April IPO — have dropped the company's valuation below $1 billion.
Circling back to China, November was the month that signaled Chinese actors are all in on African tech.
In two separate rounds, Chinese investors put $220 million into OPay and PalmPay — two fledgling startups with plans to scale in Nigeria and the broader continent.
PalmPay, a consumer oriented payments product, went live last month with a $40 million seed-round (one of the largest in Africa in 2019) led by Africa's biggest mobile-phone seller — China's Transsion.
The startup was upfront about its ambitions, stating its goals to become "Africa's largest financial services platform," in a company release.
To that end, PalmPay conveniently entered a strategic partnership with its lead investor. The startup's payment app will come pre-installed on Transsion's mobile device brands, such as Tecno, in Africa — for an estimated reach of 20 million phones.
PalmPay also launched in Ghana in November and its UK and Africa based CEO, Greg Reeve, confirmed plans to expand to additional African countries in 2020.
OPay's $120 million Series B was announced several days after the PalmPay news and came only months after the mobile-based fintech venture raised $50 million.
Founded by Chinese owned consumer internet company Opera — and backed by 9 Chinese investors — OPay is the payment utility for a suite of Opera developed internet based commercial products in Nigeria. These include ride-hail apps ORide and OCar and food delivery service OFood.
With its latest Series A, OPay announced it would expand in Kenya, South Africa, and Ghana.
Though it wasn't fintech, Chinese investors also backed a (reported) $30 million Series B for East African trucking logistics company Lori Systems in November.
With OPay, PalmPay, and Lori Systems, startups in Africa have raised a combined $240 million from 15 Chinese investors in a span of months.
There are a number of things to note and watch out for here, as TechCrunch reporting has illuminated (and will continue to do in follow-on coverage).
These moves mark a next chapter in China's engagement in Africa and could raise some new issues. Hereto, the country's interaction with Africa's tech ecosystem has been relatively light compared to China's deal-making on infrastructure and commodities.
There continues to be plenty of debate (and critique) of China's role in Africa. This new digital-phase will certainly add a fresh component to all that. One thing to track will be data-privacy and national-security concerns that may emerge around Chinese actors investing heavily in African mobile consumer platforms.
We've seen lines (allegedly) blur on these matters between Chinese state and private-sector actors with companies such as Huawei.
As OPera and PalmPay expand, they may need to do some reassuring of African regulators as countries (such as Kenya) establish more formal consumer protection protocols for digital platforms.
One more thing to follow on OPay's funding and planned expansion is the extent to which it puts Opera (and its entire suite of consumer internet products) in competition with multiple actors in Africa's startup ecosystem. Opera's Africa ventures could go head to head with Uber, Jumia, and M-Pesa — the mobile money-product that put Kenya out front on digital finance in Africa before Nigeria.
Opera's Africa fintech startup OPay gains $120M from Chinese investors
Shifting back to American engagement in African tech, Twitter and Square CEO Jack Dorsey was on the continent in November. No sooner than he'd finished his first trip, Dorsey announced plans to move to Africa in 2020, for 3 to 6 months, saying on Twitter "Africa will define the future (especially the bitcoin one!)."
We still don't know much about what this last trip — or his future foray — mean in terms of concrete partnerships, investment, or market moves in Africa from Dorsey and his companies.
He visited Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa and Ethiopia and met with leaders at Nigeria's CcHub (Bosun Tijani), Ethiopia's Ice Addis (Markos Lemming), and did some meetings with fintech founders in Lagos (Paga's Tayo Oviosu).
I know most of the organizations and people Dorsey talked to pretty well and nothing has shaken out yet in terms of partnership or investment news from his recent trip.
On what could come out of Dorsey's 2020 move to Africa, per his tweet and news highlighted in this roundup, a good bet would be it will have something to with fintech and Square.
More Africa-related stories @TechCrunch
Lime is launching electric scooters in Cape Town
Pan-African e-tailer Jumia grows 3Q revenue, e-payments and losses
Sim Shagaya's uLesson African edtech startup raises $3.1M
Samasource raises $14.8M for global AI data biz driven from Africa
Chaka opens up global investing to Africa's most populous nation
Solar-based ISP startup Tizeti launches 4G LTE network in Nigeria
Senegal's NIMA Codes to launch address app in 15 African countries
African tech around the 'net
Kenyan e-commerce startup Copia nets $26m Series B funding
Nigerian entrepreneur Temie Giwa-Tubosun wins Jack Ma's African business hero award
Kenyan public WiFi sensation BRCK launches In South Africa
4G LTE, Africa, Artificial Intelligence, Bosun Tijani, cchub, ceo, china, copia, countries, E Commerce, e-tailer, economy, edtech startup, ethiopia, finance, financial technology, Food, Ghana, huawei, Interswitch, isp, Jack Dorsey, jack ma, jumia, kenya, Lagos, Lori Systems, Mitchell Elegbe, mobile device, nigeria, Opay, Opera, paga, PalmPay, South Africa, Square, TC, TechCrunch, Tizeti, Transsion, Uber, Uganda, United Kingdom, VC, Verve, Visa	Tech Crunch
Africa focused fintech startup OPay has raised a $120 million Series B round backed by Chinese investors.
Located in Lagos and founded by consumer internet company Opera, OPay will use the funds to scale in Nigeria and expand its payments product to Kenya, Ghana and South Africa — Opera's CFO Frode Jacobsen confirmed to TechCrunch.
Series B investors included Meituan-Dianping, GaoRong, Source Code Capital, Softbank Asia, BAI, Redpoint, IDG Capital, Sequoia China and GSR Ventures.
OPay's $120 million round comes after the startup raised $50 million in June.
It also follows Visa's $200 million investment in Nigerian fintech company Interswitch and a $40 million raise by Lagos based payments startup PalmPay — led by China's Transsion.
There are a couple quick takeaways. Nigeria has become the epicenter for fintech VC and expansion in Africa. And Chinese investors have made an unmistakable pivot to African tech.
Opera's activity on the continent represents both trends. The Norway based, Chinese (majority) owned company founded OPay in 2018 on the popularity of its internet search engine.
Opera's web-browser has ranked No. 2 in usage in Africa, after Chrome, the last four years.
The company has built a hefty suite of internet-based commercial products in Nigeria around OPay's financial utility. These include motorcycle ride-hail app ORide, OFood delivery service, and OLeads SME marketing and advertising vertical.
"Opay will facilitate the people in Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa, Kenya and other African countries with the best fintech ecosystem. We see ourselves as a key contributor to…helping local businesses…thrive from…digital business models," Opera CEO and OPay Chairman Yahui Zhou, said in a statement.
Opera CFO Frode Jacobsen shed additional light on how OPay will deploy the $120 million across Opera's Africa network. OPay looks to capture volume around bill payments and airtime purchases, but not necessarily as priority. "That's not something you do ever day. We want to focus our services on things that have high-frequency usage," said Jacobsen.
Those include transportation services, food services, and other types of daily activities, he explained. Jacobsen also noted OPay will use the $120 million to enter more countries in Africa than those disclosed.
Since its Series A raise, OPay in Nigeria has scaled to 140,000 active agents and $10 million in daily transaction volume, according to company stats.
Beyond standing out as another huge funding round, OPay's $120 million VC raise has significance for Africa's tech ecosystem on multiple levels.
It marks 2019 as the year Chinese investors went all in on the continent's startup scene. OPay, PalmPay, and East African trucking logistics company Lori Systems have raised a combined $240 million from 15 different Chinese actors in a span of months.
OPay's funding and expansion plans are also harbinger for fierce, cross-border fintech competition in Africa's digital finance space. Parallel events to watch for include Interswitch's imminent IPO, e-commerce venture Jumia's shift to digital finance, and WhatsApp's likely entry in African payments.
The continent's 1.2 billion people represent the largest share of the world's unbanked and underbanked population — which makes fintech Africa's most promising digital sector. But it's becoming a notably crowded sector where startup attrition and failure will certainly come into play.
And not to be overlooked is how OPay's capital raise moves Opera toward becoming a multi-service commercial internet platform in Africa.
This places OPay and its Opera-supported suite of products on a competitive footing with other ride-hail, food delivery and payments startups across the continent. That means inevitable competition between Opera and Africa's largest multi-service internet company, Jumia.
Africa, CFO, chairman, china, consumer internet, countries, E Commerce, economy, financial technology, food delivery, Ghana, GSR Ventures, IDG Capital, Interswitch, jumia, kenya, Lagos, Meituan-Dianping, nigeria, Norway, Opera, Rocket Internet, search engine, sequoia china, Series A, Softbank, South Africa, TC, transportation services, web browser, whatsapp	Tech Crunch
Pre-order Samsung's latest range of Galaxy smartphones
~ Bear Grylls ~
"The rules of survival never change, whether you're in a desert or in an arena."
Dark Secret Place
Listen to "Dark Secret Place" on Spreaker.
Easy Listening – Yacht Rock
Alternative – 1990's
Supertramp – Best of
Midland – On The Rocks
BBC News Hour
KQRS Morning Show
Team Never Quit
US Navy's No. 2 civilian claims leadership shouldn't be blamed for old failures. Some disagree.
by David Larter on January 15, 2021 at 2:31 pm
The Navy's acting No. 2 civilian doesn't like taking the heat for past administrations. […]
Navy SEAL pleads guilty in 2017 strangulation death of Green Beret
by Todd South on January 15, 2021 at 2:19 pm
One defendant remains, a Marine Raider scheduled for trial on Feb. 1. […]
by Michael Biesecker, The Associated Press, Jake Bleiberg, The Associated Press, James LaPorta, The Associated Press on January 15, 2021 at 12:22 pm
Experts in homegrown extremism have warned for years about efforts by far-right militants and […]
Pentagon's weapons tester gives update on Navy's new long-range anti-ship missile
by David Larter on January 15, 2021 at 4:44 am
The U.S. Navy's new Long Range Anti-Ship Missile needs more realistic testing, the Pentagon's […]
by The Associated Press on January 15, 2021 at 2:41 am
Helicopter footage of the exercise released by Iran's navy showed what resembled an […]
Can the Pentagon prosecute military retirees under the UCMJ? Maybe — it depends.
by Todd South on January 14, 2021 at 10:08 pm
Military veterans involved in the mob attack on Capitol Hill have raised new questions about the […]
The military knows it has a problem with domestic extremists, white supremacists
by Meghann Myers, Leo Shane III on January 14, 2021 at 7:49 pm
The Defense Department is in the midst of a review of all of its policies on extremist activity. […]
by Sam Schick on January 14, 2021 at 3:30 pm
Enjoy your Friday night cocktails on Tuesday with these deliciously complex, booze-free spirits.	Continue reading "The Best Non-Alcoholic Spirits […]
Non-Alcoholic Negroni (NAgroni)
All the delight of a negroni cocktail, but without the alcohol! This non-alcoholic negroni relies on alcohol-free gin and vermouth to make a cocktail […]
5 Favorite Non-Alcoholic Wines
by Sheela Prakash on January 13, 2021 at 3:30 pm
Curious about the world of NA wine? Here are five bottles to try!	Continue reading "5 Favorite Non-Alcoholic Wines" » […]
Air Fryer Cauliflower Buffalo Wings
by Nick Evans on January 13, 2021 at 3:00 pm
You'll return bite after bite to this plate of Air Fryer Buffalo Cauliflower! The air fryer makes quick work of the cauliflower, turning it […]
5 Flavorful Non-Alcoholic Beers
by Joshua M. Bernstein on January 12, 2021 at 3:30 pm
These alcohol-free stouts, lagers, and IPAs taste just like the real thing. Try one or all of them, especially if you're partaking in Dry […]
Quick Kimchi (Mak Gimchi)
by Cecilia Hae-Jin Lee on January 12, 2021 at 3:00 pm
Kimchi is the name given to any number of fermented vegetables in Korea as a means to preserve the fall harvest for the cold winter months. This […]
One Simply Terrific Thing: Earlywood's Tera Scraper
by Irvin Lin on January 11, 2021 at 3:30 pm
Who knew that a simple slab of wood would become a favorite cooking tool? Earlywood's Tera scraper is the best non-metal utensil for nonstick […]
Iliza Shlesinger Comedian Iliza Shlesinger has a unique outlook on life. From the best way to eat Sour Patch Kids to the least offensive way to break up with a friend, Iliza has cultivated a hilarious take on society's problems…
Rich Zeoli
The Rich Zeoli Show | RADIO.COM Every morning on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT, Rich Zeoli gives the expert analysis and humorous take that we need in this crazy political climate. Along with News Anchor Dawn Stensland and Producer Greg Stocker, the Zeoli show is the next generation of…
KROQ Alternative Radio KROQ Alternative Radio – Los Angeles, CA.
© 2021 LandSurvival.com. Land Red.
U.S Army Field Manual 3-05.70 (21-76) Survival


David Burke Kitchen, located in the James Hotel, focuses on wholesome and hearty modern American food, locally sourced and presented in the creative and whimsical style of chef David Burke. Guests will enjoy several ways to experience the restaurant including the Treehouse Bar, Wine Cave and outdoor Urban Garden, opening this summer. David Burke Kitchen serves breakfast, lunch and dinner daily as well as weekend brunch.
The James New York, 23 Grand St.


Present your best items with Auctiva's FREE Scrolling Gallery. Low mintage limit, only 2,500!! The gang's all here: Charlie Brown, Lucy, Linus, Woodstock and, of course, Snoopy.
Charles Shultz's classic and beloved characters come together in a delightful collection of coins that celebrate the Peanuts comic strip. The range of spirited designs in fine silver is further brought to animated life with perfectly rendered details in full, rich color. A must for any Peanuts fan, or for the child within who refuses to grow up. Nice Authentic add to your collection. We are established and guarantee the authenticity of the products we sell.
We have our inventory of precious metals bought only from reputable mints. Please consider your fair Feedback. Let us know if you need this overnight.
We will do our best to accommodate your request. Fast shiiping will take 3-4 days(extra charge).
For damaged items, please save all outside and inside packaging and wrapping for inspection by the Post Office. Return item must be sent within 14 days after it has been received. We will do our best to satisfy our customers. Fell free to contact if you have any questions. The item "Niue 2015 4x2$ The Peanuts Movie Snoopy 4 x 1 Oz Proof Silver Coin Set" is in sale since Monday, February 08, 2016.
This item is in the category "Coins & Paper Money\Coins\ World\Australia & Oceania\South Pacific". The seller is "worldancient" and is located in Etobicoke, Ontario.


text:
Home » John
From the series: John PREVIOUS PAGE | NEXT PAGE
Lesson 94: When You Fail The Lord (John 18:12-27)
If you've never failed the Lord, you may leave now, because this message has nothing to say to you. But for the rest of us, I trust that it will be helpful and encouraging. The truth is, whether by un-Christlike words or behavior, we've all joined Peter in saying, "I am not a disciple of Jesus Christ." When it comes to opportunities to speak boldly for Christ, I feel like I fail more often than I succeed. Usually about an hour after the opportunity has passed, it dawns on my slow brain what I should have said! If you can relate to such failures or even if you've failed more seriously in a way that has disgraced the name of Christ, the account of Peter's failure should be of help.
John weaves the story together with the arrest and trial of Jesus before the high priest, Annas, in a way that contrasts the faithful, calm, courage of Christ with the cowardly compromise of Peter, along with the awful sinfulness of the Jewish leaders. (Harmonizing the different gospel accounts of Peter's denials is not easy, but I can't deal with that here. See John MacArthur, One Perfect Life [Thomas Nelson], pp. 437-444, for a suggested harmonization.) The overall effect of John's account is to show the glory of Christ in contrast to the sinfulness of human hearts.
Historical background: To understand the account of Jesus' trials, we need some historical background. There were two trials: one before the Jewish religious authorities and the other before the Roman civil authorities. Both trials had three phases and both were filled with illegalities. The Jewish trial began with an initial arraignment before Annas, who tried unsuccessfully to get Jesus to incriminate Himself. He then sent Jesus to Caiaphas, who illegally in the middle of the night brought false witnesses who contradicted one another (Matt. 26:57-68). In desperation, Caiaphas intervened and got Jesus to state openly that He was the Christ, the Son of God, resulting in the Jewish leaders declaring Him guilty of blasphemy (Matt. 26:63-66). Then in the early morning, Jesus stood before the full Sanhedrin, which formally condemned Him to death (Matt. 27:1-2). (John 18:24 is John's only reference to the second and third Jewish phase of the trial.)
Since the Jews did not have the right of capital punishment, they had to get the Roman authorities to convict Jesus on charges of insurrection. So they sent Him to Pilate (John 18:28-38a). When Pilate heard that Jesus was a Galilean, he sent Him to Herod, the Tetrarch over Galilee, who was in Jerusalem at the time (Luke 23:6-12). Jesus remained silent before Herod, who sent Him back to Pilate for the final verdict (John 18:38b-19:16). Although Pilate found Jesus to be innocent and tried to find a way to release Him, he finally capitulated to the pressure of the Jewish mob and handed Jesus over to be crucified. Both trials were a mockery of justice.
Annas was high priest from AD 6-15. Pilate's predecessor had deposed him, but after him five of his sons, plus Caiaphas, his son-in-law, had held that office. Caiaphas was high priest from AD 18-36, which included "that year" (John 18:13), the year of Jesus' trial and crucifixion. Both Annas and Caiaphas were referred to as "high priest," much like our former president is still addressed as President even though his term has expired.
Since the Jews did not accept Roman rule over Israel's religious matters and since the office of high priest was supposed to be for life, Annas was still the most politically and religiously influential man in Jerusalem. As a Sadducee, he was the equivalent of modern religious liberals, denying what Scripture plainly teaches. The Sadducees did not believe in angels or spirits or in the resurrection of the dead (Acts 23:8). So the office was more political than spiritual.
Annas controlled the lucrative business that went on in the temple. When pilgrims came to Jerusalem for the three annual feasts, they had to offer sacrifices which were approved by the high priest's officers. If you brought your own animal and it was rejected, you would have to buy officially approved animals at a marked up cost. So rather than go through all that hassle, it was just easier to buy your sacrificial animal there.
Also, if you came with Roman or other foreign currency, you had to have it changed into temple currency, at an exchange rate that made a nice profit for the money-changers, who paid a percentage to the high priest. Since there were usually hundreds of thousands of pilgrims in Jerusalem for the feasts, the high priests were getting fabulously wealthy through the temple business. So when on two occasions this radical upstart prophet from Galilee upset the vendors' tables in the temple and drove them out, it didn't sit well with Annas and his conniving son-in-law, Caiaphas!
They were not seeking to learn the truth about Jesus, as John 18:14 reminds us: "Now Caiaphas was the one who had advised the Jews that it was expedient for one man to die on behalf of the people." This refers back to John 11:49-53. After Jesus raised Lazarus, the Jewish leaders were concerned that many would believe in Jesus, resulting in the Romans taking away the Jewish nation. Caiaphas interjected that it was expedient that one man (Jesus) die for the nation so that it would be spared (John 11:49b-50). John (11:51) explained, "Now he did not say this on his own initiative, but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation." So Caiaphas was an unwitting prophet!
But both he and his father-in-law hated Jesus and wanted to find a way to kill Him because He threatened their power and financial interests. But at the same time, because of Jesus' overall popularity, they feared a riot among the people. So they had to be careful about how they got rid of Him.
There is one other historical note before we look at how the story applies to all of us who have failed our Lord. In verse 12 and again in verse 24, John notes that they bound Jesus. This was probably customary with prisoners, but there is irony in this when you consider that moments before in the garden, Jesus had just spoken a word and with a flash of His glory knocked to the ground more than a hundred fully armed soldiers! To get up and bind Jesus after this dramatic encounter shows the spiritual blindness of those who are held captive by Satan (2 Cor. 4:4), as well as the glory of Christ. John Calvin put it (Calvin's Commentaries [Baker], p. 197), "The body of the Son of God was bound, that our souls might be loosed from the cords of sin and of Satan."
Also, just before Abraham intended to sacrifice his son, Isaac, in obedience to God, he first bound him before putting him on the altar (Gen. 22:9), which was a type of Christ. Psalm 118:27 states, "Bind the festival sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar." Just as the Jews would bring their sacrifices to the priest, so Jesus was led to the high priest, who inadvertently would bind and kill Him on behalf of the nation, and (John 11:52), "not for the nation only, but in order that He might also gather together into one the children of God who are scattered abroad." With that historical background, let's look at the spiritual lessons for us:
Even when you fail the Lord, you can trust in the faithful Savior, who never fails.
John interweaves Jesus' calm, faithful witness with Peter's failed witness. One commentator put it (Brown, cited by D. A. Carson, The Gospel According to John [Apollos/Eerdmans], pp. 585-586), "Jesus stands up to his questioners and denies nothing, while Peter cowers before his questioners and denies everything." Another (Stibbe, cited by Andreas Kostenberger, John [Baker], p. 519) notes that Jesus' twice-repeated self-identification in the garden, "I am," contrasts with Peter's twice-repeated denial, "I am not" (John 18:5, 8, 17, 25). But Peter is not alone in denying Christ!
1. We all have failed the Lord.
Our failures may not be as dramatic or as well-known as Peter's failure, but whether by our words or our actions, we've all denied Christ as our Savior and Lord. If Peter, the leader of apostles (Matt. 10:2-4 & parallels), who obviously was a committed, loyal follower of Jesus, failed by denying Christ three times, then we are not immune! "Let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall" (1 Cor. 10:12)! We can trace four steps that led to Peter's failure, which are often involved in our spiritual failures:
A. We fail to understand God's ways, which are not our ways.
Peter could not wrap his mind around the concept of a Messiah who would suffer and die. After Peter's God-inspired confession of Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the living God (Matt. 16:16), Jesus began to explain to the disciples that He must go to Jerusalem to suffer and die. But Peter took Jesus aside and rebuked Him for saying such a thing, which caused Jesus strongly to rebuke Peter (Matt. 16:23), "Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's." Although Jesus several times repeated the same message about His impending death, the disciples just could not conceive of such a thing. They envisioned the Messiah as one who would conquer Rome and rule over Israel on the throne of David (Psalm 2). But they could not picture the Messiah as a lamb who would die for our sins (Isaiah 53).
It was that persistent failure to understand God's way of the cross that prompted Peter to draw his sword and attempt to defend Jesus in the garden. He probably felt hurt and confused when the Lord rebuked him and then meekly submitted to arrest. In that state of confusion, misunderstanding, and hurt feelings, Peter was off guard for Satan's subtle attack through a servant girl's question.
When you think that God has to work in a certain way, but He doesn't conform to your expectations, you are spiritually vulnerable. Maybe you've prayed fervently for something, but it didn't happen in line with your prayers. Look out! It's easy in your disappointment, confusion, and hurt to succumb to temptation! When we dictate our plan to God rather than submit to His plan, we're setting ourselves up for spiritual failure.
B. We fail to recognize our own weakness, so that we trust in ourselves, not in the Lord.
When Jesus warned Peter of Satan's demand to sift him like wheat, Peter protested that he was ready to go to prison and death for Christ's sake (Luke 22:31-33; John 13:37). He put himself above the other disciples by protesting (Matt. 26:33), "Even though all may fall away because of You, I will never fall away."
Trusting in your own commitment and devotion to the Lord is a sure way to fail Him! Pride goes before a fall (Prov. 16:18), but when we are weak (and know it!), then we are strong (2 Cor. 12:10), because then we trust in the Lord and His strength.
It was probably Peter's lack of awareness of his own weakness that drew him into the snare that Satan had set for him. We don't know who the other disciple was (John 18:15-16), who was allowed into the high priest's house and who arranged for Peter to come in. I tend to think it was John, although others disagree; but the focus is not on him, but on Peter. As soon as he walked through the entrance, the slave-girl who kept the door said to Peter (John 18:17), "You are not also one of this man's disciples, are you?" Peter was immediately caught off guard and replied, "I am not." Perhaps at this point he was mentally kicking himself for his failure, but he may have justified himself by thinking, "She's only a slave girl. What difference does it make?"
But next we find him warming himself by the fire along with the slaves and officers of the temple guard. These were not aggressive enemies of Christ, out for His blood. They were just employees, doing their job. They were probably more concerned about getting a raise in their wages or other trivial news than they were about the death of this Galilean preacher (Charles Spurgeon, Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit [Pilgrim Publications], 56:38). But their indifference to the most important spiritual event in the history of the universe while they warmed themselves by the fire was a subtle danger that Peter didn't detect. In the course of their small talk, one looked at Peter and said (John 18:25), "You are not also one of His disciples, are you?" Peter denied it and said, "I am not."
Be on guard when you're around worldly people! Keep your purpose in mind: You're not there to warm yourself by their fires and banter with them. You're there as a witness. If you're not careful, at an unguarded moment, it's easy to deny your Savior.
C. We fail to recognize the spiritual battle that we're engaged in and so fail to pray as we should.
Peter didn't understand that Satan was out to get him and that this hour belonged to the power of darkness. Thus he failed to pray at that crucial time in the garden (Luke 22:31, 46, 53). This caused him to react to Jesus' arrest by swinging his sword, rather than with weapons for spiritual warfare. Then he blindly wandered into the path of temptation in the courtyard of the high priest's house.
So often, like Peter, we react to difficult situations from the physical or human perspective, rather than realizing that we're in a spiritual battle with the unseen forces of wickedness in heavenly places (Eph. 6:11-12). Someone says something against you at work and you react in anger by putting him down or getting back at him. By not praying and seeing it as a spiritual attack, you missed the opportunity to bear witness for Christ!
D. We fail to fear God more than we fear people
The fear of man was behind Peter's third denial (John 18:26), "One of the slaves of the high priest, being a relative of the one whose ear Peter cut off, said, 'Did I not see you in the garden with Him?'" Peter panicked! This guy could get Peter in big trouble for what he had done in the garden! So Peter denied Christ again. Then the rooster crowed to remind Peter of Christ's words! Luke (22:61-62) tells us that at that moment, the Lord turned and looked at Peter. That look pierced Peter's heart! I'm sure that he never forgot it. He went out and wept bitterly.
To some extent, we all want the approval of others. But when we worry about what others think, our focus is wrong and we forget the most important thing: what does God think? Our aim should be to please Him. Proverbs 29:25 warns, "The fear of man brings a snare, but he who trusts in the Lord will be exalted."
In Matthew 10:33, Jesus warned, "Whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven." Those are scary words, but thankfully, we see Peter restored at the end of John and then used greatly for the Lord in the Book of Acts. So if you have denied Christ by your words or actions (and we all have!), there is grace if you repent and trust in Christ.
2. We always can trust in our faithful Savior, who never fails.
It's interesting that the Greek word used for the charcoal fire (John 18:18) is only used one other time in the New Testament, in John 21:9, where the risen Jesus had kindled a charcoal fire to cook breakfast for the disciples. At the first fire, Peter denied his Lord. At the second fire, the Lord restored Peter to fellowship and service. If you've failed Him at the fire of temptation, He invites you to come to the breakfast fire of fellowship and trust in His grace!
Briefly note how Jesus' calm courage stood in contrast to Peter's cowardly compromise on each of the four points:
A. Jesus knew the Father's plan and submitted to it, even though it was painfully difficult.
Peter failed because he did not understand God's ways. But Jesus knew that He was sent to this earth to go to the cross. This was the cup that the Father had given Him, and so He courageously faced it (John 18:11). As He said (John 6:38), "For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me."
B. Jesus always depended on the Father.
Peter failed because he did not recognize his own weakness and thus trusted in his commitment. But as a man, to show us how we should live, Jesus did not trust in Himself, but in the Father. He said (John 5:19), "Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner." Thus Jesus conquered the enemy.
C. Jesus knew the enemy and wrestled in prayer to gain the victory before the crisis hit.
Peter failed to recognize the spiritual battle and so he failed to pray. But Jesus won the victory in the garden as He overcame the powers of darkness through prayer.
D. Jesus feared God, not man, and bore faithful witness to these sinners.
Peter feared man, not God, and thus failed as a witness. But Jesus feared God, not these in power, and thus bore faithful witness. When Annas asked Jesus about His disciples and His teaching, he wasn't seeking the truth. Rather, he was illegally trying to get Jesus to incriminate Himself. Under Jewish law, a defendant was not required to testify against himself. Rather, other witnesses were called to testify. So Jesus' reply (John 18:20-21) was a rebuke, exposing Annas' illegal approach. Christ in effect says, "If you were really interested in My teaching, you've had plenty of opportunity to hear it. But you're proceeding illegally by not calling witnesses. You've already prejudged My case."
The officer standing near Jesus recognized this as a rebuke. Trying to ingratiate himself with his boss, he illegally hit Jesus in the face. Needless to say, he was siding with the wrong boss! But Jesus didn't retaliate. Rather, He calmly replied (John 18:23), "If I have spoken wrongly, testify of the wrong; but if rightly, why do you strike Me?" Christ's fearless witness to these hypocrites was aimed at convicting them of their sin, without which they would not see their need for the Savior.
The measure of effective witness is not whether it produces converts, but rather that it is faithful to God. As far as we know, neither Annas nor the one who hit Jesus in the face ever repented (see Acts 4:5-22). But Christ bore faithful witness to them and they will have no excuse on judgment day. Because Jesus was faithful and He never fails, we can trust Him when we bear witness in this hostile world.
There is no guarantee that if we bear faithful witness, God will protect us. Jesus was faithful, but died a horrible death. The Lord tells the church in Smyrna (Rev. 2:10), "Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to cast some of you into prison, so that you will be tested, and you will have tribulation for ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life." When we bear witness for Christ, we must remember that unconverted people are hardened in their sin. Only God can break through to bring the light of the gospel into their darkness (2 Cor. 4:4-6).
Unlike this conniving, self-serving high priest, Annas, Jesus is a faithful High Priest who sacrificed Himself willingly for His sheep. Know that when you fail, you can draw near to Him to find grace to help in your time of need.
In addition to Peter and Jesus, there is a third group in this story, namely, those who put Jesus on trial. Unlike Peter, they did not believe in Christ at all. They thought that they were putting Him on trial; but really they were the ones on trial, because when you encounter Jesus, you're the one on trial. The question you must answer is the one Pilate asked the Jews (Matt. 27:22), "What shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?" Their tragic answer was, "Crucify Him!" Will you prejudge Him and reject Him as Annas did because He threatens your comfortable way of life? Or will you bow before Him as your Lord and Savior?
When have you been most prone to fail the Lord? How can you prepare for the next time so as not to fail again?
How can believers mingle with unbelievers without being wrongly influenced by their worldly behavior (1 Cor. 15:33)?
If you have disgraced the name of Christ in front of unbelievers, what should you do or say to try to correct it?
How can you know whether your failure was like Judas' betrayal or Peter's denial of Christ? What was the difference?
Copyright, Steven J. Cole, 2015, All Rights Reserved.
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture Quotations are from the New American Standard Bible, Updated Edition © The Lockman Foundation
Related Topics: Christian Life
Steve served as the pastor of Flagstaff Christian Fellowship from May, 1992 through his retirement in December, 2018. From 1977-1992 he was the pastor of Lake Gregory Community Church in Crestline, California. He graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary (Th.M., 1976 in Bible exposition) and Califo... More

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Antiquated Reminiscence | Arts, Articles, Music, and Me!
As implausible as it could be, a reminiscence could be an interesting form to visualize justification for the things done in past. Opprobrious acts, vicissitudes, or even somber experiences could be retold in myriad ways. This method provides a better perspective or even less guilt pressure towards the narrator, which could be a kind of psychological therapy. These antiquated stories could be retold over and over to create belie illusions and a quixotic version of what had happened. Sometimes we could even become cognizant that some reminiscences have pretentious sides to demand commendations from the listeners, even if the listeners only listen or reluctantly giving attention because of propriety.


text:
Home › Soul Connection - Street Soul (ICE 016)
Soul Connection - Street Soul (ICE 016)
Invisible City Editions Reissue Soul Street Soul
Invisible City Editions reissues a selection of classic street soul tunes from the legendary duo Soul Connection (Toyin Agbetu and Earl Myers). A mix of well loved tracks from Soul Connection's 1988 "Rough & Ready" and 1990 "Raw Street Soul", remastered from the original master reels. This one has been a long time in the making and we are really excited to finally put it out!
You'd be hard pressed to find a more central figure to the story of '80s UK Street Soul than Toyin Agbetu. A former computer programming prodigy turned musician/artist/producer, Agbetu was one of the principals in the development of a sound that merged the playful romance of soul music with the DIY ethos and raw, drum machine-driven beats of hip-hop and other burgeoning underground movements of the time. With his London-based independent record label, Unyque Artists, and a studio HQ-ed out of his Hackney bedroom, Toyin would embark on a remarkably prolific run as a producer and artist under a myriad of aliases and pseudonyms on associated spin-off labels.
One such project was Soul Connection – a collaboration with friend and fellow indie label head Earl Myers that, despite its low-key bordering on phantom profile, yielded two albums, Rough and Ready (1988) and Raw Street Soul (1990) released on UA affiliate Intrigue Records. Though both LPs were well received upon initial release, the years since have only increased their stature amongst fans of elusive grooves. As evidenced by the six beloved tracks collected on Invisible City Editions' Street Soul EP, Soul Connection's addictively simple hooks, punchy mid-tempo rhythms, and forays into breakbeat and house remain as easy to appreciate as ever.
Includes 8 page booklet with an interview with Toyin Agbetu from Jeff "Chairman" Mao.
A1 Change / Love
A2 In And Out Of Love
A3 It's All Over
B1 R U Available
B2 The Way Love Is
B3 Waiting 4 Your Love
©℗ Invisible City Editions
ICE 016


text:
//
//  ViaMeManager.h
//  Via Me Test
//
//  Created by Robert Ryan on 6/12/13.
//  Copyright (c) 2013 Robert Ryan. All rights reserved.
//

#import <Foundation/Foundation.h>

typedef void (^ViaMeCompletionBlock)(BOOL success, NSError *error);

@interface ViaMeManager : NSObject

/// ----------------------------------------------------------------------
/// @name Properties
/// ----------------------------------------------------------------------

@property (nonatomic, strong, readonly) NSString *host;
@property (nonatomic, strong, readonly) NSString *code;
@property (nonatomic, strong, readonly) NSString *accessToken;
@property (nonatomic, readonly, getter = isAuthorized) BOOL authorized;

/// ----------------------------------------------------------------------
/// @name Basic operations
/// ----------------------------------------------------------------------

/// Retrieve access to singleton

+ (id)sharedManager;

/// ----------------------------------------------------------------------
/// @name Authorization
/// ----------------------------------------------------------------------

/// Authorize App

- (void)authorize:(ViaMeCompletionBlock)block;

/** Handle the response from Via Me

 This is called by app delegate when it receives a Via Me response.
 */

- (void)handleViaMeResponse:(NSDictionary *)parameters;

/** Host name used in app's custom URL scheme for viame related requests

 This is how the app delegate knows whether a URL request is from for Via Me or not.
 */

- (NSString *)host;

/// ----------------------------------------------------------------------
/// @name Uploading
/// ----------------------------------------------------------------------

- (void)uploadData:(NSData *)data filename:(NSString *)filename text:(NSString *)text completion:(ViaMeCompletionBlock)completion;

@end

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Many of you are starting to consider building your own Geo-Thermal greenhouses, and some are asking searching questions about the Foundation's and LDS Prepper's. There is definitely "no free lunch", and while I am very happy with both of mine, they have not been "a walk in the park", and there may still be problems in the future. The one in Missouri fulfilled all my expectations, and I would definitely build it again (hated giving it away when we sold the home!) and the one we are just now putting the finishing touches on here in Idaho Falls is also looking very good, but I want everyone to have "full disclosure", so there are not a bunch of disappointed people hunting me down (-:. Following is what I wrote to the Facebook Group, and you all need to read it as well.
The jury is still out on our efforts in Idaho, but so far everything looks good. Everyone needs to know that this is not a slam-dunk cinch.
For example, in Missouri we installed the Geo-Thermal in early January, 2014, when the outside temperatures were -17 degrees Fahrenheit. With the fan running the temperatures in the greenhouse stayed above freezing. But I wanted it warmer, so that I could grow citrus trees, as I had heard Russ Finch does in his gwo-thermal greenhouse in NW Nebraska.
My deepest pipes were only about 5.5' deep and looped on top of each other, so that the shallowest were about 3' deep.
I installed a propane heater, set on on low, and in about 10 minutes the inside temperature went from 40 to 60 degrees. I maintained the heater on low with a thermostat, and the greenhouse stayed consistently around 60 degrees on cold nights.
Of course on sunny days it got warm, even in JanuaryFebruary.
Seedlings were growing on a table in January, and they were transplanted into the soil of the greenhouse in early February, including many different greens as well as tomatoes & peppers.
The capacity of my double-insulated greenhouse to maintain temperatures hospitable to growing, even in the coldest weather, was proven to my satisfaction in Missouri.
However, there was a problem that developed in late spring that we struggles with all summer long. The greenhouse was built directly in line with the drains from the home's roof downspouts, and when rains came my pipes filled with water.
Because all 6 lines were single-piece solid drain pipe we were told that they would not allow water in, but that was definitely NOT the case, and we had to pump them out several times.
To (hopefully) solve this problem we dug a trench across the back end of the greenhouse DEEPER than the lowest line of pipes. We then drilled holes into the pipes on that end so that the water would not accumulate, but would drain out. The deep trench was lined with gravel and we installed a catch-basin and a sump pump on one side.
This SEEMED to take care of it, but I don't really know because we moved out within days of completing this "fix".
The GH that got me excited was built over 30 years ago by Russ Finch in Valentine, Nebraska, and he used SLOTTED 6" pipes. In doing research , specifically with the Green Cube Network, who supposedly are the experts in this new field, I was told to use SOLID 4" pipe, which I did, and I regretted it greatly (at least the solid part).
In Idaho Falls I have used SLOTTED 4" pipe. I surely hope I do NOT have to dig a deep trench and install a sump pump to keep my pipes clear this time! By the way 6" pipe is a great deal more expensive than 4" pipe, so that is one reason for the 4" recommendation by GCN.
We are learning as we go. In Missouri we used a Ditch Witch and trenched, and every line was clear and we had excellent air flow. In Idaho Falls, we used a large Mini-Excavator and dug out the entire area for the pipes to go. We then laid the pipes on the soil and had the machine dump dirt on top , with layers about 1' deep between runs of pipe. My greenhouse ended up with 7 of 8 lines working fine and one apparently crushed by careless placement of dirt crushing the pipe.
LDS Prepper's greenhouse only had 4 lines, rather than the 8 I chose to use, and he also lost one line in the back-filling process. While 1 in 8 was not a big deal to me, 1 in 4 WAS a big deal to David, and so he is preparing to trench a new line to replace the one that is not working. I can't emphasize enough the importance of being careful back-filling over your pipes. They CAN last a very long time, but they have to START OUT in one piece and working.
I recommend everyone do your DUE DILLIGENCE, and look at what others have done as well as carefully assessing your soil situation, before investing the time and money in building your own Geo-Thermal greenhouse.
This entry was posted on 5:07 PM You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.


text:
Tag: Authority
Handle Men With Care
On Facebook, I came across a question from a wife (I'll call her Melissa) whose husband (Blake) makes demeaning jokes. You know, hilarious "clean" humor like this:
On the original post, a woman did point out how demeaning it was to women. A man responded, "Take a hike."
Melissa explained that she's asked Blake not to make these remarks. His reply is, "It's just a joke. It's not a big deal." It embarrasses and frustrates her, and she wanted to know what she could do about it.
Lots of women had lots to say. Many pointed out that if it "wasn't a big deal," then he could stop since it obviously bothers his wife. But he won't stop, meaning that there's more behind it than lame attempts at humor.
One woman said that she and her husband set aside regular times to discuss their biases and figure out problems in their communication. They work on a puzzle together while doing this, keeping their hands busy and making it easier to talk.
Another woman said she asks the jokester to explain why, for example, #13 on that list is funny. ("It's funny because the woman is lazy because it's her job to wipe the dust off the T.V." Ha ha.)
But one woman weighed in with some advice straight from the "godly marriage" teachings I got as a teenager and young wife. The details can change, but one basic principle remains: the worst thing a woman can do is make a man feel bad about himself.
I mean, sure, he's the head of the family, has the final say in major decisions, and is — no exaggeration — responsible before God for his wife's spiritual health. But at the same time, he's as fragile as a glass ornament. A wife can destroy her husband by contradicting him, disagreeing with him, or communicating anything less than devotion to him.
Therefore, in this conflict, Melissa must approach it carefully. As follows:
Let's discuss.
When your husband continues to do something that you've told him you don't like, the first step is to figure out where you are wrong. Your attitude probably isn't 100% pure, which means you're partly to blame. It's always very important to establish the wife's blame in the situation.
Approach your husband and ask him to discuss your reflections when he is ready. This is about you and your issues now.
Don't expect a massive change immediately. Obviously you're aiming for a complete overhaul of his attitudes and behavior… even though your stated goal is merely for him to understand why jokes that cut down women aren't funny and it embarrasses you when he tells them.
Continue to ponder and understand your own beliefs, even though your husband isn't required to think through why he won't stop telling demeaning jokes.
You must gently and respectfully state your disapproval if he makes these jokes around you. If you're snappish or sarcastic, go back to #4, do not pass Go, and do not collect $200.
You can respect your own convictions, even though he doesn't have to. Also, note that it's "doing what what you believe is right." Avoid implying that your husband's behavior has larger social consequences and this isn't about your hurt feelings.
You don't have to speak up every time. Don't overdo it.
Keep praying! God will keep growing you! Because the problem here is… you?
It's not that this whole thing is bad advice, taken in parts. It's good to think through your own reaction before approaching your spouse. It's also impossible to change someone who doesn't want to change, so all you really can do is draw your own boundaries and know your own mind. But that's not really what this is saying. Instead, it shoves all of the emotional work onto Melissa and requires nothing of Blake. There's not even the expectation that he should change his behavior out of regard for her.
In patriarchal thinking, a man is the strongest protection a woman can have; but she has to handle him with the utmost care or she'll damage him. A woman who stands too firmly on her own personhood is a woman who can destroy her marriage, her man — and by extension, herself.
Better for her to focus on her own fault, turn the conflict into her own "issues," and keep praying that he listens to God better than he listens to her.
Sure, it short-circuits communication and lets unresolved conflicts fester. But if it gets too bad, just make a few jokes. That always lightens the mood.
Fifty Shades of Fiction
September 7, 2018 September 7, 2018 SJLeave a comment
Am I coming out as a secret fan of Fifty Shades of Grey?
Well, the books began as a fan-fiction retelling of Twilight. I will say that I don't like Fifty Shades as much as I liked Twilight.
And I utterly despise Twilight.
No, I'm not a fan. I did try to read the first book. The writing was abysmal, the characters were intolerable, and having been fed toxic patriarchy in my younger years, the forced-submission stuff made me want to cry. A good sex story shouldn't make you cry.
So why have I linked to the video below? Well, sorry, it's actually not as salacious as secret sex dungeons and thinly-veiled abuse. I'm linking to one section of it where he talks about fiction vs. reality, because I think this is an area where people haven't really thought through things.
I've heard many times, "How can a woman support the #metoo movement against sexual harassment when she reads things like Fifty Shades of Grey?" Or any erotic fantasy, really, because the genre so often blurs the line between consent and compulsion. This argument frustrates me. What people enjoy in fiction is often exactly the opposite of what they want in reality. In fiction you want conflict, drama, danger, and uncertainty. In real life, you want trust, reliability, peace, and security. Granted, I look askance at the fact that Fifty Shades was ever so popular because, really, it's a very terrible series on many levels. But I don't think that enjoying erotic fiction means a woman has no say in whether her boss can pat her butt or require sexual attention for her to keep her job.
The video explains it better, though. Why do we look for situations and stories in fiction that we don't want in real life?
If you've got time, I recommend watching the whole thing, because he goes on to take apart 50 Shades (book and movie) and explain why it doesn't work even in the context of fiction.
(Note: I have friends who like Twilight and Fifty Shades. Especially for Twilight, it really seemed to hit people on some deep level while they were dealing with difficult issues in their lives. I have no idea why, mostly because they can't tell me either. They like it, I don't, we've agreed to disagree.)
The Fellowship of the Southern Baptist Convention
June 11, 2018 SJ1 Comment
"Your an example of why women should stay silent."
The putdown was posted by some brilliant wit on Twitter. I said it better, and more grammatically, in The Fellowship:
"I don't think God wants me to stay silent if I see something out of line."
"That's where you're wrong. God hasn't appointed you to a position of authority. He doesn't expect you to do anything except obey."
In both scenarios — one real, one fictional — a young woman was questioning a pastor about his teachings. And in both settings — one real, one fictional — the challenger was shut down.
The Fellowship takes place in a small Southern cult, where the women must wear long dresses and can't work outside the home. Not very many people have lived in that specific setting.
But I guarantee you're familiar with the story as it unfolds.
My newsfeed has been full of the scandal of Paige Patterson, misogynist ex-president of Southwestern Theological Seminary. If you aren't caught up, here's the statement by the Board of Trustees of Southwestern as to why they fired Patterson. And well they should have. But what about all the years leading up to this? Surely someone thought he was going too far when he counseled wives to return to abusive husbands? Or any number of other questionable teachings?
On a related note, I'm not Catholic, so didn't follow the fallout of their abuse coverup very closely. I never was part of Sovereign Grace Ministries, so that didn't register on my radar much either. But I almost could have lifted my novel material from those scandals.
Meanwhile, the #metoo movement, highlighting the pervasiveness of sexual harassment and sexism, proved the downfall of several prominent men in the entertainment and political realm.
It's all the same story as my little Southern Bible cult. No one could challenge these men. They silenced their accusers and protected their power.
Your details might not be the same as my fictional Bekah and her struggle to be a woman under an oppressive patriarchal system. But the structure is the same. Authority without accountability, used to protect the powerful.
This structure enables abuse, encourages misogyny or misandry, and its ultimate goal is to protect the institution over the victim. Every time.
The insult I quoted at the beginning was part of a long Twitter battle in which women tried to engage a pastor (again, affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention, which is in serious need of repentance and reevaluation — and maybe a good disinfectant). You can read the synopsis here.
That particular aspersion was cast by a supporter of the pastor, but don't worry, the good Brother gets in quite a few jabs himself. The sexism aside, it's obvious that the pastor's goal isn't to empathize, or even engage opponents in a debate — but to silence the challenges to his power.
When I wrote The Fellowship, I was drawing from my own experience with Bill Gothard (Institute in Basic Life Principles/Advanced Training Institute) and Doug Phillips (Vision Forum), and my husband's experience with an older New England cult. I kept saying, "My little novel is for a niche audience. Not many people will 'get' it."
Three years later, as the voice of the oppressed grows louder and people are less willing to tolerate injustice from those in "authority," I now realize that my book joins many others in telling and retelling a familiar story. It's the story of our time.
Sabbath Restlessness
March 27, 2018 March 29, 2018 SJLeave a comment
I occasionally see a meme that thinks it's solved my church problem for me. It informs me that if I stopped going to church because someone hurt me, then it's obvious I was focused on people instead of Jesus. In short, if I find church a hard place to be, it's my own fault.
Do I need to say that I hate that meme? No? Good.
It's difficult for me to attend church. Even when I don't fall prey to a panic attack, I find the whole process exhausting. When my choice is to go to a coffee shop and be refreshed, or go to church and be tired… well, the choice kind of makes itself, doesn't it?
But I try. After all, we're part of a healthy and safe church now. Nobody reminds me that I have to stay under authority. Nobody is twisting up Scriptures. Nobody watches my kids and judges my parenting. I know it's a good place.
But it's hard to feel that.
Recently I attended a service. I even took along colored pens and a journal with faux-reclaimed paper that my daughter got me for my birthday. I listen best when I can doodle, something I no longer apologize for.
Halfway through the sermon, I'd filled up two pages like this:
When I start journalling like that, it means I'm desperately trying to outrun panic. And I didn't make it this time. I left long before church was done.
When I looked at the pages later, I was struck at how it captures the frenzy of my thoughts in church. Not only am I reliving and grieving past hurts, but I'm also evaluating every word of the sermon to make sure it's "okay." My radar, so long suppressed, is on high alert at all times.
No wonder I get tired.
My husband is very understanding, but a lot of people aren't. A lot of people look at spiritual abuse survivors and criticize them for not getting involved in a church. Well, here you go — handy-dandy photographic evidence of what a service looks like to someone who has been hurt by people in the church.
I don't skip church on Sundays because I'm spiritually apathetic. I avoid it because I'm on spiritual hyperdrive. And I long for the day that a church sanctuary is as safe and restful a place for me as a shabby-chic hipster coffee shop.
Fractured for Clarity: "Biblical" Marriage
December 18, 2017 SJ2 Comments
God's word clearly lays out, with clear clarity, how he designed marriage to look. Here's one verse in Proverbs that clearly with clarity illustrates this design:
"My son, keep thy father's commandment, and forsake not the law of thy mother."
What, you don't see it clearly? Well, it's a good thing there are teachers like Bill Gothard and others of his ilk. They know how to "unpack" verses like this.
The chart below — oh my gosh, did teachers of an earlier era love charts — explains how a Godly household operates. This whole idea comes from a long history of male power and female subservience, but especially the Victorian ideal straight from God via the book of Proverbs. See how the chart uses words straight from the verse? And how it illuminates the hierarchy laid out in the verse? I mean, it's obviously a hierarchy. Definitely not a parallel. Even though Hebrew poetry was all about parallels. Look, if you'd just read the verse, look at the chart, and compare both to the way men like Gothard wanted the world to operate, then you'll see that it's all right there in God's word.
Remember how everything must conform to the principle of authority. Obviously, as the authority of a family, the father is to come up with the "big picture" and the results he wants for his family. (This brand of Christianity is all about getting good results.) The mother, who is more "detail oriented," accomplishes the will of her husband God well, actually, they're kind of interchangeable.
Do I have to point out the problems with this model of marriage? Here are a few.
1.In our own marriage (which looks nothing like this chart), DJ once told me that he didn't know when I was struggling because I got everything done so well. We saw that as a problem. This chart, though, practically prescribes that mindset.
2.Everything in the "Mother's Law" column is death to my soul. I do a lot of it because I'm the stay-at-home parent, and it has to be done. But organization, scheduling, and management are not my giftings. (You have to make phone calls for some of this stuff!) I'd never apply for a job as an administrative assistant, and I didn't get married to be one, either.
3.That second column is my husband's utopia in chart form. He's done all of these things with our children, including buying a pack of note cards and sitting them down to write thank-you notes. Does that make me a bad wife? Does it — horrors — make him "feminine" because he's good at details?
4.This chart lays out in easy-reference form an idea that's very prevalent in homeschooling circles even now. My husband has bucked the system and is as involved in the homeschooling as I am. It's very hard for him to find other homeschool dads who have more than a passing knowledge or, indeed, interest in their children's education. Teachings like the one above feed that disconnect.
4.This chart omits a concept that has done wonders for our marriage: If it's important to you, you are the one who does it. Obviously if it's important to DJ, then I help out — I'm the one who addressed, stamped, and mailed those thank-you cards. But if something is important enough to you that you want it done, then you take charge of getting it done.
This model is, of course, too artificial to work in real life. No real couple can conform to these columns, because marriage is all about compromise, communication, and shifting responsibilities. But since it's based on God's word, then at least a real couple can feel guilty for not living up to the standard.
And by "based on God's word," I mean, how teachers like Gothard violently fracture verses so there's room fit in their own particular philosophy, and then patch it up in a decomposing zombie version of what it originally was.
That sounds a little strong, but I'm not going to apologize. Charts like this (this one being only one of many iterations of God's Ideal Marriage) made me dread marriage, and did no favors for my early relationship with my husband. Even worse, though, this consistent abuse of Scripture left me with a distaste for the Bible, and especially Proverbs.
And God speaks to misusing his name for your own ends.
Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. Exodus 20:7
Clearly, with clarity, no fracturing required.
Men Sin Better than Women Do
September 7, 2017 September 7, 2017 SJ5 Comments
The recent "Nashville Statement" by the Coalition for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (catchy name!) has a lot of people in my online neighborhood talking. I discuss a little of it below.
What I'm writing about here, though, isn't the Nashville Statement, but the 1987 Danvers Statement by the same people. It's just as much fun.
This statement by the then newly-formed CBMW outlines their views of male and female roles according to "God." By this time in my life, I can shrug off the Danvers Statement. I don't ascribe to their inflexible view that women are specifically created to be subordinate to men. Nor do I credit their assertion that God built in "masculine" and "feminine" traits as part of the created order. (Male and female refers to biology; masculine and feminine refers to behaviors. One is mostly concrete; the other changes from culture to culture — or, indeed, from person to person.)
But, one part made me laugh. They're explaining how men and woman are different (but equal! Except when women want to do things that only men should do). They explain that, as far as the church is concerned:
Sin "inclines men to abdicate spiritual responsibility and grasp for power.
Sin "inclines women to resist limitations on their roles or to neglect the use of their gifts in appropriate ministries."
Sinful man: I SHALL BE AS GOD AND RULE ALL! Bwahahaha!
Sinful woman: THE OFFICE OF ASSISTANT PASTOR WILL BE MINE! Hahaha!
Seriously, of all the horrible things a sinful woman can do in a church body, this is the worst you can come up with? What about spiritually abusing other women? What about spreading dissension and gossip to get rid of a leader she doesn't like? What about ruling her family and/or her Bible study group with anger and twisted Scripture? What about, I don't know, abdicating spiritual responsibility and grasping for power?
Nope. Just resisting limitations and not using her gifts in "appropriate ministries."
This is why I don't credit much of what the CBMW has to say about my identity as a woman. Their vision for me is so very small. I can't even sin as good as a man does.
A thought or two on the Nashville Statement.
If you managed to get me into a conversation about this issue, you'd find me a lot more flexible about it than my evangelical pedigree and faithful-to-the-historical-faith husband would indicate. The conflict between overarching theology and the impact it has on individual human lives is a tension I continually wrestle with.
I understand the theological underpinnings of this statement. But I found a few phrases that I disagree with, and knowing the culture in which these words are drafted and disseminated, I find the small differences alarming.
For instance, I can see the justification for Article 10 if it said:
We affirm that it is sinful to approve of homosexual immorality or transgenderism and that such approval constitutes a departure from historically-accepted Christian faithfulness and witness.
We deny that the approval of homosexual immorality or transgenderism is an issue about which otherwise faithful Christians may agree to disagree.
What it actually says is:
We affirm that it is sinful to approve of homosexual immorality or transgenderism and that such approval constitutes an essential departure from Christian faithfulness and witness.
We deny that the approval of homosexual immorality or transgenderism is a matter of moral indifference about which otherwise faithful Christrians should agree to disagree.
What this article says is that if I even approve of a homosexual or transgender relationship, it's the same as denying essential doctrines such as the deity of Christ or his resurrection. It invalidates my "true Christian" qualifications.
(Also, for the record, I don't consider it "a matter of moral indifference" so stop assigning motives, okey-dokey?)
This statement was signed by some "big names" in Christian circles. They evidently agree that the church must make its people choose between "gays" and "God," but last year many of them scrambled down from their moral high ground and endorsed Donald Trump as president. They were willing to approve of a man who doesn't even pretend to adhere to traditional Christian sexual mores, just to preserve their political power. I find that blatantly immoral.
Back to the point — isn't it seriously overstating the case to place one's view of sexuality as an "essential" element of Christian faithfulness and witness?
Not to the CBMW. These people do consider a view of sexuality as central to Christianity. They have a driving need to know who is male and who is female, because their entire theological hierarchy depends upon knowing who is in authority and who cannot, according to God, be in authority.
Otherwise, everything gets all muddled up. You don't know who is grasping for power and abdicating spiritual responsibility, and who is just sinfully discontent with the imposed limitations of their role. And the world just can't take chaos like that.
Red Flag Corp
June 22, 2017 SJ4 Comments
Sometimes a cult-like group is subtle and hard to pinpoint. But other times a group is obliging enough wave blazing red flags in choreographed formation. I found one such group recently.
Now, I have absolutely no connection with Weigh Down, Gwen Shamblin, or Remnant Fellowship. I never participated in any of it; I hardly even had heard of it. (Gwen is not pleased with me, I can tell.) A friend pointed me to the site, and I'm just reporting on what I see here. Which appears to be a group that's practically screaming "Cult!" Or maybe it's just "Raging narcissist who would like to be a cult leader." Either way, it's very instructive.
Let's take a tour of these red flags, how about?
One person in the spotlight. If you read the site, it sure does have a lot to say about Gwen Shamblin. She seems to really like posting quotes that other men have said about her. Some of the prose is so glowing that you can just imagine Gwen brushing away a tear and saying, "That is so touching. It's so good of me to say that about me." Seriously, I bet she's very nice in person. No, I mean it. People don't become cult leaders without having very strong personal magnetism.
The Bible like you've never heard it before! "It is noteworthy that although the vast majority of the hundreds of thousands of Weigh Down participants had been church-goers for years, not one reported having ever heard these Biblically-based teachings from their home church." Yeah, it's noteworthy, all right. The Bible is centuries old and has been studied threadbare. If somebody finds something in it that nobody else has, then you can safely assume you're hearing more imagination than Godly inspiration.
Promises of Paradise. The site is packed with sweeping claims of how Remnant Fellowship has dramatically broken addictions, saved marriages, and brought families together, all by the "power of God." In real life, all these areas are an ongoing struggle and don't always turn out the way we want them to. But a cult promises one-time-and-done miracles to broken and hurting people.
Obedience. The wording can vary, but within the culture of a cult-like group, two pillars support the entire community: authority and obedience. Members must recognize who is in authority, and then obey without question.
"Obedience—obedience—it's beautiful. Do you want to remain in this love? It's just like a child who stays by your side and communes with you by obedience and by following what you're saying. You have a beautiful relationship, but the one who turns and disobeys does not. To have a relationship and to have answered prayers is to remain in the vine. God gives His will to those who are going to obey it. Why give it to those who are not going to obey it? It tires you out to tell people or employees or children to do something and you know that they're just going to stare at you while you speak, but they never do what you say. Likewise, God gives His will, His beautiful and perfect will and desires, to those who will put it into practice."
Note that this is cast in terms of obeying God's will. But where do you learn God's actual, real will? That would be the person who teaches what "the majority of hundreds of thousands" never heard before.
Blame shifting. Cults never can live up to their promises, but don't worry, they've got that taken care of. When you've given them your money and your soul, and "God" doesn't come through with that miraculous change, they tell you it's your fault:
"Can you not figure out how to lose weight yet? Then it's because you've not purposed in your heart to do it. So purpose in your heart to obey what He tells you to do, and then He will show you the way out of your desires that have ensnared you. Do you really want out of the trap of your own desires? Then obey what He tells you to do. Put it into practice…"
As an entirely subjective red flag, these pictures of doll-like beautiful children with perfectly curled hair put me on edge — particularly as they're the grandchildren of the great exalted founder. Don't you want children this sweet and well-behaved? Then get yourself to Remnant Fellowship and prepare to obey.
I consider Remnant Fellowship to be a pretty blatant example of what to avoid. However, anytime you run across a church, a study, or even a pyramid-shaped "business" that promises great results "if you just…", look for the red flags and consider them seriously. Life is hard, and despite their grand promises to the contrary, cults make it even harder.
Abigail and the Fool
March 16, 2017 SJLeave a comment
I think I've complained about some "Christian" marriage advice on this blog before (that's four links). So the question is, do I ever come across a perspective of marriage that I like?
Funny you should ask that! Because I found a post recently that was an antidote both to the "stay silent and happy" brand of marital life, and redeems the twisted version of Abigail that I was subjected to as a teen and young adult.
Help, I'm Married to a Fool! really isn't "advice" so much as a reflection on the author's own married life. She is writing on her twenty-first wedding anniversary, so she and her husband have weathered a lot of years together. She writes that she became a Christian a few years after getting married, and found herself praying often for her marriage.
My husband and I seemed to be at odds on a regular basis, and although I would like to say it was his fault, in truth, we were young, selfish, and trying to adjust to life with many children in a short time frame.
But there was more than just kids and immaturity causing the divide. Something was wrong and she wasn't sure what; she needed God to fix it! Pray, pray, pray.
Then she noticed the story of Abigail, and a light dawned.
I'll pause here to remind you about the "complementarian" view of marriage, which is what most evangelicals claim. It's different from patriarchy in that it considers men and women spiritually equal before God. The term comes from the idea that men and women are "equal but different" — their roles in life "complete" each other. But in marriage, the husband still has the final say in all decisions. The wife is expected to say her piece, then submit to whatever her husband decides. If it's a bad decision — just like in patriarchy — the wife leaves the result up to God.
In both patriarchy and complementarianism, the story of Abigail is a problem. Her husband, Nabal, scorns and insults the warrior king-to-be, David, thereby inviting very real destruction on his entire household. A servant alerts Abigail, who goes behind Nabal's back and approaches David with apologies, explaining that her husband is "a fool." Her offers of peace saved the lives of everyone in the household — except Nabal, who died of a rage-induced stroke when he heard what she did.
The version of Abigail that I learned in patriarchy circles (see my link above) was that Abigail should have gone to her husband first, should have left everything up to God, and was responsible for Nabal's death. Complementarianism doesn't go that far, but it's still uncomfortable with the way Abigail undermined her own husband's wishes.
But the author of this blog post came to a different conclusion after really paying attention to the story.
In Scripture, fool is often used for a wicked or depraved person; one who acts contrary to sound wisdom in his moral deportment; one who follows his own inclinations, who prefers trifling and temporary pleasures to the service of God and eternal happiness.
That morning I realized that the deepening divide in our marriage was not something I could fix, but that it had to be wisely navigated. My relationship with my husband would not be better until he made the decision to acknowledge God above his own inclinations.
She goes on to explain how Abigail "navigated around" her foolish, dangerous husband. She didn't passively pray and react and pretend everything was all right; she actively responded, was known as a safe and trustworthy person, and told the truth about her situation.
The post leaves some questions, like — What is a wife supposed to do if her husband is making a fool of himself? Not in a foot-in-mouth sort of way, but in an agonizing "Hey, let me launch into an insulting tirade without regard to my listeners, banking on the fact that they're polite so I can say whatever I want to." My first loyalty is to my husband, so I'd be loath to call him out right there in front of everybody. But if it's a pattern, if he's ignored my private conversations about it… well, then what? The post doesn't really offer much guidance.
On the other hand, it gives a freedom that most marriage reflections don't: it allows the wife to actually think about this situation and decide what her response will be. She can act, and be justified in doing so, without having to worry that she will "dishonor" her husband incur God's wrath. If she's reluctant to speak up because of how her husband will treat her at home, in private — well, I would think that's definitely a signal that it's time to take serious action, possibly behind his back, to save herself and her household.
But what if she uses this "freedom" to humiliate her husband? What if she cuts him down in public and undermines everything he tries to do for their family? Then guess what? She's the fool, not him. He can look to the brave, trustworthy, truthful Abigail for guidance in navigating around her destructive habits until God changes her, or until he needs to act without her knowledge to "save the household."
Marriage relationships are complicated. Sometimes it's very hard for outsiders to know exactly who is the fool, and who is the Abigail. But trying to solve the problem by telling a wife that she must stay in her "God-given role" and honor her husband at all costs is ineffective at best, and dangerous at worst.
Instead, be smart, decisive, and ready to act on your own and others' behalf. Don't be a fool — be like Abigail.