The Source: Town of Holly Springs, NC Newsletter (March 2019)

The 7 Laws that were given to Noah and his children by God (The Noahide Laws or Noachide Laws)

The seven Noahide laws as traditionally enumerated are the following:

1. Not to worship idols.
2. Not to curse God.
3. To establish courts of justice.
4. Not to commit murder.
5. Not to commit adultery or sexual immorality.
6. Not to steal.
7. Not to eat flesh torn from a living animal.

(From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Laws_of_Noah)

My Blood Pressure and Heart Rate Over 400 Hours

My blood pressure readings over 400 hours (17 days). I take 20 mg Losartan in the morning and 50 mg Metoprolol in the evening.

My readings in the morning are on average higher than those taken during the evening hours.

And my heart rate is slightly higher on average during the evening than that in the morning.

El Watan El Akbar - Magmoet El fananen الوطن الأكبر - مجموعة الفنانين

The ARAB UNION, though many states, the Arab People are one. Growing up in the Middle-East, I never felt as a stranger in any Arab country I visited. The Arab People are united in their tradition, a great one indeed, in their religion, and in their language. This song summarizes it all.

Depression

According to World Health Organization (WHO), about 15% of us will experience major depression sometimes in our life time. Current, depression is the fourth leading cause of disability, and it will become the second cause by 2025 (WHO data). Depression may be a symptom of feeling lonely. Much of the depression is gone when the depressed individual feels a community support around them. People often get depressed when they feel they are not in control. Stuck in a bad job situation or unfortunate repetition of events that seem endless. It is lack of hope. It is the inability to foresee any hope in the future. One way to overcome depression is to become involved with your own community, home, town, city, or country. Do something useful to another human being. Depression may be helped by volunteering your time at your church, community center, or local food pantry. Self-rewarding activities, such as foods or watching a movie, appear to have a limited benefit on depression. As stated, powerful effects to overcome depression is by getting involved in activities that benefit others. Even listening to your friend's life problems can be therapeutic. Anger can lead to depression. This is another area that depressed people need to watch for. The only thing that can make me angry is myself. Yes, you heard it correctly, it is myself. You cannot do anything to cause my anger. It is my reaction to what you said or did that causes me angry. If I am angry, I need to blame myself, and only myself. 

Wisdom: Home Definition

"Home is a place where people notice you are not there."

Aleksandar Hemon (born September 9, 1964) is a Bosnian-American fiction writer, essayist, and critic.

Receiving over 45 text messages and phone calls from total strangers

I had a very weird experience today. It started early in the morning and continued until I had to change my phone number. Numerous calls and text messages received on my phones many claiming that I called them (strange I did not make any phone calls except to my family members). Someone was using my phone remotely to call other people, an experience that happened to me once in the past some three years. ago. We had to call Verison to first stop the texting ability on my phone and then totally change my phone number. With this electronic age, God knows what evil people can do. May the good Lord protect us from evil doers. Amen.

Another death in the family

My cousin's husband passed away yesterday in Boston. I remember attending their marriage over 40 years ago. I might be flying (or taking the train) to Boston soon to attend the funeral.

What if human being were immortal?

Assume that human being were immortal. Actually, when God created Adam and Eve, He created them to be immortal. Death was the punishment for their disobedience to God's instructions not to eat from the Tree of Knowledge. Imagine that in 2019 that humans were immortal. Would they still believe in any religion? Would they believe in God? Would there be a church? If human were immortal, then there is no hell nor haven. There would be nothing to look forward to. Except, yes, except if immortality accompanied with a perfect knowledge of God. Then Earth would be haven. To some extent, Jesus was successful in bringing back to original intention of God's plan. Would science discover a gene for immortality in our code (the DNA)? If we were originally created to be immortal, a gene for immortality must have been placed in our DNA. Or, did God take away that gene when Adam and Eve misbehaved? I would argue if human beings were immortal, life on Earth would be a perfect one. This is perhaps accomplished upon the second return of Jesus at the end of time. Until then, all is possible.

Announcement from Google

"Following the announcement of Google+ API deprecation scheduled for March 2019, a number of changes will be made to Blogger’s Google+ integration on 4 February 2019.

Google+ widgets: Support for the “+1 Button”, “Google+ Followers” and “Google+ Badge” widgets in Layout will no longer be available. All instances of these widgets will be removed from your blog.

+1 buttons: The +1/G+ buttons and Google+ share links below blog posts and in the navigation bar will be removed.

Please note that if you have a custom template that includes Google+ features, you may need to update your template. Please contact your template supplier for advice.

Google+ Comments: Support for Google+ comments will be turned down, and all blogs using Google+ comments will be reverted back to using Blogger comments. Unfortunately, comments posted as Google+ comments cannot be migrated to Blogger and will no longer appear on your blog."

Traveling to Boston

I am traveling to Boston, MA today. My family will gather in memory of my mom, Rene, who passed away in November of last year, the Thanksgiving weekend. I am planning to travel by air, however, with the Federal government closed for business, I have made a plan "B" by reserving a rental car for the way back, just in case. The memorial for my mom is scheduled for Sunday of this week.

Newsletter (January 2019 Edition): The Town of Holly Springs, NC

A Prayer

"God saves me, Jesus enlightens me, the Holy Spirit is my life, I am not afraid."
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Saint Mary
                                                                                                      The Mother of  God                                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                    The Virgin of Soufanieh,                                                                                                                                  Damascus, Syria

Donations and Helping the Neediest

Many of us help those who are less fortunate than us, material-wise. The question is "why would not God help them? Why does God rely on us to support them? Does God really need us to help the neediest?"

Answer: The good Lord does not really need us. He gives us the opportunity to demonstrate His love toward the poor. In my own experience, every time I gave something to someone I received back many folds of what I had donated (7-10 times more). Actually, I feel guilty of giving others (although I still do it) because of this fact. When I donate some money to others I try not to think about receiving, but rather I remind myself my donations are my duties. As a matter of fact, my donations help me more than those who are receiving them. The good Lord is capable to provide all those who are in need. He really does not need me/us. I am fortunate to be able to do it.

Happiness and Peace of Mind: The Anti-Stress Formula

"Come to Me, all of you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and My burden is light."
                                                                     MATTHEW 11:28-30

Happy New Year 2019 from BMP

BMP Is 10 Years Old

Botanical Medicine Posts blog (BMP) was 10 years old on Monday, December 24, 2018. It was born on Christmas Eve of 2008. BMP blog has published, including this entry, 3726 posts so far since its inception. 

New Year Resolutions

Here is a website to help you feel better and become more successful in your life.


(Much more details are found on the website:) [this list would not help if you do not read the details.]

The 31 "Do Not"s:

1. Compare yourself to others.
2. Create unrealistic expectations for yourself.
3. Obsess with the social media.
4. Get into bad spending habits.
5. Fear of the unknown.
6. Live in the past.
7. Put off a vacation.
8. Have a packed schedule.
9. Engage in unhealthy relationships.
10. Wait for the perfect moment.
11. Have the need to be in control of everything.
12. Rely on others to make you feel happy and fulfilled.
13. Avoid getting out of the house.
14. Feel that you need to have the best of things.
15. Hesitate to indulge.
16. Feel sorry for yourself.
17. Fear to fail.
18. Have grudges.
19. Worry what others think of you.
20. Have a disorganized lifestyle.
21. Have the need to control others.
22. Get jealous.
23. Blame others for your own life mistakes.
24. Have a yearning to fit in.
25. Over-analyze situations.
26. Keep "friends" who are not there for you.
27. Resist change.
28. Be afraid to be yourself.
29. Hold onto items you do not need.
30. Avoid your problem.
31. Worry about missing out. 

Merry Christmas 2018 from BMP

I miss you, mom. I love you. This is the first Christmas without you being around. I miss hearing your voice. I miss you dad.

Christmas Eve 2018

The reason the good Lord has sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, on Christmas because He loves us. The sign of Christmas is our salvation. So, what is love?

"Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal.
And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.
And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.

Love suffers long and is kind;
love does not envy;
love does not parade itself, is not puffed up;
does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;
does not rejoice in inequity, but rejoices in the truth;
bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never fails.

...

And now abide faith, hope, love, these three;
but the greatest of these is love."
                                                                                                1 Corinthians 13:1-8; 13