Behind the Parted Curtain

Life is a stage. Now whom do I please? Who is the spectator? It is too painful for me to think that foul play is swept under the rug. Erwin Lutzer stated: “One minute after you slip behind the parted curtain, you will either be enjoying a personal welcome from Christ or catching your first glimpse of gloom as you have never known it. Either way, your future will be irrevocably fixed and eternally unchangeable.” As the men hung on the crossroads of life and death. There lay one hope that one man had no sin. One to be feared. He was indeed – the Christ – the anointed One.

The thief hounds in deep darkness,
ridiculing the accountable,
Why like me not be careless?
Everything on earth is destructible.

Another thief steps onto the crossroad uncertain,
and glances to the Gods from the stage,
Remember me! as I slip behind the parted curtain,
I do not want my wrongs to against me rage.

Brother in darkness,
why not turn while yet you may;
Too late, it soon will be—
there is more to life than negligence,
a place where it is always day,
Throughout eternity.

Death will not consume me,
for by the One who died unjust on the cross,
will pardon me before the jury,
only because I confessed His glory I lost.

The dark thief shouts in guarantee,
Ill show Him whose boss,
the words he said just was,
immense sound and fury.

How To Win a Race.

In 1896, when the Olympic Games were revived in Athens, the event that became a source of true Greek pride was the first-ever marathon. Seventeen athletes competed in this race of 40 kilometers (24.8 miles), but it was won by Louis—a common laborer. For his efforts, Louis was honored by king and country, and he became a national hero.

The apostle Paul used running a race as a picture of the Christian life. Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. —1 Corinthians 9:24

I thought about the sports-lovers. Why the inclination to activities that inspire achievement, even from centuries past, if not for physique and fitness in our advanced society? There was once where I touched the badminton shuttlecock. My world is now made out of the court, the net, the racket and the opposing player serving the shuttle. I loved the smoothness of the racket shell and the tensions of racket strings. I could not take the poor ventilation; the potential injuries. I could not bare the fact that I had to actually learn the technicalities of the sport. Does not sport stem from the heart’s creativity and not conventional practice?

The bottom line is we all want a prize. The question is not whether I hit it out or in the last time, or whether sports education is necessary. Does not matter whether that self-coached multi-talented player breached the rules of hard work. Does not matter if the man-made event was unfair to us. Our hearts are in the game. We are on a mission. I will bring to the floor the heart of man. I win for the people. I shall not hit the air with a raging inordinate hit that sends only wind down my side. I will show blamelessness in sports. Either I win fairly or I do not win at all. Because the prize is not here on the earth. It is in the heavens. I set my head above, therefore I never run out of love of the sport.

Not only did Paul teach this but he lived it out. In his final epistle, he said, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Tim. 4:7)
(1 Corinthians 9:19-23, 25a, 27)Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. 20To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. 21To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. 22To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. 23I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings. (NOTE: We are under Christ’s law – the law of redemption because of love)
25Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training [...] 27 [sic] I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

And yes I will not. We will not win scolding the imperfection of the world and glorifying ourselves. But we will win with dignity, with wisdom, and in truth.

The game is beautiful in my eyes,
I see societies who for it die,
the beauty of tactics in the minds eye,
but the wise craftsmen in the eye’s mind.
Strength of our foes we celebrate,
glorying in the sporty vertebrate.
Joyful we are in defeat,
Victory does not change our earthly beat,
Even if the beast hits my ball out,
I have got the joy of the game, watch out.

fantastic mr foxx

Reviewed by Isaac Low

Jamie Foxx is attracted to signing on to the crime thriller Law Abiding Citizen. The key factor, according to the Herald Sun, is that as he is a big fan of Zack Snyder’s Spartan fantasy 300, in which now co-star Gerard Butler played the lead role.

This multi-talented Grammy nominee is keen to return to his stand-up comdedy roots. Putting his record plans on hold due to the disheartening leakage of his internet release recorded with Justin Timberlake, Foxx is concerntrating on the screenplay for Sheneneh and Wanda.

Foxx seems to have a repertoire of prosthetic makeovers and hairdos throughout his career. His sister does his hair for the different movies. It is sufficed to say there will not be much left of any of the Foxxes left on the set since his character (who is a women) changes hairstyles after every robbery. This one is a tough plot to crack.

His womanly quirky character with a cult following may be less dissolute a role as the vigilante father in Law Abiding Citizen that Foxx also plays, which includes Butler among the cast. Foxx has to blend into the “grey” world of justice versus vigilantism. Foxx, however, disagrees with Butler’s character, that “[we] should never take the law into our own hands.” Both he and Butler, as characters of “right and wrong”, are seemingly inclined to connect to their characters – in different ways. Jamie Foxx said he could relate to Butler’s vengeful character who desires to avenge his wife and daughter. The Herald Sun (28/1/2010) suggests implicitly that this is helped by Foxx having a daughter of his own. It is interesting to ponder, however, the ways Butler relates to his own character in Law Abiding Citizen after considering Butler’s confession that he has “daddy issues” (http://www.hollywoodheartbreaker.com/2009/11/28/gerard-butler-has-daddy-issues/) and therefore is a commitment-phobe.

Comments confirming Butler to be a commitment-phobe include his immense range of womanizing options; his online appearances are often linked with stars such as Jennifer Aniston, Cheryl Burke and Cameron Diaz. Hollywood Heartbreaker dot com states a tasteful conjecture – “Apparently he couldn’t get along with Jamie Foxx, because Foxx kept sneaking away to Vegas. I guess Gerard was upset that Jamie would get to those women before he could.”

Sex Tips from the Experts (An attractive title)

Reviewed by Isaac Low

“Because of their line of work, how they view relationships is skewed,” utters Dustin Clare  concerning the sex workers in upmarket neighbourhoods in Melbourne. In an attempt to flesh out his character Sean of the steamy drama Satisfaction, Clare spends time talking to them.

He emphasizes on their bravado and confidence in their sexuality. The series seems to surely play on the fantasies of men, or rather both genders for some. This focus on the fantasy aspect is demonstrated by the obvious lion’s share of storylines involving the motif of Sean and Nat’s relationship.

Clare states that the nudity and hard sex scenes are not in any way a disservice. Enough already has been pictured concerning the drugs, corruption and crime side of the equation. Clare emphasizes on the safe working enviroment and his ability to make the people that he works with feel comfortable, especially the women. He describes with a good-hearted, creative flare concerning the director-actor relationship that makes possible this debauchee flick. He utters, “The director has to understand how he wants us to cover it and we have to come up with … a dance really, that works with the coverage.”

Satisfaction, definitely the steamy drama to recommend to males whose sentiments lead them to discover, or rather live in the world of a gigolo.