For all you scientists out there and for all the students who have had a hard time convincing these people regarding the truth of the Bible here's something that illustrates God's awesome creation and shows He is still in control.

Did you know that NASA's space programmers are busy proving what has been called 'myth' in the Bible is true? Mr. Harold Hill, President of the Curtis Engine Company in Baltimore, and a consultant in the space programmes, relates the following incident:

One of the most amazing things that God has for us today happened recently to our astronauts and space scientists at Green Belt, Maryland. They were checking out the positions of the sun, moon and planets out in space where they would be 100, and 1000 years from now. We have to know this as we do not want a satellite to collide with any of these in its orbits. We have to lay out the orbits in terms of the life of the satellite and where the planets will be so the whole project will not bog down.
Computer measurements and data were run back and forth over the centuries when suddenly it came to a halt, displaying a red signal, which meant that either there was something wrong with the information fed into it or with the results as compared to the standards. They called in the service department to check it out, and the technicians asked what was wrong.

The scientists had discovered that somewhere in space in elapsed time a day was missing. Nobody seemed able to come up with a solution to the problem. Finally one of the team, a Christian, said: "You know, when I was still in Sunday School , they spoke about the sun standing still......." While his colleagues didn't believe him, they did not have an answer either, so they said: "Show us." He got a Bible and opened it at the book of Joshua where they found a pretty ridiculous statement for any one with 'common sense'.

There they read about the Lord saying to Joshua: "Fear them not, I have delivered them into thy hand; there shall not be a man of them stands before thee." (Joshua 10:8).
Joshua was concerned because the enemy had surrounded him, and if darkness fell, they would overpower him. So Joshua asked the Lord to make the sun stand still! That's right - "And the sun stood still and the moon stayed, until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies. Is this not written in the book of Ja '-sher ?

So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven and hastened not to go down about a whole day." (Joshua 10:13).

The astronauts and scientists said: "There is the missing day!" They checked the computers going back into the time it was written and found it, but it was not close enough. The elapsed time that was missing back in Joshua's day was 23 hours and 20 minutes - not a whole day.
They read the Bible again and there it was: "about (approximately) a day."

These little words in the Bible were important, but they were still in trouble, because another 40 minutes were still unaccounted for, and this could mean trouble 1000 years from now.

Forty minutes had to be found because it can be multiplied many times over in orbits. As the Christian employee thought about it, he remembered somewhere in the Bible which said the sun went backwards.

The scientists told him he was out of his mind, but once again they opened the Book and read these words in 2 Kings. Hezekiah, on his deathbed, was visited by the prophet, Isaiah, who told him he was not going to die. Hezekiah asked for some sign as proof.

Isaiah said: "Shall the sun go forward ten degrees, or go back ten degrees?" And Hezekiah answered: "It is a light thing for the shadow to go down ten degrees; nay, but let the shadow return backwards ten degrees."
And Isaiah the prophet cried unto the Lord, and He brought the shadow ten degrees backward, by which it had gone down in the dial of Ahaz ." (2 Kings 20:9 -11).

Ten degrees is exactly 40 minutes! Twenty-three hours and twenty minutes in Joshua, plus 40 minutes in 2 Kings accounted for the missing day in the universe!

Isn't this amazing? Our God is rubbing their noses in His Truth! Forward this to as many people who would think this is equally astounding.

Please share this to unbelievers too for the glory of God… (By Philip Samuel).

Carrie Fisher has taken a stand against body shaming and ageism, telling social media trolls who criticized her appearance in the new blockbuster Star Wars film: “Please stop debating about whether or not I aged well... Youth and beauty are not accomplishments, they’re the temporary happy by-products of time and/or DNA. Don’t hold your breath for either.”

The 59-year-old Fisher reprised her iconic role of Leia Organa – now a general rather than a princess – for "The Force Awakens." In remarks on Twitter, she criticized the excessive focus on physical appearance, noting that "my body is my brain bag, it hauls me around to those places and in front of faces where there’s something to say or see.” Many observers have also highlighted the fact that such appearance-oriented critiques are often only directed toward women, noting that there has been far less commentary focused on the aging of her fellow co-stars Harrison Ford and Mark Hamill. Such ageism is common in Hollywood, according to Danielle Paquette of The Washington Post, who found that the 100 top-grossing films of 2014 starred no women over 45.

Last month, the actress also said that she was "pressured" to lose 35 pounds for the film, stating that "they don’t want to hire all of me -- only about three-quarters!” Fisher went on to critique the entertainment industry at large, stating: "I’m in a business where the only thing that matters is weight and appearance. That is so messed up. They might as well say get younger, because that’s how easy it is.”

Kudos to Carrie Fisher for standing up against online bullies and body shaming!

For an excellent book for teen girls that tackles unrealistic body expectations and explores how media and marketing perpetuate such expectations, we highly recommend "The Body Image Workbook for Teens: Activities to Help Girls Develop a Healthy Body Image in an Image-Obsessed World" for ages 13 and up at http://www.amightygirl.com/body-image-workbook

For an insightful film that explores how the often disparaging portrayals of women and girls in the mainstream media contribute to the under-representation of women in positions of power and influence, check out "Miss Representation" for ages 12 and up at http://www.amightygirl.com/miss-representation -- or stream it online at http://amzn.to/1r81xRU

If you or your Mighty Girl are fans of Fisher's iconic character, you can find many girl-empowering Star Wars action figures, t-shirts, and costumes in our "Princess Leia Collection" (http://amgrl.co/1OzDt3C) and our general "Star Wars Collection" (http://amgrl.co/1JnOza2).

And, for fans of the newest Mighty Girl hero to join the Star Wars universe, A Mighty Girl's "Rey Collection" features Rey-themed books, toys, clothing, and posters at http://amgrl.co/1OIv0KP

How far can you go defending your faith when you feel it’s being undermined? As for 12-year-old Jordan Wooley of Katy, Texas, she went as far as defending her faith before the school board after feeling that her teacher somewhat trivialized her God when she introduced a topic of discussion, asking: “Is the existence of God fact? Opinion? A myth?”

While the controversial topic is likely to trigger critical thinking among the students, many feel that the topic was not fitting for a seventh grade classroom and that it had the potential of degenerating into division.

According to Wooley, the fact that the teacher told the class that God was neither a “fact” nor an “opinion” was tantamount to belittling her faith. At the same time, she feels that whatever is taught in school shouldn’t bring her faith into question.

“She told anyone who said ‘fact’ or ‘opinion’ was wrong and that God was only a myth,” Wooley told the board, “I felt like this was really wrong, and I don’t think it’s fair for my faith or religion to have anything to do with what I learn in school.”

After listening to the student, the board issued a statement that read in part: “The activity, which was intended to encourage critical thinking skills and dialogue by engaging students in an exercise wherein they identified statements as fact, opinion, or common assertion was not intended to question or challenge any student’s religious beliefs as reported by some media outlets. The teacher is distraught by this incident, as some commentary has gone as far as to vilify her without knowing her, her Christian faith, or the context of the classroom activity.”

Wooley, who was a bit confused by the incident, told CBS that she went home and shared it with her mother.

“So the kids were caught in a Catch-22,” said her mother, Chantel. “If they argued their faith, they were being told they were arguing against their faith and that happened in the classroom.”

The school district’s statement also agreed that the topic wasn’t appropriate for the classroom setting in as much as there was no ill intention by the teacher.

“Still, this does not excuse the fact that this ungraded activity was ill-conceived and because of that, its intent had been misconstrued,” the school district said.

Wooley wasn’t happy with the fact that the assignment was graded, which meant that she had to make a statement against her religious belief in order to pass.

http://allchristiannews.com/12-year-old-student-defends-her-faith-before-school-board/ 

Finnish people are warm, open and sincere, even though they might tell you the exact opposite.

If you’ve ever met a Finn, chances are they’ve mentioned the reserved nature of their countrymen. Be not afraid – we’re not taciturn brutes. Finns are talkative and hospitable, but the myth of the withdrawn Finn is still alive and well inside Finland. And Finns, with their self-deprecating wit, will be the first to let foreigners in on it. An example of a Finnish joke: “An introverted Finn looks at his shoes when talking to you; an extroverted Finn looks at your shoes”.

About Finland...

Full of interesting contrasts, such as the four seasons, the Midnight Sun and winter darkness, urban and rural, East and West.

• In certain ways, Finns are a pretty peculiar people and we secretly enjoy conveying that image of ourselves, even if it weren’t always true. A Finn will tell tall tales with a straight face, giggle internally and go on until stories just get too much for anyone to believe. Joking with someone (or even at someone’s cost!) is a Finnish way of saying “I like you”. It would probably be fair to say that Finns are civilized and sociable, but have a mischievous way of showing it.

• Finns are not big small talkers, and quiet moments in conversations are not considered awkward. Silence merely means the person doesn’t have anything essential to say. There’s no necessity to fill gaps in conversation with chatter. On the other hand, Finns are genuine – we mean what we say. “Let’s have a beer sometime” actually means you will be contacting the other person sooner or later for a drink, and they will be expecting it.

• Finns are masters of self-deprecating humour and regularly rip on themselves for being shy and introverted. “It’s a playful awareness. Unlike stereotypes in many other countries where people are hesitant to make jokes about them, most Finns seem very aware of their image and don’t take it too seriously”, says New Yorker Chris Wlach, who’s been to Finland twice.

“I heard from my Finnish teacher and friends that there was this idea of Finnish people being reserved, which was funny, because it wasn’t at all my experience”, he says.

• When you get invited to a Finnish home, you know you’ll be meeting Finns at their most genuine. You’ll not be expected to dress up, act stiffly or anything of the sort – casual is the word. Finnish hospitality will be showcased in the form of endless food and drinks, and the more at ease you are, the more the hosts will enjoy it. This is where foundations for lifelong friendships are often laid.

• There’s nothing more Finnish than sauna, a way of life that is passed on from generation to generation. Besides cleansing both physically and spiritually, the sauna used to be a gateway in and out of this world: in the old days, women would give birth in saunas, and upon a person’s death, the body would be given a final wash there. Finns are not the type of people who take to the streets when unhappy about things, but restricting their right to sauna – which you must never try – would certainly cause an outrage of unprecedented proportions. And yes, we normally do it nude.

• The Finnish summer is short, only about three months, but it is celebrated with all the more zest. The amount of events from large-scale music festivals to local markets and fairs is simply astounding, and the white nights make sure revellers never run out of steam.

• At some point of the summer, escaping to the countryside is a must for every Finn. Ideally staying at a cottage by water, time there is mostly spent doing nothing save for barbecueing, the occasional dip in the lake and just general hanging about. With round-the-clock sunlight, cottage life is the best way to recharge your batteries and forget about everyday worries like schedules and appointments. Simply being is a weirdly wonderful feeling.

• The spring is an amazing time in Finland, especially in Lapland, the northernmost province, where Finns flock for ski breaks from February to May. The springtime sun and ideal outdoor conditions are perfect for combining fun and exercise, and resorts everywhere are crowded with smiling, easy-going people. It is said Finns are born with skis strapped to their feet, but they can certainly party with them on, too.

• Finns see themselves as reserved, but calm would be a more fitting description in most cases. Calm works until you put a Finn in charge of a motorized vehicle – then it’s all systems go! Finns like to think of themselves as the fastest nation on earth, and with the number of Rally and Formula One world champions we’ve produced, the claim isn’t too far-fetched. As fast speed is in our heritage, Finland boasts several driving academies, where travelers can test their own skills on the icy roads.

• In Finland, nature is never far away and Finns definitely have a close connection with it. Getting away from civilization is greatly valued and walking in the woods is a simple, yet terrific way for collecting your thoughts and hearing yourself think every once in a while.

• Finland is a country of extremes and contrasts – for example, cold and dark winters alternate with warm and light-filled summers. For some reason, Finns need to accentuate this by swimming in icy waters while bathing in steaming saunas. Come to think of it, the rather challenging conditions must have played a part in making Finns wanting to test their limits so vigorously. The reason why is probably unclear even for most Finns; it’s just something we’re born with, for better or for worse.

 http://www.visitfinland.com/article/what-are-the-finns-like/?utm_content=buffer73d78&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer