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Attack at Pearl Harbor, 1941 December seventh, 1941: the surprise was complete. The attacking planes came in two waves; the first hit its target at 7:53 AM, the second at 8:55. By 9:55 it was all over. By 1:00 PM the carriers that launched the planes from 274 miles off the coast of Oahu were heading back to Japan. Poster commemorating the attack, 1942 Behind them they left chaos, 2,403 dead, 188 destroyed planes and a crippled Pacific Fleet that included 8 damaged or destroyed battleships. In one stroke the Japanese action silenced the debate that had divided Americans ever since the German defeat of France left England alone in the fight against the Nazi terror. Approximately three hours later, Japanese planes began a day-long attack on American facilities in the Philippines. (Because the islands are located across the International Dateline, the local Philippine time was just after 5 AM on December 8.) Farther to the west, the Japanese struck at Hong Kong, Malaysia and Thailand in a coordinated attempt to use surprise in order inflict as much damage as quickly as possible to strategic targets. Although stunned by the attack at Pearl Harbor, the Pacific Fleet's aircraft carriers, submarines and, most importantly, its fuel oil storage facilities emerged unscathed. These assets formed the foundation for the American response that led to victory at the Battle of Midway the following June and ultimately to the total destruction of the Japanese Empire four years later. Aboard the USS Arizona The battleships moored along "Battleship Row" are the primary target of the attack's first wave. Ten minutes after the beginning of the attack a bomb crashes through the Arizona's two armored decks igniting its magazine. The explosion rips the ship's sides open like a tin can starting a fire that engulfs the entire ship. Within minutes she sinks to the bottom taking 1,300 lives with her. The sunken ship remains as a memorial to those who sacrificed their lives during the attack. Marine Corporal E.C. Nightingale was aboard the Arizona that fateful Sunday morning: "At approximately eight o'clock on the morning of December 7, 1941, I was leaving the breakfast table when the ship's siren for air defense sounded. Having no anti-aircraft battle station, I paid little attention to it. Suddenly I heard an explosion. I ran to the port door leading to the quarterdeck and saw a bomb strike a barge of some sort alongside the NEVADA, or in that vicinity. The marine color guard came in at this point saying we were being attacked. I could distinctly hear machine gun fire. I believe at this point our anti-aircraft battery opened up. "We stood around awaiting orders of some kind. General Quarters sounded and I started for my battle station in secondary aft. As I passed through casement nine I noted the gun was manned and being trained out. The men seemed extremely calm and collected. I reached the boat deck and our anti-aircraft guns were in full action, firing very rapidly. I was about three quarters of the way to the first platform on the mast when it seemed as though a bomb struck our quarterdeck. I could hear shrapnel or fragments whistling past me. As A captured Japanese photo shows Battleship Row under attack. Hickam Field burns in the distance soon as I reached the first platform, I saw Second Lieutenant Simonson lying on his back with blood on his shirt front. I bent over him and taking him by the shoulders asked if there was anything I could do. He was dead, or so nearly so that speech was impossible. Seeing there was nothing I could do for the Lieutenant, I continued to my battle station. "When I arrived in secondary aft I reported to Major Shapley that Mr. Simonson had been hit and there was nothing to be done for him. There was a lot of talking going on and I shouted for silence which came immediately. I had only been there a short time when a terrible explosion caused the ship to shake violently. I looked at the boat deck and everything seemed aflame forward of the mainmast. I reported to the Major that the ship was aflame, which was rather needless, and after looking about, the Major ordered us to leave. "I was the last man to leave secondary aft because I looked around and there was no one left. I followed the Major down the port side of the tripod mast. The railings, as we ascended, were very hot and as we reached the boat deck I noted that it was torn up and burned. The bodies of the dead were thick, and badly burned men were heading for the quarterdeck, only to fall apparently dead or badly wounded. The Major and I went between No. 3 and No. 4 turret to the starboard side and found Lieutenant Commander Fuqua ordering the men over the side and assisting the wounded. He seemed exceptionally calm and the Major stopped and they talked for a moment. Charred bodies were everywhere. "I made my way to the quay and started to remove my shoes when I suddenly found myself in the water. I think the concussion of a bomb threw me in. I started swimming for the pipe line which was about one hundred and fifty feet away. I was about half way when my strength gave out entirely. My clothes and shocked The USS Shaw explodes condition sapped my strength, and I was about to go under when Major Shapley started to swim by, and seeing my distress, grasped my shirt and told me to hang to his shoulders while he swam in. "We were perhaps twenty-five feet from the pipe line when the Major's strength gave out and I saw he was floundering, so I loosened my grip on him and told him to make it alone. He stopped and grabbed me by the shirt and refused to let go. I would have drowned but for the Major. We finally reached the beach where a marine directed us to a bomb shelter, where I was given dry clothes and a place to rest."

That's quite a broad definition. Room for celebration churches, spiritual formation, praise dancers, LaSierra Biologists, clapping, women who wear pants, women pastors, women presidents, male praise dancers, a black GC president, the One project, wow!!!!

One underlying theme of many doubting Divine intervention or various Biblical miracles including young earth Creation is that because we have not observed something it does not exist. Can we as human beings living in the 21st century A. D. expect to understand all things spiritual or is it reasonable to expect this? If we lived 400 years ago and could see much of the technology in use today, such as cell phones, we might think that we were observing witchcraft. If a doctor living in the 1700's was told that heart transplants would one day take place he would be unlikely to believe it. My grandmother, who used to bring her farm produce to town to sell in a horse and buggy, lived to watch men walk on the moon. The scientific findings of today would be beyond belief 130 years ago. So why do we assume we can understand all things spiritual? Do we think our intelligence quotients, even if they are high for our day and time, are higher than those of angels? Can we understand how the good ones work and how they bring help to human beings, or how the bad ones work? Do we think we are as knowledgeable as they? Or is there a role for faith in not assuming we can understand all of the technical aspects of spiritual things, because we do not have the knowledge, the background, or at times even the intellect, to understand it all? What we can have is wisdom, the wisdom of trusting God. But knowledge is relative.

The SDA Church that I attend currently has two worship services, a non-traditional one that begins a 9 AM, followed by the Sabbath school and a traditional service which begins a 11:30 AM. Both services are live--streamed over the Internet. Yesterday the two congregations were informed that changes would take place beginning January 3. [NOTE: Due to the holiday season, there will be some special services before then.] There will only be one worship service, which will attempt to combine traditional and non-traditional elements based upon a coordinated overall theme centered in the massage of the sermon. That service will begin at 9:30 AM and end at 10:45 AM. The Sabbath School will follow at 11:00 AM. Under the present pastor, organization and planning is the key phrase. This is required in part due to the fact that the worship services are live-streamed over the Internet. Aspects of the worship services are planned in minutes and seconds. Each worship service is in charge of a person called a "producer" who has the function of seeing that the service takes place as intended. The persons taking part in the service are given a program for that service that for each aspect lists: 1) The time that part begins. 2) The length in minutes and seconds. 3) What is intended to happen: Invocation, congregational song, welcome, etc. 4) The transition to that aspect: The band enters from the right entrance, and remains standing at the rear while the choir enters from the front, etc. 5) The person: The pastor. 6) Audio: Turn on handheld microphones 3 & 4 and stationary mike 7, plus the keyboard. 7) Lights: Turn on chancel, focused spots on readers and on the keyboard, etc. 8) Video Presenter: Logo, Lyrics, Special announcement, [NOTE: Video presents on three large screens in the front with a slightly different presentation in the rear that can be read by the choir, band and others on the platform.] Following the above the program provided the participants will list: 1) The names of all person needed to put the above in place. e.g. the eight (8) named people who will run the audio/visual and cameras, plus the more than a dozen otherwise taking part in the worship service. 2) A diagram of the platform with the location of where every person on the platform that day will be placed. The platform is divided into six (6) major sections which are then sub-divided. Does everything go a planned? No. But, progress is being made in that direction. Your service probably does not take place in this exact manner. But, the Bible does not give an exact form for worship. But, it does suggest that things should be done decently and in good order. If you want to see the results, along with mistakes that have happened, you can watch it live-streamed. http://new.livestream.com/bouldersdachurch/events/3639615?origin=stream_live&mixpanel_id=1392611014d28-0c5c19737a091b-43530843-232800-1392611014f323&acc_id=1554102&medium=email http://new.livestream.com/bouldersdachurch/events/3639908?origin=stream_live&mixpanel_id=1392611014d28-0c5c19737a091b-43530843-232800-1392611014f323&acc_id=1554102&medium=email NOTE: You will have to register, if you are not on fAcebook with your e-mail address. The 1st URL is for the non-traditional service and the 2nd is for the traditional service. For both of those the congregations were told about the plans to conbine the services on January 3.

"It’s been growing over the last few decades. And to be honest, it’s a troubling theme. And if this current generation of worship leaders doesn’t change this theme, then corporate worship in evangelicalism really is headed for a major crash. "It’s the theme of performancism. The worship leader as the performer. The congregation as the audience. The sanctuary as the concert hall. It really is a problem. It really is a thing. And we really can’t allow it to become the norm. "Worship leaders, we must identify and kill performancism while we can. It’s not rocket science. Sing songs people know (or can learn easily). Sing them in congregational keys. Sing and celebrate the power, glory and salvation of God. Serve your congregation. Saturate them with the word of God. Get your face off the big screen (here’s why). Use your original songs in extreme moderation (here’s why). Err on the side of including as many people as possible in what’s going on. Keep the lights up. "Stop talking so much. Don’t let loops/lights/visuals become your outlet for creativity at the expense of the centrality of the gospel. Point to Jesus. Don’t draw attention to yourself. Don’t sing songs with bad lyrics or weak theology. Tailor your worship leading, and the songs you pick, to include the largest cross-section of your congregation that you can. Lead pastorally. "I am a worship music nerd. I listen to a lot of it. I follow the recent developments. I know who’s out there (sort of). I try to keep up (it’s not easy). Even I didn’t know most of the songs that we were supposed to be singing along to at the conference. I tuned out. I sat down. I tweeted. I texted my wife. I gave up. "You’re not reading the ramblings of a curmudgeony guy complaining about all the new-fangled things the kids are doing these days, with their drums and tom-toms and electric geetars. You’re reading the heart-cry of a normal guy who’s worried about what worship leaders are doing to themselves and their congregations. "People are tuning out and giving up and just watching. This is not a criticism of the National Worship Leader Conference, though I do think they could make some changes to more intentionally model an approach to worship leading that isn’t so weighted on the performance side. As I said, the conference exposes us to what’s out there in the (primarily) evangelical worship world. "It’s what’s out there that’s increasingly a problem. "Worship leaders: Step back. Take a deep breath. Think about it. Do we really want to go down this road? It will result in a crash. Back up. Recalibrate. Serve your congregations, point them to Jesus, help them sing along and sing with confidence. Get out of the way, for God’s sake." clipped from: http://www.churchleaders.com/worship/worship-articles/175020-jamie-brown-evangelical-worship-headed-for-a-huge-crash.html/1

Burt says: "When there is a true and genuine understanding of the Word and the Eternal Gospel I think many of those groups you advocate for will have no place in this movement, especially after the "shaking." And just who defines "true and genuine understanding of the Word and the Eternal Gospel"? You? The SDA denomination? One of the other 55,000 Christian denominations? You may be of a different opinion; but I think intimacy, love, and trust are more important to the Father and Son than having 100% "correct" doctrine, whatever that is.

My dad's 3rd cousin, Martin Vitousek and Martin's father, Roy, were in the family's Aeronca plane flying over the Islands when they were attacked by the first wave of Japanese planes heading to bomb Pearl Harbor. They have the distinction of the first American plane to be engaged in combat during WWII. My cousin (Martin's son) told me that in 1991 a Pearl Harbor Reunion was held for the Japanese who had been on the 1941 bombing mission, as well as the Americans. Martin and his family met one of the Japanese pilots who had shot at him and his father on that day. The man told them that he had orders to shoot down any aircraft that he encountered. So, seeing the Aeronca, he began to zero in on it. As he got closer to the plane, he could see the pilot (Martin's father). But when he saw young Martin, the pilot released the trigger for the guns and swooped away. He said he knew he might face death if it was found that he'd disobeyed orders by not shooting down the plane, but he felt in his heart that it would be unworthy to kill a child. http://archives.midweek.com/content/zones/east_news_article/family_plane_hit_by_zero_fighter/ Here's the plane

The only way? Perhaps there are certain sections of the bible you have not read..... Praise his name with dancing, accompanied by tambourine and harp. Ps 149:3 Praise him with the tambourine and dancing; praise him with strings and flute Ps 150:4 Seems like your advocating break-dancing in church because the only dancing i've seen that's flat on the face is break-dancing. Lift up holy hands in prayer, and praise the LORD. Ps 134:2 And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living beings. And they fell before the throne with their faces to the ground and worshiped God. Revelation 7:11

I could think of some responses to make to the above, but I will refrain from doing so.

Trolling is when a person continuously posts irrelevant thoughts to the topic of a thread. God does not troll. Period.

Laz says: "Black people have the experience of knowing that many white folks cannot relate to how they feel, and their white privilege and feelings of supremacy do not allow them to empathize." ​I'm not sure the "feelings of supremacy" part is applicable to all whites (are you profiling? ; but folks who have never been unjustly discriminated against can't truly empathize with those who have, cuz it's outside of their realm of experience. ​One thing I have noticed is that black families tend educate their children about the realities of racial discrimination at a much earlier age than white families. I have a 5 year-old African granddaughter that lives in an all-white family in an all-white community. Little white kids are very insensitive; and tease her about being different. It is not until they are caught by their parents that it even occurs to them that they are being "racist", if they can even grasp that concept. My lovely granddaughter never retaliates; but I see the hurt in her eyes; and know that it must have a cumulative effect on her. You can bet she grasps the concept of racism. Yet, she remains the most loving grandchild I have.

Black people already know the the reality of how police treat black people, latinos and the poor. Right now they get caught on camera and still are not held accountable. Black people have the experience of knowing that many white folks cannot relate to how they feel, and their white privilege and feelings of supremacy do not allow them to empathize.

The children were all lined up for their first confession when Little Johnny’s turn came. The priest asked him to confess his sins, and the boy promptly replied, “Father, I threw a stone at Jimmy.” “That was a very misguided thing to do, my son,” said the priest patiently. “It wasn’t misguided at all,” said Little Johnny. “I hit him.”

I've always advocated being polite to police officers when they pull you over. To do otherwise is not smart. They are literally judge, jury and executioner out in the field. They can shoot and kill you and not get indicted. I've said the long before recent news. It is not something new. People are human, and everyone does not have the same temperament. i get that. But bucking up to a police officer when they pull you over is not wise.

I don't trust what NYPD has to say about this, anymore than I trust a grand jury.

This is just a question, lest anyone think I'm trying to start something. Rather than being a racial issue, could the issue of judicial and police inequality be an economic issue? The incidents being discussed happen to have taken place where there are large populations of poor African Americans. Where I live and in places like Los Angeles or Tucson, these same events could have very well happened in a poor Latino part of town. I see rich African Americans (e.g., OJ) buying their way out of horrific crimes like rich white guys do. Do rich people in general receive better treatment by the law than poor people? Is it because they can "buy" leniency?

Romans 1 gives the reason for homosexuality. I never connected it to modern times until I listened to a sermon by Jack Colon where he tied our insistence in teaching evolution into Romans1 and the result is that God has turned society over to their lusts. I always thought this passage only applied to Israel not long before they were scattered among the nations. But it also has an end time application. I find the article posted disturbing to say the least. To imply that we can do what we want because God is merciful and understands is just a sad indicator of how low we as a church have fallen. When some of our main institutions are trying to promote homosexuality like PUC, La Sierra and other of our schools are doing we know that the end cannot be to far in the distance. We used to be people of the Word, what happened?

Oh, to just learn to be satisfied and enjoy watching grass grow... To entertain is to catch and hold someone's attention. If it is done for no purpose beyond that it is pointless. But what we do in church is for a purpose. Much of a church service is performance. Always has been. If we don't successfully catch and hold the attention of the people, we fail to sustain our purpose in coming together and eventually nobody shows up, for lack of interest. The problem I think is not that there is performance, but that it gets tiresomely the same thing each and every week. It becomes a ritual of sameness. Comforting to a few, like a child hearing the same bedtime story every night... to lull them to sleep. But who really wants to read the same book over and over, sing the same song endlessly 24/7, watch the same movie over and over. It is like being stuck in a mindless job screwing the same screw into the same widget all day long on the assembly line. It is mind numbin soul crushing tedium. The saved sing a new song... What a simple idea.

We should keep them open to things that are in harmony with the Bible even if we do not understand them. It says to prove all things, hold fast that which is good.