News media is always looking for the next big story.

The death toll is now nearing 200,000. Of those, at least 11 are Canadians who were working or visiting Haiti at the time. Although almost 1,000 Canadians have already been evacuated, 859 are still missing and unaccounted for. (Source: Globe & Mail)

Some of those 1,000 Canadian evacuees are a group of 17 students and their chaperones from Vancouver, who had arrived in Haiti only hours before the earthquake to help set up a goat farm. They arrived back safely in BC. Other groups, such as a humanitarian team from Ontario, sent by Glen Acres Baptist Church to work with the Sauble Christian Fellowship just north of Port-au-Prince, will be coming home soon after working tirelessly for several days “non-stop at a medical clinic, helping with patient care and repairs at the mission” (Source: Toronto Star)

These personal stories makes the tragedy hit much closer to home. I hope that, even in the midst of an economic recession, that the kindness of those of us who live in relatively prosperous western nations will not be limited by geographical borders, but will extend to whoever is in need.

• See videos taken by our humanitarian organization Global Aid Network on the ground in Haiti: GAiN Haiti videos
• If you would like to contribute to the relief work going on in Haiti, please visit our Haiti relief donation page to give safely.
• Read our article on the Haiti earthquake.

Have you or someone you know been personally affected by the Haiti earthquake? Please feel free to share in the comments, or contact us privately if you prefer to talk to someone confidentially via email.

“ I have let my family down and I regret those transgressions with all of my heart. I have not been true to my values and the behavior my family deserves. I am not without faults and I am far short of perfect. I am dealing with my behavior and personal failings behind closed doors with my family. Those feelings should be shared by us alone.”

His words create a media frenzy.  Some think he needs to confess all, others ask for the media to give him his privacy.

Are we really that naïve that we expect all celebrities to live perfect lives? What is it about the transgressions of this sports star that results in the report of 30,000 men being sent to war going nearly unnoticed? Every news channel goes into a speculative discussion which is really nothing more than juicy gossip. There is talk about how he handled it and then further speculation on how he should handle it.

People around the world are making mistakes in relationships everyday. Yet, we place certain ones on a pedestal and have expectations of them to be perfect. Or maybe we put them there so we can wait and watch for the moment they reveal they’re human.

So, why then are we attracted to scandal? If we are really honest, we love a scandal because it proves that celebrities are no better at getting what we want – intimacy – than the rest of us.

Read this article for more on Tiger Woods and other celebrity sex scandals.

*Image by Keith Allison used under Creative Commons license

Gary’s Story: Surviving a Bomb
On Saturday November 8th, 2008 my world blew apart – literally. I was carrying a package I thought was gift when it exploded in my hands. We had recently sold our cozy townhouse and were excited to move into a larger home with yard for our daughters. As I went to retrieve the BBQ cover from the back yard I discovered an unexpected package sitting directly in front of my the back door. Read my story, recently featured on CTV news, and how I was able to respond afterward. Read more

Take action: Having to give up some of the things we cherish can be difficult. Gain valuable perspective by trying our interactive online study Struggling with Contentment.

You said it: This week, Rick commented on the article Gorging on Chocolate Love, saying “i liked your analogy of chocolate versus real food in explaining “eros” love versus “agape” love.” Read the article and add your own thoughts: Read more

Blog: Are You Still Interested In Each Other?
So now that you’re married, are you still interested or are you … bored? Read more

Feature: Choosing to Simplify
In this In Other Words video, Senior Editor Claire talks about different perspectives on cutting back in a tough economy. Read more

Coming up next week: One of the topics of our upcoming online chats is “Empowering Relationships” Join us in the chat room November 22nd 2009 @ 9:00pm EST for this chat, and check our full chat calendar for other upcoming topics.

The shooting began at about 1330 (1930 GMT) on Thursday at a personnel and medical centre at Fort Hood – the largest US military base in the world, home to about 40,000 troops.

The commander of the base, Lt Gen Robert Cone, told NBC News that, according to eyewitnesses, Mr Hasan had shouted the Arabic phrase “Allahu Akbar!” [God is great] before opening fire.

He was shot four times during the attack and is currently being treated in hospital under armed guard.

Reports suggested that he had been increasingly unhappy in the military and that his work at his previous post – Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington DC – had been the subject of concern.

The New York Times said the FBI had been investigating internet postings by a man called Nidal Hasan that appeared to back suicide bombings – but said it was not clear whether it was the suspect.

How can we respond to such acts of terrible violence? Recently, Gary, a young man with a family living in Canada, faced an attack of his own: A package bomb left on the back steps of his home. Not knowing what the package was, he picked it up, and it exploded in his hands. Read Gary’s story of his survival, and how he was able to respond to an act of senseless violence.

If you are grieving or dealing with disappointment or despair, please contact us today to talk about it, we’re always here to listen.

Image credit: Daniel Greene, used with permission, Creative Commons 2.0 License.

The Central Wisconsin parents convicted in their daughter’s death will not go to prison but will spend ten years on probation and some time in jail.

A judge sentenced Dale and Leilani Neumann Tuesday afternoon for the death of their eleven-year-old daughter Kara. She died of complications from untreated diabetes while her parents prayed over her instead of seeking medical attention as her condition worsened.

Both parents spoke to the judge at their sentencing hearing, calling Kara’s death an act of God, reading Biblical passages, and saying the only thing they’re guilty of is following their faith. “Dale and I acted with love toward our daughter to the best way we could have, in the best way we could, because we love her,” Leilani Neumann testified.

Judge Vincent Howard asked, “Did God say, ‘Well, Kara, come to me,’ or when Kara arrived did he ask, ‘Why are you here 70 years too soon?’” (Source: WBAY)

Although Mark 5:26 tells how a woman suffered at the hands of doctors, Jesus never said anyone was wrong for seeking medical attention. He seemed to have a positive view of doctors in general when he said “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.” (Matthew 9:12, et al). Luke, the author of the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles, was himself a doctor (Colossians 4:14) So with no clear mandate against doctors, and positive examples of doctors, we should take any necessary medical precautions available, in addition to faithful prayer, so that tragedies like this are not repeated. Does it show lack of faith to visit a doctor and pray? No, because don’t forget that God in his compassion has given us many ways that we might be healed, including our own incredible immune systems and wonderful new medicines.

See our previous post, Should Christians Expect Healing? for more on this topic, or contact an online mentor if you have questions, concerns, or prayer requests.

Forty years ago today, man stepped on to the moon for the first time.

Can you imagine what it must have been like?  Science fiction is filled with those who want to go “where no man has gone before”.  For these guys and the other 24 Americans who have either flown to, or walked on, the moon, it is no fiction.  I wonder how you go back to your regular life after something like that?

In article written for Wired in 2004 Xeni Jardin recalls going on a zero gravity flight with Buzz Aldrin.  During the flight Aldrin mentions that he has taken up scuba diving “because he grows homesick for floating”.  I wonder if it was more than just gravity that weighed on him after his return to Earth?

Does the whole world would seem a little duller if you’ve been to a place you could never return to?  Imagine all of the years of training and preparation, the excitement of those perfect days of actually being there, and then suddenly you know for sure that this incredible experience will never be repeated.

No one has stood on the moon since 1972.  For most of us, the moon is simply a familiar feature in the sky.  But for two dozen Americans it is something else entirely.  For them, the moon is a dream that came true once when the whole world was watching.

Do you have a dream that feels as far away as the moon? Try our Life Lesson “Living with Significance”.

Image courtesy of Pareeerica. Used with permission under a Creative Commons 2.0 license

The G8 leaders summit

US President Barack Obama is heading the Major Economies Forum, attended by all eight G8 nations (Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States) as well as Brazil, China, India, Mexico and South Africa. These nations are responsible for approximately 80% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions:

Despite the G-8 leaders’ pledge to cut emissions, developing nations may not follow suit — and G-8 leaders stopped short of calling on them to set specific targets.

Instead, they “called upon major emerging economies to undertake quantifiable actions to collectively reduce emissions significantly below business-as-usual by a specified year,” the White House said. (CNN)

Are you concerned about the environment and climate change? Do you think that meetings among world leaders such as the G8 summit are effective, or are different measures required to cause real change?

Related reading: Can you be an atheist and an environmentalist? – Sure, but the harder question is why?

Around the country and the world Friday, legions of grief-stricken fans of the King of Pop mourned the sudden death of Michael Jackson with spontaneous flower-laden and candlelit memorials and emotional tributes, as the autopsy to determine the cause of his mysterious death was scheduled to begin in Los Angeles.

The Los Angeles Medical Examiner’s Office was to start the autopsy before 11 a.m. Eastern time Friday, but toxicology results were not expected for days, perhaps six to eight weeks. A former family lawyer gave interviews about his recent concerns of Mr. Jackson’s deteriorating health, and indicated that prescription drugs might have been a factor in his death Thursday at age 50. (New York Times)

In later years, Jackson’s enormous musical success was in many respects overshadowed by legal, financial, and personal troubles. His planned comeback tour, scheduled to begin this summer, will remain unfulfilled.

What was your reaction to hearing about Michael Jackson’s death? Does it matter to you at all, and if so, in what way?

Image credit: Pierre Éthier

“The world is watching. And how they approach and deal with people who are, through peaceful means, trying to be heard will, I think, send a pretty clear signal to the international community about what Iran is and is not. … This is not an issue of the United States or the West versus Iran. This is an issue of the Iranian people.”

The election in Iran, where previous president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was retained power in the country, have resulted in calls for a recount, protests, and violence in the country. Threats (and acts) of violence against protesters of which Mr Obama elsewhere said “We call on the Iranian government to stop all violent and unjust actions against its own people,” Obama said in a written statement. “Suppressing ideas never succeeds in making them go away.” (CTV)

Recently, “Iran expelled the BBC’s correspondent in Tehran yesterday and accused Britain of pouring agents into the country to sabotage the election.” This came after Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, called “Britain the “most treacherous” of the Western powers that were fomenting unrest in Iran.” (Times Online)

As the unrest and violence in Iran continues, what role should other countries play? What response should we have as individuals and nations when we hear about injustices in the world?

Image credit: marctonysmith

The Toronto Star reports:

Twenty years ago on June 4, 1989, between 800 and 1,000 people died here, when the government ordered soldiers to turn their tanks and guns on their own people to put down a democracy protest by students and workers. In the two decades that have passed, the event haunts the ruling Communist Party still. But there was no mention of it in any of China’s official media today.

The Age news in Australia notes:

The Chinese Communist Party left nothing to chance for yesterday’s 20th anniversary of the June 4 massacre, inundating Tiananmen Square with hundreds and probably thousands of security men. At midday yesterday, tourists in and around the square were outnumbered by blue-uniformed police and green-uniformed armed police.

Do you remember hearing about this event when it happened, or did you or someone you know experience it themselves? What lessons do you think this sad event has to teach us today?

Related reading:
Overcoming Grief and Tragedy
Personal story: The Power of Forgiveness