Tyler ISD congratulates students for receiving Letters of Commendation in recognition of their academic promise. Robert E. Lee High School has five students who have been named Commended Students from the 2010 National Merit Scholarship Program. The students are seniors Wendy Ji, Evan Gordon, Shelby Spell, Molly Cook, and Madison Mackey.
This honor is awarded based on a Selection Index score, which is the sum of scores from the critical reading, math, canadian generic cialis and writing skills section.
Approximately 34,000 of the 50,000 high scorers in each annual National Merit Program are named Cialis as Commended Students. These students become candidates for Special Scholarships sponsored by corporations and businesses.

As we study the parables of Jesus in the Gospel According to Matthew I’m not just restricting myself to the classic parables that tell a story. I’m also teaching on the verses where Jesus employed word pictures and metaphors to communicate spiritual truth. So in this message we’re going to examine two short parables that I’m calling “The Parables of Foxes and Funerals.” Coming to Jesus for salvation is a relatively easy process, but following Jesus as a disciple is more challenging. Coming to Christ is an act of faith, but being a disciple of Jesus is a lifestyle that requires true commitment.

A little skinny guy applied for a job as a lumberjack at a large lumber company.

The head lumberjack looked at him and said, “You’re too little to be a good lumberjack.” The guys aid, “Just give me a chance to show you what Generic Cialis Online I can do.” The boss said, “Okay. See that giant tree over there? Take this axe and cut it down.” The boss smiled and headed back into the office knowing it would take the little guy all day to cut that tree down. But five minutes later the guy was knocking on the boss’s door. He said, “I cut that one down, do you have another one?”

The boss looked and, sure enough, the tree was lying on the ground. He said, “Man, where in the world did you learn to chop wood like that?” The little guy said, “Oh, I used to work in the Sahara Forest.” The boss said, “There’s no Sahara Forest, it’s the Sahara Desert.” The little guy smiled and said, “Well, that’s what they call it NOW.”

Sometimes the people Jesus called to be His disciples didn’t appear to be the most qualified candidates. Instead of choosing educated rabbis to be His disciples, Jesus chose a ragtag group including ignorant and uneducated fishermen, a tax-collector, a rebel, and a doubter. But these twelve disciples weren’t the only men who followed Jesus. There were many wannabe disciples, including the two we meet in

Matthew 8:18-22:
“When Jesus saw the crowd around him, he gave orders to cross to the other side of the lake. Then a teacher of the law came to him and said, ‘Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.’ Jesus replied, ‘Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.’ Another disciple said to him, ‘Lord, first let me go and bury my father.’ But Jesus told him, ‘Follow me, and the let the dead bury their own dead.’”

Thousands wanted to be around Jesus, but only a few really wanted to be His disciple. They wanted miracles and He wanted to make disciples. He wasn’t interested the crowd—He was looking for the committed. So after He and the disciples sailed to the other side of the lake, He encountered two unnamed men who indicated a desire to be His disciple. Are you just part of the crowd, or do you have a desire to be a part of the committed? Do you want to be more than just a believer? Do you want to be a true disciple?

I recently read some comments by comedian Yakov Smirnoff, who immigrated to America from the Ukraine in the late 70s. He said when he first visited an American grocery store, he was surprised at all the products that offered instant results, like instant coffee: Just add water and you had coffee. He said, “I saw powdered milk. All you had to do was add water and you had milk. I saw powdered orange juice—you just add water and you had orange juice.

Then I saw baby powder and I thought to myself, ‘Wow, what a country!’”

Somewhere along the way we got the idea that discipleship is easy: Just add water, get baptized, and voilà! You’re a disciple. But it’s not that easy. There is no shortcut to being a disciple. In this passage we discover two important lessons about the cost of discipleship.

We don’t know the names of these two wannabe disciples, so I’ll give them fictitious names in order to distinguish between them. Let’s call the first guy Samuel. We know a little about Sam’s background because he is called “a teacher of the law” and other translations call him a “scribe.” The term “scribe” is found 55 times in the Gospels, but it doesn’t refer to an cialis prescription cost occupation of copying scrolls as much as it was a religious/political group. A modern example is that some men who belong to the Masons have never laid a brick. Usually the scribes are always mentioned along with the Pharisees. It might help to think about them as members of religious Rotary and Kiwanis clubs. The scribes and Pharisees only accepted the most educated, successful men into their ranks, so we can infer that Sam was successful and lived a comfortable life.

There is no reason for us to doubt Sam’s sincerity as he approached Jesus and used the ultimate term of respect. He said, “Rabbi. I will follow you where ever you go!” Can’t you hear his enthusiasm? “I’m ready! I’m your man! Let’s do it!” I can imagine Jesus smiled and looked him right into the eyes and said, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” What did Jesus mean? Let’s first examine what Jesus was NOT saying.

A. MISAPPLICATION: Jesus isn’t saying we must adopt a life of poverty

Some people have taken this verse to mean since Jesus didn’t own a home Christians shouldn’t own anything either. Some Christians actually take a vow of poverty, including some Catholic priests and nuns, and they’re to be commended for their dedication. However, in their case, the Catholic Church provides them with clothes, cars, houses, and food. Of all the people who indicated a desire to follow Jesus, there was only one person who was told, “Go, sell all you have and follow me.”

Jesus said that to the rich young ruler because he already had a god—his possessions. If you allow your money and your possessions to be your god, then, by all means, get rid of them, but poverty isn’t a requirement for discipleship. But there have always been wealthy people who have supported the cause of Christ. A rich man provided a tomb for Jesus, and we know there were wealthy people in the early church.

In 1 Timothy 6 Paul didn’t instructed Timothy to tell those who were rich to get rid of their wealth. He told them not to trust in their wealth. The Bible doesn’t say, “money is the root of all evil.” It says, “The LOVE of money is the root of all evil.”

Are you considering converting cialis fast shipping your pasture land to timber production or need to replant an area? The Forestry program on Tuesday, November 3, 2009 will answer many of your questions you may have in regards to planting pine or hardwood seedlings. The program will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the Gregg County Extension Auditorium at 405 East Marshall in Longview. This program will be useful for anyone interested in planting Cialis Viagra buy Online trees. Dr. Eric Taylor, Extension Forester with the Texas AgriLife Extension Service and Mr. Wes Moorehead, District Forester with the Texas Forest Service will be presenting the program.

Topics presented at this program include: Planting pines: How to Increase survival, Herbicides for controlling competition in pine forest, Cost Share availability for planting trees and Carbon Credits update. This program is sponsored by the Gregg County Extension Agriculture Committee. For additional information contact the Texas AgriLife Extension Service – Gregg County office.

Dennis Smith can be contacted at the Gregg County Extension Office by e-mail at dg-smith@tamu.edu or telephone at: 903-236-8429.

Extension programs serve people of all ages regardless of socioeconomic level, race, color, sex, religion, disability, or national origin.

It’s true that littered cigarette butts are a public nuisance, and not just for aesthetic reasons. The filters on cigarettes—four fifths of all cigarettes have them—are made of cellulose acetate, a form of plastic that is very slow to degrade in the environment. A typical cigarette butt can take anywhere from 18 months to 10 years to decompose, depending on environmental conditions.

But beyond the plastic, these filters—which are on cigarettes in the first place to absorb contaminants to prevent them from going into the lungs—contain trace amounts of toxins like cadmium, arsenic and lead. Thus when smokers discard their butts improperly—out the car window or off the end of a pier or onto the sidewalk below—they are essentially tossing cialis 100mg pills these substances willy-nilly into the environment.

Studies done by Johns Hopkins University, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and even the tobacco industry itself show that these contaminants can get into soils and waterways, harm or kill living organisms and generally degrade surrounding ecosystems.

While individual discarded cigarette butts may be small, they add up to a huge problem. Some 5.5 trillion cigarettes are consumed worldwide each year. The non-profit Keep America Beautiful reports that cigarette butts constitute as much as one-third of all litter nationwide when measured by the number of discarded items, not volume. According to the Ocean Conservancy, a non-profit that advocates for stronger protection of marine ecosystems, cigarette butts are the most commonly littered item found on America’s salt and fresh water beaches according to feedback received by hundreds of thousands of volunteers taking part in the group’s annual Coastal Clean-up event.

While the tobacco industry may have its hands full just trying to stay afloat in the maelstrom of ongoing bad publicity, critics say it should be doing more to prevent cigarette butt litter. “Just as beverage manufacturers contribute to anti-litter campaigns, and have invested in public education on litter issues, so too should the tobacco industry,” says Kathleen Register, founder and executive director of Clean Virginia Waterways, a non-profit that has spearheaded the fight against cigarette butt litter in the mid-Atlantic region of the U.S. She adds that cigarette manufacturers “need to take an active and responsible role in educating smokers about this issue and devote resources to the cleanup of cigarette litter.”

Register suggests a number of strategies including putting anti-litter messages on all cigarette packaging and advertisements, distributing small, free portable ashtrays, and placing and maintaining outdoor ashtrays in areas where smokers congregate. She also suggests putting an extra tax on cigarette sales, with proceeds going toward anti-litter education efforts and to defray the costs of cleaning up butts. “Picking up littered cigarette butts costs schools, businesses and park agencies money,” she says. “By taxing smokers for anti-litter educational efforts, some of the costs of cleaning up cigarette butts will shift onto smokers.” One way or another, Register hopes, smokers will learn that the Earth is not one giant ashtray.

CONTACTS: CDC, www.cdc.gov; Clean Virginia Waterways, www.longwood.edu/cleanva.

Millipedes often become a pest in many of our homes during wet weather. Millipedes are more of a nuisance than a destructive pest. Millipedes do not transmit diseases to plants, animals or man. However millipedes occasionally feed on stems and leaves of seedling plants, damaging them.

Millipedes are not insects. Millipedes belong to the arthropod class Diplopoda which means “two footed” or “double footed.” The class name refers to the fact that most body segments support two pairs of legs. Millipedes should not be confused with centipedes which bear only one pair of legs per body segment. Millipedes’ bodies are cylindrical with two pairs of legs per segment. Most Texas millipedes typically are brownish but can vary from red to yellow to orange. When disturbed, a millipede often curls into a spiral to protect itself.

It is no wonder millipedes are major pest, they can live for more than 10 years! They prefer cool, moist environments, such as leaf litter, mulch or compost piles. Large numbers of these pest may move into homes after heavy rainfall or even during droughts. Millipedes eat primarily decaying organic matter, although some species are carnivorous.

Millipedes are not poisonous but produce a smelly glandular substance that can be irritating to humans.
If millipedes are occurring in great numbers indoors, it is usually an indication that there is a large population in the area surrounding the home. To control these pest, the most important step is to remove materials that give them shelter in the area surrounding the home. This includes excessive mulch, leaf litter, thick grass, rocks, boards and similar materials. Turn the mulch around shrubs to encourage it to dry out.

Try to prevent millipedes from entering the house by making sure doors and windows fit tightly and as many cracks and crevices are caulked as possible. Remember they may be entering the home from high areas just as easily as low areas.

Pesticides only provide temporary control unless the environment cialis online canadian pharmacy is changed for the millipedes. Applying perimeter sprays around building foundations may help keep millipedes form moving indoors. Look for pesticide products with active ingredients such as deltamethrin, permethrin, bifenthrin or cypermethrin. Treat crack and crevice areas as well as baseboards and other hiding places using products such as cypermethrin, permethrin, bifenthrin or lambda-cyhalothrin that are labeled for indoor use.

In 2003, the Medical Profession made a promise to Texans: if Texas voters would pass a constitutional amendment limiting non-economic damages in medical malpractice lawsuits, the state would do a better job policing the medical profession, suspending or revoking the licenses of doctors who mistreat patients. During that session and every session thereafter, various and sundry special interest groups have engaged in an organized — but so far largely unsuccessful — effort to slash this board’s powers over physicians.

In all fairness, the deal I described above was, in large part, forced on the Medical community by the Legislature. Oh, the medical groups are all for limitations on damages in lawsuits against doctors. But that second part — a pro-active medical board — is something that the medical community has never completely accepted.

In 2002, The Dallas Morning News ran a startling series of articles detailing stories of doctors who abused patients (in some cases sexually) and then got off with probation or some other mild sanction from the Medical Board. The series shocked most of those who read it, and led to legislators Cialis cheap appropriately asking some tough questions of the medical board. In response to that series, Gov. Rick Perry reorganized state finances to allow the board to hire more investigators and pay its staff better. And lawmakers promised there would be more to come once the Legislature returned in 2003. And Perry supported a no-nonsense physician and lawyer Donald Patrick with a mandate to clean this mess up.

I have spoken on several occasions at length with Dr. Patrick, and I honestly believe he was serious about cleaning up the board. (He retired last year.) Now along comes the Morning News with another article, published Oct. 11, about doctors who commit sexual abuse on patients getting off with a slap on the wrist. Now I’m reserving judgment about the merits of any individual case, as medical privacy laws prevent the Medical Board (or anyone else for that matter) from telling their side of the story. That said, I hope that either there’s something cialis daily more to the incidents described in the Morning News story or that they are isolated incidents.

Texas voters took a calculated leap of faith in 2003 when they endorsed the non-economic damage limits. And the board has an all-time record number of license applications, in part, as a result of those damage caps. But Texas lawmakers made the public a promise that these tort changes would not compromise public safety, and the success of the tort reform initiative ultimately depends on how faithfully that promise is kept.

Plaintiffs’ attorneys argued throughout the session that real people would get hurt if the Legislature limited damage awards. They are looking for bad doctors who got away with unspeakable acts to use as a “bloody shirt” to brand the Texas experiment a failure nationwide. And sometimes, the medical groups give them plenty of ammunition. Throughout the 2003 session, several physician groups worked to neuter the medical board bill, but for the most part, legislators stood firm for patients. Also, the Legislature — at the request of then-Public Health Chairman and malpractice reform supporter Jaime Capelo (D-Corpus Christi) — established in 2003 an Office of Patient Protection, a kind of ombudsman to make sure these licensing boards do their job. The office was abolished in 2005.

Perhaps — given the serious accusations that the Dallas News has uncovered — Texans could benefit by having a non-involved thirdparty interested in patient protection look at those cases. Now — seven years after the News series — some of the medical board’s critics are circulating proposals to ban anonymous complaints or ban insurance carrier complaints. There’s a key problem with this idea — certain licensed medical professionals have an obligation to report misconduct when they observe it. By making the complaint public, that person’s employment could be placed at risk, not to mention legal concerns about patient privacy. The Legislature would do well to view such proposals skeptically.

The medical board has a difficult job, and doctors ought to get fair treatment in front of the board. The vast majority of physicians are, of course, honorable people who do a great job for Texans every day. In fact, these good doctors ought to be just as concerned as I am about what the News has uncovered and want it rooted out of their profession.

The Dallas Morning News is right to keep a careful eye on this issue. The governor and other Republican leaders are touting the 2003 package as a model for the nation. With that kind of attention on Texas, legislators and leaders in the Medical community need to keep the promises made in 2003 and ensure that malpractice reform works as well for patients as it does for their doctors.

Almost daily, alarming new social trends pop up. Sadly, the most destructive of these seem to quickly find acceptance within the Black community. Worst yet, many of these self-defeating behaviors and fads originate within the prison and hip-hop cultures, which are the wrong places to seek role models.
Some trends, like young men wearing their pants without a belt, well below their waist, with the crotch hanging below their knees, have roots in the prison system. Apparently, many prisoners wear their pants very low to make it difficult for guards to effectively search for contraband.

Wearing head bands and head scarves also sprung from the prison/gangster culture, often to identify gang affiliation. Even small kids flash ‘gang hand signals‘, and fantasize about being a member of The Crips’ or the ‘Bloods’, violent street gangs made famous by Black exploitation movies Levitra cheap and hip-hop music.
The latest mantra drilled into young minds in the Black community, concerns ‘snitching’. Children are warned against cooperating with police or authorities, no matter what. Kid’s T shirts and hats show, “Stop Snitchin’” messages. Street murals and rap albums repeat the slogan. It is drilled into young minds, not unlike brain-washing techniques.
Rap artist ’Cam’ron ‘ said in one interview, that the ’no snitchin’ rule extends to everything, up to and including murder. When asked if he would report a mass murderer living next door to him, the rapper said he would not tell the police. He would move away (leaving the community vulnerable to a danger he could have helped remove). This is an extremely selfishness and uncaring attitude that shows a lack of love for anyone but one’s self; a concept that seems to be growing in American society, and particularly in the Black community.

Another rapper, Busta Rhymes, actually witnessed the murder of a young man, and, along with over 25 other bystanders, refuses to speak to the police about the crime. He is considered a hero by many for his steadfast refusal to ‘snitch’. Talking to police would harm what he calls his ’street cred’, or credibility. One definition of credibility is ’integrity’, which Rhymes apparently has none. Police report that, shelf life of cialis because of this practice, numerous murders are going unsolved.

Geoffrey Canada, an anti-violence activist, and close friend of the man whose murder Busta Rhymes witnessed, said, “When I was growing up, kids used to talk about snitching…. It never extended as a cultural norm outside of the gangsters. It was not for regular citizens. It is now a cultural norm that is being preached in poor communities, and is giving kids a different and very dangerous message.”

Communities that embrace such self-destructive attitudes, are saying to the criminal element, “You can take over my neighborhood and my home; do anything to anyone you wish, without the fear of anyone stepping up and doing the right thing by turning you in. One big problem with such an attitude is that it never holds up once it hits home. One young man, who stated that it would be ‘wrong’ to snitch on someone who raped a woman, had a change of heart when asked, “What if the woman was your mother or sister?”. He answered that, in that case, snitching would be allow, even encouraged.

When God and morality has been removed from schools and not taught at home, what can we expect? God’s truth is being replaced with twisted concepts and beliefs that are potentially deadly to everyone. When people are encouraged to embrace a ’me first’ approach to life, they abandon the concept of loving one another and treating other as we would like to be treated.

As with every evil or misguided notion that comes along, this is not a new life-view. In Genesis, Cain killed his brother, Abel, and when God asked him Abel’s whereabouts, he replied, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”. From studying His word, we know that God’s answer is, “Yes”. It is the responsibility of each of us to love and protect each other.

When we provide cover for dangerous people, how can we expect someone else to come to our aid when we need help? Jesus said, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”.

The need for food assistance has grown dramatically across the nation with this recession. Food stamp recipients now total more than 31.8 million, a record. As caseloads increase, caseworkers become overburdened with processing applications and helping those in need.

This forces people to seek alternative forms of aid in the meantime, by searching for food pantries or other types of assistance in their local area. While these services can tide some people over until they receive government aid, this isn’t always the case.

To add to these problems, another major issue burdens the nation and it is largely overlooked when it comes to food assistance: transportation.

There are currently no government-run programs that deliver meals to low-income individuals or provide free/reduced-priced transportation as an alternative.

In recognition of this problem, Meals on Wheels, a national nonprofit, has delivered hot meals to individual homes for over 50 years. However, recipients must be either at least 60 years old or (in some instances) physically disabled. This leaves everyone else struggling to access food by themselves. Yet with 35 percent of Americans having to choose between food and rent, other items—such as cars and car insurance—become unaffordable and unviable. This is a major concern, especially in rural and suburban areas, where public transportation is inefficient or nonexistent.

In recent weeks, I’ve had 6.9 percent of callers on the USDA National Hunger Hotline tell me that they had no car, and could neither access nor afford public transportation. They also didn’t qualify for Meals on Wheels. This is a significant percentage of callers and the reality is likely to be much more severe, since it’s based upon what people choose to divulge.

Two problems pop up here: access and affordability. The first is a matter of discrimination, while the second is a direct symptom of poverty. Studies show that residents of poorer communities are markedly less likely to have public transportation in their area, or else have a system that doesn’t work.

President Barack Obama recognizes the need for better transportation–both as a means for mobilization and as a way to protect the environment–and is making great strides by sectioning off money in the current stimulus package for states and municipalities to improve upon this area. But these projects will take several years to complete. And while access to transportation might be improved, it won’t necessarily be affordable for the poor.

This leads to the second problem. It’s essential that states and cities use their stimulus money in order cialis 100mg to assist those who cannot afford their own transport to navigate the current system. There are a few viable options when considering what measures should be taken. One possibility is to increase the number of transportation vouchers given to low-income individuals. If this is the case, there also needs to be a process by which people can easily access the vouchers.

Another possibility is introducing free public transit. While this may seem dramatic, cities such as Levitra buy cheap Chapel Hill, NC and Clemson, SC have already successfully done that. Finally, grassroots organizations can also play a strong role by working as advocates and setting up their own transportation services. All of these options have already been proven to work: now it’s time to institute them on a national scale.

I visit nursing homes on a weekly basis to pick up patients and take them to the dental office where I work as an assistant. I go to one woman’s room and see a bulletin board filled with family pictures punctuated with red and white Valentine hearts.

She wears hunter green pants and a matching vest; her gray hair is pulled back in a neat braid. Her daughter Sharon helped pick out her clothes, dressed her Cialis buy cheap and waited to accompany her to the dentist. She dotingly slides on her mother’s coat and ties her scarf and makes sure her paperwork is in order before we leave.

I compliment Sharon on her attentiveness and kindness toward her mother and she says that it was the least she could do. Her mom was a wonderful, caring mother so she wants to be there natural cialis alternatives for her in her time of need.

In contrast, other residents aren’t even aware they have a dental appointment until the last minute. Some are roused out of bed by overworked aides, quickly dressed and leave for their appointments with hair in disarray and teeth unbrushed. Some of these same people don’t have family members who keep tabs on them so they are left at the mercy of caregivers.

I worked in a nursing home as a high school senior and will never forget how shocked I was to hear that some residents never received visits from their relatives. I couldn’t fathom how family members could neglect their loved ones.

In comparison, I’m impressed with the dedication of good-hearted people who give to those, who, in many cases, are ignored by their friends and family.

Volunteers make a difference in the lives of nursing home residents, but it requires a personal sacrifice.

The leader of my church’s nursing home ministry is a good example. It’s a typical Thursday night and Ed Thoman is done for the day. He spent his workday inspecting three cars, painting a van and tinkering with the engine on a truck he’s repairing. The self-employed auto mechanic feels like putting up his feet and relaxing in his recliner for the rest of the night, but instead he does what he usually does most Thursday nights.

The 70-year-old takes a shower, trims his mustache, grabs a bite to eat, loads his guitar and music stand in the van and drives nearly an hour to visit old friends who are excited to see him. Ed and his wife, Thelma, make the trek to three nursing homes each month. For twenty years the Rome, Pennsylvania man has overseen the nursing home ministry of Faith Christian Fellowship Church and, along with his team, conducted church services for residents.

Once the team arrives, strains of “In the Garden” set the tone of the meeting and usher in the guests. Doris, a white-haired woman wearing a hot pink top and white beads, shuffles with her walker into the dining hall. A pouch attached to the walker holds her belongings: a can of orange soda, a bottle of lotion, tissues and a magazine. An aide pushes the wheelchair of another resident into the room, as others saunter in on their own. Soon the hall contains a dozen people. Members of the team offer them a cheery hello with hugs all around.

Ed, with his mild-mannered down-home country style, starts the informal service by playing lively praise music on the guitar. He strums the chorus, “This is the day that the Lord has made…,” as several residents clap their hands and belt out the words, while others sing softly and a few just listen. One man starts dancing, bringing smiles to the sea of wrinkled faces. Before long, the peaceful presence of God permeates the room.

The Bible speaks about “pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father” as visiting “orphans and widows in their trouble.” It’s refreshing to see people like those in our church’s group and other organizations—scouts, musicians and artists—give their time and talents to nursing home residents regularly. I believe it makes God smile and, in turn, warms the heart.

Larry Goddard, executive director of the Tyler ISD Foundation, was a presenter at the National School Foundation Association Viagra buy cheap (NSFA) training October 21st in Houston; the Texas Association of School Administrators (TASA) and Texas Association of School Boards (TASB) earlier in October. Goddard also presented as part of the Texas Pioneer Foundation’s statewide council purchase cialis for education foundations; the Bill Ratliff Superintendent Certification Training at the Region 7 Education Service Center in Mt. Pleasant, and Bandera ISD education foundation kickoff ceremonies. He serves as state chair of the education foundation division of Texas School Public Relations Association (TSPRA).