A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day....01-12-04....Military Monday

Billie, The Mayor | January, 12, 04 | Billie, The Mayor

[The Mayor]

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[The Mayor]

I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. —Revelation 3:15

A half-hearted Christian needs to regain a heart for God.

[Aeronaut]

Good morning Mr. Mayor.

[The Mayor]

Morning Aeroaut, Happy Monday..

[The Mayor]

January 12, 2004

Either Cold Or Hot

Read: Revelation 3:14-22

I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. —Revelation 3:15

Bible In One Year: Genesis 29-30; Matthew 9:1-17

---

I like soup when it is steaming hot and a soft drink when it is icy cold. I can't stand either one lukewarm. Jesus has the same attitude toward people who profess to be His children. He detests lukewarmness. He said He wished they would be either cold or hot (Revelation 3:15).

Although some people believe the term cold refers to hostility toward Jesus and the gospel, I don't believe He prefers hostility to halfheartedness. Rather, in His message to the church in Laodicea, Jesus may have had in mind two springs in the region—the hot mineral springs at Hierapolis and the pure cold water springs in Colosse. The hot springs were seen as having healing powers. The cold springs provided refreshment. The Christians in the church at Laodicea brought neither healing to the spiritually ill nor refreshment to the weary. They were lukewarm and of no help to anyone.

You and I must ask ourselves these questions: Do I provide refreshment to the spiritually weary by bringing them encouragement, joy, and hope? Do I bring healing by challenging the careless, correcting the erring, and motivating the indifferent? Remember, we can't help anybody if we are lukewarm. The Lord wants us either cold or hot—whatever is needed at the moment. —Herb Vander Lugt

O God, grant me the strength of heart,
Of motive, and of will
To falter not but do my part
Your purpose to fulfill. —Anon.

A half-hearted Christian needs to regain a heart for God.

[ladtx]

In memory of my fellow Vietnam helicopter pilots who were killed in that war the following were lost on JAN 12. God bless them all.

1966 CW2 Robert M. Dowling (USAR) -- 197 AHC, Age 27, Married, Centralia, Washington
1966 CW2 Russell W. Kistler (USAR) -- 197 AHC, Age 41, Married, Dothan, Alabama
1969 CPT Ronald R. Van Regenmorter (USAR) -- 196 BDE 23 INF, Age 30, Married, Sioux Falls, South Dakota

From virtualwall.org website:

Three men of the 197th Assault Helicopter Company were lost when their UH-1B HUEY (hull number 63-08653) went down:
CW2 Robert Moffett Dowling, aircraft commander
CW2 Russell Wilford Kistler, copilot
SP4 Lee Edward Rosenwasser, crew chief
The UH-1B gunship was hit by enemy fire while operating at low level just south of Tuy Hoa. It was flying toward the ocean when it was hit. The aircraft, probably uncontrollable, flew across the beach and hit in the ocean about 100 yards offshore. Only the gunner, PFC A. R. Lohm, survived.

IN THE SHADOW OF THE BLADE

SCOUTS OUT!

[The Mayor]

[MEG33]

Good Military Monday morning to the Finest.

God bless our armed forces and all who wait home.I thank them for serving our country and securing our liberty.

[Dubya]

Saddam Hussein had been living in "two small rooms in an adobe hut" and seemed disoriented
and bewildered when captured by U.S. soldiers, the general in command of those soldiers said today.

Army Maj. Gen Ray Odierno, commander of the 4th Infantry Division, during a briefing from Iraq shortly after 11
a.m. EST, described the area in which Saddam was caught.

The small compound near the village of Adwar is about 15 miles southeast of Saddam's hometown of Tikrit, which
generally is considered the seat of resistance in the country. The immediate area contained two farmhouses, a
farmer's field, a sheep pen, and a hut in the middle where Saddam was hiding. It was close to the Tigris River, and
soldiers found boats nearby, Odierno said.

The bedroom of the two-room hut contained one chair, one bed and "lots of clothes strewn all over the place,"
Odierno said. A rudimentary kitchen had a sink with running water and an area to cook in.

The hole Saddam was found in was nearby. Odierno said the opening was covered by a Styrofoam insert and a rug, which
were then covered with dirt. The inside was "extremely small, (with) not a lot of space to move around."

Saddam had a pistol on him, which he never used, and $750,000 in U.S. currency was found in the hut. Two other
people were captured at the compound. Odierno said the other two were not in the hole with Saddam and tried to run
when coalition forces arrived. They were later captured when the soldiers cordoned off an area of about two square
kilometers.

The general said he thought it ironic that palaces from the former regime were nearly in sight across the Tigris River.
"I think it's rather ironic that he was in a hole in the ground across the river from these great palaces that he's
built where he robbed all the money from the Iraqi people," Odierno said.

Saddam was disoriented as he came out of the hole, and said very little to the soldiers who detained him. Odierno said
he was taken south to higher headquarters via helicopter within an hour after being captured. He gave no further
details on where Saddam in being held, other than to say he is in U.S. military custody.

The soldiers who captured him were "very excited" once they realized who they were dealing with, but continued to act
in a professional manner, Odierno said. The general explained that the 600 soldiers involved in the operation
likely only knew they were going after a high-value target beforehand. Most probably had no idea who had been captured
until after the operation was complete.

There were no cell phones or communications devices found in the area Saddam had been hiding, leading Odierno to
conclude the former Iraqi dictator had not been running insurgency operations himself. "I know he wasn't
coordinating the entire effort, because I believe it's not coordinated nationally, and I don't think it ever was," the
general said. "I believe there's some local and regional coordination that goes on. I think he was there more for
moral support, and I don't think he was coordinating the entire effort."

Senior U.S. and other coalition officials have said repeatedly that they believe Saddam was regularly moving to
new locations. Odierno is on the record as saying he believed the former dictator was moving as often as every
three of four hours. His capture at this location seems to confirm those theories. Odierno said coalition troops had
been in this area and even down this road before. The fact that soldiers found new clothing still in the wrappers in
the compound also suggests that Saddam had not been there long, the general explained.

"My guess would be that he has probably 20-30 of these all around the country that he moves around," Odierno said.
"And I believe he moved probably to several locations such as this. I'm assuming we'll find out once we get more
information from him."

Odierno also said he believes Saddam had been moving in an area he called "the former regime element triangle" -- in
between Kirkuk, Baqubah, and Tikrit - and he hopes Saddam's capture will lead to even more intelligence information
being collected.

"In the past when we've picked up people of importance, we've noticed that we've always had an influx of more
intelligence," he said. "So I'm hoping that's what'll occur here and help us capture the other individuals that are
involved in this . insurgency."

The intelligence that led to this raid was a combination of information collected in both the long and short term.
Since 4th Infantry Division soldiers arrived in the Tikrit area in April, intelligence officials have been working to
gather information on Saddam and other officials.

"What we realized early on in the summer was that we believed the people we had to get to were the mid-level
individuals, his bodyguards and other individuals who we knew were close to him," Odierno said. "In addition, . we
tried to work through family and tribal ties who might have been close to Saddam Hussein.

"As we continued to conduct raids and capture people, we got more and more information on the families that were
somewhat close to Saddam Hussein," the general continued. "Over the last 10 days or so, we brought in about five or
10 members of these families, who then were able to give us even more information. And finally we got the ultimate
information from one of these individuals."

[FreeTheHostages]

Well, I'm taking bets on what this means.

[MeekOneGOP]

Mornin', everybody ! Happy Monday !

[MeekOneGOP]

Happy Birthday ! ...

[dansangel]

Thank you (((Rus))) for your spiritual guidance each day.

Dear Heavenly Father,

Please place our troops in your loving hands and protect them the way that they protect us with their selfless acts. Bless their families and lend them comfort. We ask this in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

(((Billie and Louie))) - prayers that you both are on the mend.

(((HUGS))) to all

[Aquamarine]

Good morning all!

Won't be around today, have to go to the doctor for a check up.
Have a happy Military Monday!

[Temple Owl]

Good morning all. The Eagles won, but remember all you Cheeseheads, that the sun still shines in Wisconsin. Good luck next year.

[jwfiv]

Good morning, Mr. Mayor...thanks for today's thread, and the pearl's you cast before the Fine.

Good morning, good Monday, good day and afternoon to all Hostesses and all Freeprs on land and sea, near and far, East and West.

Miss Billie, and dear Louie...I hope you're feeling better after a weekend of rest and TLC.

Miss LayX...I hope you're warm and cozy this wonderful day.

[knighthawk]

Howdy all!

Just dropping by. Raining here and not even really cold. Seems more like spring then winter.

[dutchess]

Hi knighthawk. Hope you're staying warm. It's brrrrrrrrr cold in the midwest! Thanks for checking in!

[knighthawk]

Hello. I am sure to keep warm yes. I hate the cold so I dress extra warm.