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most people watched the Superbowl out of shear entertainment, while taking it quite seriously at the same time. It gives their fans a sense of comradary and pride. There's nothing like a football game to unite people. most of them know the rules inside and out and can make the calls quicker than the announcer. This leaves me asking, if so many people can understand this game, why don't they know God's rule book of plays in their own lives?

If more people would put that amount of time and effort that it takes to memorize all the players' statistics, why then can't they learn the statistics that God has given us for our own good? It's very clear that when we learn the proper plays in life as we go up against the opposing team, we will be more than just conquerors, we will be victorious! Everyone loves to have a victory in their life but do little about it.

As the game started out, the Sea Hawks won the kick off and got their first 3 points. I'm not saying that the Sea Hawks are the enemy, they aren't, but in God's world, we all have a very real enemy called Satan. He opposses us at every play. Once he gets his foot in the door, or his first 3 points, it's almost impossible from keeping him from coming all the way in...unless you know what your game plan will be to keep that from happening. Fortuneatly for the Steelers, they did know what to do.

The thing about the Steelers is, not one player acted any better than anyone else. In fact, they all pulled their weight and then some. They pulled together. When pride enters into our lives, the enemy will use that to beat us down. So through team effort, the Steelers came back with a 7 point touchdown and the game just proceeded from there to the Steelers advantage. The Sea Hawks could not over take them after that. But they tried valiantly, just as Satan will do to us. He will use stronger stradegies and hit harder.

In our Christian lives, we need to know without a doubt how we are going to oppose our enemy from taking the game over. Remember; just keep focused!

First of all, as we are new to this walk this is where we need to get all the practice we can get, we are still rookies. It's these rookies that Satan is waiting to recruit back to his team. If you don't stay strong in your game, you will be traded back to him before you know what happened. As any football player knows, his skills and knowledge comes from alot of time and effort put into it, until they know it inside out. It's no different for Christians who want to be at the top of their game either. Since God's Word can be overwhelming at first, we need to gather together with other Christians regularly to learn and to grow. That is why God gives us our coaches. They spur us on, they make us understand the plays to our advantage. The end result is to realize that all of our training is to honor God. The Steelers wanted to make their city of Pittsburgh proud of them also.

If you are serious about being a team player for God, you have to recognize the authority of Christ as your leader. You have to learn to humble yourself and serve Him by serving others. You can no longer be in the center spot light. But just as big Ben gets most of the attention, he could not have done that one important play without the help of Heinz Ward. We need Christ to partner with us also in order to make our winning touchdowns! We can't do this game without the help of our Christian team players. God gives us pastors, preachers, teachers to talk with us and give us the rules to His game. If the football players didn't listen to their coaches, they would not be playing pro footabll. We must learn to respect the authority of those He puts in our lives. Our time of study and meditation takes alot of practice in order to get it just right. It doesn't all happen over night, or even in one lifetime. But the most important thing to remember is to keep doing what you're doing. It takes dilegence, patience, time, practice, and endurance. It's not a question of ever giving up. Yes, it's a hard road, but it's worth it in the end. Just ask any of the Steelers. They kept their eyes on the prize and now can say the acheived it! And I can't help but believe that they give all the credit to the Lord for their victory. God honors this.

"For whatever is born of God is victorious over the world; and this is the victory that conquers the world, even our faith. Who is it that is victorious over the world but he who believes that Jesus Christ is the Son of God (who adheres to, trusts in, and relies on that fact)?" 1 Jn.5:4-5 (Amplified)

Life is not all about football, but it does give us a sense of comradery and it also gives us a new insight in which to observe this game. Will you ever watch it the same way now knowing that your own life is based on the same principles?Is your life worth the time and effort of learning the stradegy plays between life and death as much as knowing the rules of a football game? Get determined to make your own touchdowns!

To me, I think football is alot more complicated than learning the True Word of God. At least I know if I make the right moves and do the plays His way, then I am sure to be victorious! I no longer just take it in a passive "whatever" kind of attitude. I am now determined to win!

This reminds me of how passionate people are about their home teams, but where is their passion for Christ? Is it lukewarm? I pray that it isn't because this is what Jesus says about those who are:

"I know your (record of) works and what you are doing; you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of My mouth!" Rev. 3:15-16 (Amplified)

What will your scoreboard say when your game is over? Will Christ spit you out or will He embrace you in His loving arms?

To be a winner in God's team is to know you are not a loser!

When youre shopping around for an IP-based video surveillance system, you will need to be particularly cautious about what exactly youre looking at and what the individual terms mean. How IP-based video surveillance works is open to interpretation as far as some video surveillance and security salespeople are concerned -- not because they are trying to confuse the issues, but because there is no genuine consensus on what the term IP-based or related ones such as networked or web-based means.

Originally video surveillance was done based on analog technology -- closed circuit television (CCTV) and recording on video tapes. This was fine for recording what was going on, but it didnt broadcast actual live information, so it wasnt practical for monitoring stores, for instance, from a remote location. It simply provided what happened after the fact. The picture quality wasnt great and it relied on human reliability as well -- someone had to remember to change the tapes regularly, etc.

Digital revolutionizes video surveillance

With the Internet revolution and the ever-increasing presence of Local Area Networks, technology took great strides in video surveillance in the 1990s. Analog camera tubes were replaced with CCD (Charged Coupled Devices) and digital cameras became affordable for most people.

This combination meant that video surveillance could do two things: go live over the Internet or a closed network for surveillance and provide clearer, crisper images that could be tracked and manipulated easily. For law enforcement, digital surveillance meant it was much easier to zoom in on images, track particular scenes and enhance features.

The basics of IP-based surveillance

A digital camera views the scene in front of it, broadcasts the video images as a digitized signal over a LAN line (Local Area Network) where its then transmitted to a computer or server. The server in turn manages all of this information. Depending upon the software used to manage the digital images, it can record, display or retransmit the images to anywhere in the world.

The software package can easily be upgraded to allow for analyzing data, selecting specific flagged items to watch for and a host of other functions, making it a truly customizable security tool.

True IP-based digital surveillance uses CCD cameras that use signal processing that send packetized video streams over the LAN through a Cat 5 cable rather than a coax cable network, utilizing greater bandwidth and standard TCP/IP communication.

It also provides more intelligent data mining and information retrieval. If security is an issue, full digital surveillance also offers the added advantage of data encryption opportunities to protect against image tampering -- something not possible with analog recording.

Recently, a few companies such as D-Link and Linksys have also developed fully digital cameras that actually have completely integrated, built-in web servers so that no external computers are needed for operating them. The signal is transmitted directly to the terminal location for storage or play-back.

Halfway there

The middle of the road of video surveillance is upgrading video surveillance by utilizing a Digital Video Recorder (DVR). A DVR system is not really fully IP-based, but is step toward the more advanced IP technology. In actuality, a DVR system uses the same camera and structures for cabling as the older CCTV analog systems, but the old VCRs have been replaced with DVR for storage of the data. The data is converted to digital so that it can be stored on hard disks, but the quality of the images captured remains analog since this is how it originated.

When shopping for a system, be sure to ask if the system is digital based on the recording (DVR) or on the camera, since many manufacturers consider a system digital by virtue of the DVR storage system even if the camera recording the images is still analog.

Going all the way

Some people will move to the hybrid models of a CCTV/DVR system when they first move beyond an analog system because it seems like the next practical evolutionary step in video surveillance. However, shifting to this method largely ignores how IP-based video surveillance works.

With CCTV/DVR surveillance you have actually simply delayed the inevitable by adding on a relatively new technology (hard disk, digital storage) to an old technology (analog video over coaxial transmission lines). Rather than moving forward into something new, you have prolonged the demise of the old.

Advantages of IP-based video surveillance

The leap into completely IP-based technology is the best bang for your buck both monetarily and in terms of security by far. Digital surveillance can be done over a LAN network, of course, but TCP/IP transmittal of surveillance makes sense for remote monitoring of multiple locations and for remote recording of data onto back-up servers and hard disks for long-term storage.

With IP-based video surveillance, you can connect your surveillance camera or cameras to any network or wireless adapter, and you are extremely flexible in your placement of the camera itself. A typical PC-attached video camera, while providing digital picture image quality, still has to be within approximately ten feet of the computer itself.

Set-up of an IP-based video system is easy -- once youve set up an IP address, youre up and running and its extremely stable and reliable. Because this is the technology of the future, it is also upgradeable. You wont be outgrowing an IP-based video surveillance system any time soon because new developments are based on improving this market. Therefore, you will be able to add on and improve this system for years to come while older, CCTV+DVR hybrids will dead-end and become obsolete.

Comparing analog and IP-based video surveillance

A better way to understand the differences between analog and IP-based video surveillance may be to compare the two and how they work:

Analog or CCTV+DVR video surveillance

Easy to use -- operates like a VCR

Changing cassettes and rewinding regularly means human error frequently interferes with effectiveness

Image quality is poor

Storage tapes wear out over time

Broadcasting images live isnt practical

Storage is bulky

Uses analog recording, recording in low-grade picture quality and inability to search and track easily

Adding DVR systems must be done in blocks of 16 channels

IP-based video surveillance

IP-based recording means instant transmittal of images anywhere in the world

Can monitor multiple cameras from one remote location

No decrease in recording quality over time or with repeated replays

Digital picture quality far superior to analog

IP-base recording is highly compressed for easier storage and can be transported over a variety of media

Digital images can be encrypted for security purposes

Updates and add-ons are relatively inexpensive through software packages and Internet computer networking

Adjustable frame rates

Remote or shared viewing may be done over the Internet or a wireless connection

Standard IP video compression techniques are used

IP surveillance cameras may be added individually or in groups according to your needs

If you are contemplating increased or upgrading video surveillance for your company or home, understanding how IP-based video surveillance works will make your decision easier. It is the future of video surveillance and, although in the short term may be a bit more expensive, is obviously an investment in superior quality and flexibility.

This article on "How IP-based Video Surveillance Works" reprinted with permission.

Copyright 2004-2005 Evaluseek Publishing.

About the Author
Lucy P. Roberts is a successful freelance writer providing practical information and advice about everything related to digital video surveillance and related topics. Her numerous articles include tips for saving both time and money when shopping for video security products; equipment reviews and reports; and other valuable insights. Find important information about how to use a night vision security camera or infrared camera when you visit Video-Surveillance-Guide.com today!

There is a lot of emphasis lately on physical fitness and maintaining a healthy weight, and people are spending lots of money each year on miracle lose weight quick products, that in some cases, do more harm than good. One of the more common weight loss products on the market today is hoodia. Just with any of the products you purchase, you need to know that all of this herb on the market today is not the same, nor will it necessarily give you the results you expect. When buying products, you need to make certain that you are getting hoodia that is derived directly from hoodia gordonii plants, as from any other sources won't be as effective, or give you the desired results.

For the average consumer, it can be quite confusing trying to decide which products are in fact the real thing, and which ones are fake. Just because the label says it is from the South African plant, doesn't necessarily mean that it is. Unless you have your own scientist at your disposal to test your product, you may never know. This is where the consumer has to do their homework, and pay close attention to the products that they are purchasing.

If you are just looking for a hoodia supplement, for any purpose other than weight loss, and then simply choose one that doesn't say weight loss on the label, and you should be fine. If you are looking for a diet pill or weight loss supplement, you need to read the bottle carefully, and make certain that the diet product you are purchasing is make specifically for weight loss, and is being manufactured and sold by a reputable vendor.

You can purchase hoodia in pill or capsule form, but you should know that it is nowhere near as effective as Liquid, as your body is unable to absorb very much of it in this manner. You are lucky to get twenty percent from a pill or capsule, which means that you are not getting even close to the full benefit. When you take a liquid, your body basically soaks it up right then, and you will notice the effects within minutes of swallowing. You can even get by with taking much lower dosages of a liquid, because it is so easily absorbed by the body.

Not only is a Liquid much easier for your body to absorb, it is also much easier to take, meaning that almost everyone can use it, even those who have difficulty swallowing capsules or pills.

The only sure way for you to know the benefits of a Liquid is if you try it for yourself. With so many products on the market claiming to curb your appetite and burn calories and pounds, it can be a little hard to believe that something could be as effective or work as well as these has been proclaimed to do. No matter how many testimonials you hear or read, or how many infomercials you may see, chances are you will still be skeptic until you try it, so what are you waiting for?

Patricia is a health focused content author, and wants to share with you her personal hoodia choice Hoodithin.

putting hard work and effort into fine-tuning your backswing is an investment every aspiring golf player should take the time to yield. The are many tips and tricks that can help you develop better form and aim. But the best overall advice is to stick with the basics, especially if you are a beginner or even an amateur golfer.

Every golfer wants to hit the ball with as much power and accuracy as he or she can possibly muster up, of course without sacrificing form and balance. So in order to accomplish this, you must be able to give the ball everything you've got, but without coming over the top, as it is commonly referred to.

This term describes a swing flaw which causes the clubhead to veer off to the outside of your target line during the downswing. The result of such a shot? A horrendous slice.

Come From The Inside

To avoid such a terminal shot, you must learn how to avoid coming over the top and keeping your clubhead from moving outside of the target line. This can be accomplished by simply working on a technique which is opposite of coming over the top: come at the ball from the inside.

swing slowly and steadily using a nice rhythm.

The most accurate and powerful of golfers can accomplish this each and every time they try, but coming at the ball from the inside may be easier said than done for the beginner golf player. Practice is key and once you get the hang of it, you can rid yourself of that terrible slice shot by making impact with the ball from a downswing which comes from the inside of the target line ever so slightly.

How To Train Yourself

It is recognized that a properly directed and consistent backswing is an important part of a good overall golf swing.

There are drills that you can practice which will help you train yourself so that you can come from the inside on your swing whenever needed. Below is a simple training procedure known as a swing path drill:

1. Take 3 tees and placed them into the turf approximately 3 to 4 inches apart from one another, and in a perfect line at a 45 angle with your target line. If you are a right-handed golfer then the line should be pointing to your left foot. Make sure that you have enough room in between each tee so that you can swing the club through.

2. Now it is time to find your swing path. Take out your 5-iron and initiate a few swings by attempting to hit the top portion of the middle tee. In order to do so, your clubhead must pass between the outside tees in a pathway best described as in-to-out in order to avoid contact with them.

By practicing this technique and hitting the middle tee in this fashion on a consistent basis, you are making contact correctly from the inside. If you happen to hit the outside tees then you are still coming over the top and need more practice on your swing.

Joe is an amatuer golfer who runs the popular website Just For Golf his blog is located at Best golf spot. You will find everything for todays golfer on these sites, equipment reviews golf tips, best buys and much more.

We may feel we are familiar with the practices of prayer or meditation and we may have tried these unsuccessfully and wondered why such time honored avenues to self empowerment have failed to work in our lives. We may hear many testimonies that describe the effective power to transform our lives which these practices can bestow upon us and we may have felt frustrated that we have not learned how to use these tools to make ourselves feel happier, healthier or more content. Now a new tool, the Chakra Song, is available which may help you to realize the goals you may have felt you might never be able to attain.

Many healing traditions all refer to an energetic body that is the template for our physical body and which is directly related to our health, happiness and wellbeing. This energetic body has nodes of energy called chakras which are directly related to different aspects of our health and how we manifest our lives in this world. When the energetic body is functioning poorly we may work to heal it; one of the most fundamental parts of the work we must do to heal our energetic bodies is to cleanse our chakras of stagnant energy.

Clearing our chakras has immense benefit. Our natural energy flow can be bogged down by so many different things. Anything which creates stress impedes the health of our energetic body, that part of us which is healed by practices like Reiki, yoga or acupuncture. When the energetic body is healthy our minds work better, our emotions are healthier, and our physical bodies become healthier as well.

Our energetic bodies respond to our thoughts. This is why when we are conflicted or angry or depressed our energetic bodies become damaged and then function poorly. This is also why simple meditation or prayer can be so effective at restoring us to a state of wellbeing in body mind and spirit. By focusing our thoughts on healing our energetic body we restore ourselves to happiness, health and wellbeing.

It can sometimes be very difficult to learn how to meditate or pray effectively. Our minds are often too bemired by inner turmoil or too easily distracted by external and irrelevant influences. It takes patience to learn to quiet our thoughts so that we may empty ourselves of all the beliefs and conditions which may get in the way of successful prayer or meditation.

We must learn to recognize that many of our thoughts are vicious circles that never arrive at any functional conclusion but simple run about and about in circles endlessly consuming our minds and our time. Once we see that this is true we may begin to recognize when thoughts of this nature arise in our minds and begin to interrupt them, to stop thinking them. The more we practice not thinking these consuming thoughts the more we free our minds to think in healthier ways and the closer we become to realizing true internal peace.

In that peaceful state we can focus our thoughts more clearly on those things which really matter most to us, like our health. We can take control of our wellbeing and direct ourselves to become healthier, happier and more content. This works because everything that is manifest in the physical plane of this world begins as a thought form in our energetic bodies. By cleansing and healing our energetic bodies we create an effective thought form or mental template for our state of being which is healthier, happier and more fulfilling.

This template then manifests in the physical world by making our bodies healthier and bringing us new opportunities to enhance our lives and the lives of those we love. In this manner, the simple quiet practices of prayer or meditation become transformational tools with which we can effectively change our lives and make the world around us a happier, healthier more abundant place for all of us to share.

To help with the visualization work related to cleansing my chakras I decided to write a song. Song is one of the most powerful tools in my life. The music is borrowed from the Popcorn part of the soundtrack from the movie A Clockwork Orange. I chose this music because it is so happy, light and energizing. I hope you will find the music for this song and will then enjoy it as much as I have. This song works! It has practically written itself. My chakra visualizations are much stronger and clearer. What's more, as I was composing this song during my drive home from work I had scarcely any pain, typically driving has been a very painful activity for me because of needing to grasp the steering wheel, even when I remember to use my open palm against the steering wheel rather than grasp it the pain while driving has been pretty bad. No more! Please feel free to modify this song in any way that works best for you.

The Chakra Song

In my root chakra I find - red life energy divine
It is pure and good; it cleanses me and energizes me
Its vitality that strengthens me and helps me to survive
Now the vital red life chakra power opens like a flower
...Repeat the line above until your root chakra visualization is clear then move to the YES line...
Yes, the vital red life chakra power opens like a flower

In my loin chakra I find - hot orange energy divine
It is pure and good; it cleanses me and energizes me
It is sexual; it inspires me, it helps me to create
Now the hot orange inspirational power opens like a flower
...Repeat the line above until your loin chakra visualization is clear then move to the YES line...
Yes, the hot orange inspirational power opens like a flower

In my mind chakra I find - yellow energy divine
It is pure and good; it cleanses me and energizes me
It is teaching me; it makes me free, it helps me to be me
Now the mental yellow teaching power opens like a flower
...Repeat the line above until your mind chakra visualization is clear then move to the YES line...
Yes, the mental yellow teaching power opens like a flower

In my heart chakra I find - sweet green energy divine
It is pure and good; it cleanses me and energizes me
It is compassionate; its full of love, it helps me be healthy
Now the sweet green loving chakra power opens like a flower
...Repeat the line above until your heart chakra visualization is clear then move to the YES line...
Yes, the sweet green loving chakra power opens like a flower

In my voice chakra I find - loud blue energy divine
It is pure and good; it cleanses me and energizes me
It communicates; it speaks to thee, it sings along with me
Now the loud blue singing chakra power opens like a flower
...Repeat the line above until your voice chakra visualization is clear then move to the YES line...
Yes, the loud blue singing chakra power opens like a flower

In my brow chakra I find - purple energy divine
It is pure and good; it cleanses me and energizes me
Its intuitive; it knows the truth, it helps me to perceive
Now the purple wisdom chakra power opens like a flower
...Repeat the line above until your brow chakra visualization is clear then move to the YES line...
Yes, the purple wisdom chakra power opens like a flower

In my crown chakra I find - violet white energy divine
It is pure and good; it cleanses me and energizes me
Its the god I am, my divinity; it realizes me
It connects me to infinity and all that I can be
Now the violet white chakra power opens like a flower
...Repeat the line above until your crown chakra visualization is clear then move to the YES line...
Yes, the violet white chakra power opens like a flower

Now you know the chakra song; so we all can sing along
Now the divine rainbow chakra powers open like a flower
...Repeat until all of your chakras are clearly visualized together then move to the YES line...
Yes, the divine rainbow chakra powers open like a flower

Now the vital red life chakra power opens like a flower
...Repeat until your root chakras 4 petals stretch into radiating cords of energy then move to the YES line...
Yes, the vital red life chakra power opens like a flower

Now the hot orange inspirational power opens like a flower
...Repeat until your loin chakras 6 petals stretch into radiating cords of energy then move to the YES line...
Yes, the inspiring hot orange power opens like a flower

Now the mental yellow teaching power opens like a flower
...Repeat until your mind chakras 10 petals stretch into radiating cords of energy then move to the YES line...
Yes, the mental yellow teaching power opens like a flower

Now the sweet green loving chakra power opens like a flower
...Repeat until your heart chakras 12 petals stretch into radiating cords of energy then move to the YES line...
Yes, the sweet green loving chakra power opens like a flower

Now the loud blue singing chakra power opens like a flower
...Repeat until your voice chakras 16 petals stretch into radiating cords of energy then move to the YES line...
Yes, the loud blue singing chakra power opens like a flower

Now the purple wisdom chakra power opens like a flower
...Repeat until your brow chakras 2 petals stretch into descending cords of energy that weave back and forth through your lower chakras like a caduceus symbol then move to the YES line...
Yes, the purple wisdom chakra power opens like a flower

Now the violet white chakra power opens like a flower
...Repeat until your crown chakras 40 petals stretch into radiating cords of energy and a solid broad cord of white energy connects your crown to the heavens then move to the YES line...
Yes, the violet white chakra power opens like a flower

Now the lovely rainbow chakra powers open like a flower
...Repeat until all your chakras radiating cords mingle their energy in your energetic body then move to the YES line...
Yes, the lovely rainbow chakra powers open like a flower

Now the divine living chakra powers open like a flower
...Repeat until your crown chakra is connected to the heavens by a strong white cord then move to the YES line...
Yes, the divine living chakra powers open like a flower
Now all the divine living chakra powers open like a flower

Once you have experienced the connection from the heavens to the crown chakra open wide follow up by singing the Beach Boys Good Vibrations; make up the lyrics as you go using any positive affirmations you like that describe yourself as a happy healthy human being whose good fortune brings you everything you may wish for.

Please note that your visualization of the chakras may take some time, many years for me, but I have now given you the key that turned the trick with me. Dont worry about where you visualize these at first, it can be easier to visualize them in front of your minds eye and then later transfer them to their respective places within your energetic body.

Chakra Descriptions Crown Chakra - located on the top of the head, it is connected to your divinity
Third Eye (Brow) Chakra - between the eyebrows, related to intuition & ESP
Throat (Voice) Chakra - near the larynx, related to speech & self-expression
Heart Chakra - below the sternum, related to healing, love & compassion
Solar Plexus (Mind) Chakra - behind the navel, related to power & mental functions
Sacrum (Loin) Chakra - behind the sex organs, related to sex, emotion & creativity
Root Chakra - below the base of the spine, related to security, instinct & survival

Your visualizations need not be complex at first and may begin with the individual chakra colors which you may then try to shape into balls of light. As you get better at visualizing balls of color for the chakras start to visualize the petals of each chakra as they appear on the surface pointing inward. Then visualize the petals unfolding outward from the center to form flower shapes. As the flower shapes appear visualize the petals stretching out into cords of energy that radiate outward like stars. Later as you visualize all the chakras radiating watch as the rays of the brow chakra descend through all the chakras in a weaving pattern like a caduceus. The rays of the other chakras will mingle with one another filling out your energetic body.

Today my energetic body resembled a tree covered in vines with all the chakras within it glowing and radiating and merging their energies into all the subtle leaves (organs or nodes) of my energetic body.

BIO: Fledgling author Greg Gourdian has worked with the general public as a psychic reader for a little over four years from 1981 to 1986. Much of his written work is channeled, although he will admit that he has no idea who many of the sources for his channeled work may be. He has many strange tales to tell regarding his spiritual journey and he attempts to tell his tales in a humorous or entertaining manner. While not an accredited teacher, Greg has taught classes in psychology, sociology, metaphysics and parapsychology.

Visit Greg's blog at http://tangledintime.blogspot.com/