MAJ MAJ

Hong Kong police arrested pro-democracy protesters today, some of whom scrambled up a monument symbolising the city's handover from British to Chinese rule, a day before Chinese President Xi Jinping is due to arrive for the celebrations. Hong Kong  marks the July 1, 1997, handover on Saturday, amid calls for democracy and fears of creeping influence of  Communist Party  leaders in Beijing undermining the "one country, two systems" formula under which it operates. The city is under lockdown, with a massive security presence expected for  Xi's arrival on Thursday. About 30 protesters, including student protest leader Joshua Wong, gathered at the six-metre "Forever Blooming Golden Bauhinia" statue on the Wanchai waterside, a gift to Hong Kong from  China , in front of the Chinese national flag and hundreds of perplexed Chinese tourists. The sweet-smelling bauhinia is the official Hong Kong emblem.

The Potter and the Clay Jeremiah 18:1-10 “The LORD gave another message to Jeremiah. He said, “Go down to the potter’s shop, and I will speak to you there.” So I did as he told me and found the potter working at his wheel. But the jar he was making did not turn out as he had hoped, so he crushed it into a lump of clay again and started over. Then the LORD gave me this message: “O Israel, can I no t do to you as this potter has done to his clay? As the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand. If I announce that a certain nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down, and destroyed, but then that nation renounces its evil ways, I will not destroy it as I had planned. And if I announce that I will plant and build up a certain nation or kingdom, but then that nation turns to evil and refuses to obey Me, I will not bless it as I said I would.”

Big ups to the Facebook founder, as he lightened our mood today with another feat in giving and helping humanity:    "The Chan Zukerberg Initiative is partnering with Vision to Learn to provide free eye exams and glassess to many of the 2 million students in United States of America who have correctable vision but no access to eye care. "  There are few simple things that are guaranteed to have a positive effect on Children's education and life trajectory. This is one of them   - Mark Zukerberg