Rail commuters are hit by up to 40,000 bogus parking fines: 'Pirates' accused of demanding money from commuters using the wrong law, Daily Mail

  £100 fines handed out when drivers outstayed permitted period at car parks belonging to Chiltern Railways

  MET Parking Services was using the wrong law to issue the parking tickets

  Company also issues fines on behalf of McDonald's car park users

  Firm, which manages car parks on line between Marylebone and Birmingham, admitted that 1,025 tickets were incorrectly issued

  DVLA earns £10m a year from private parking firms for right to access its database

Parking ‘pirates’ are accused of issuing thousands of bogus penalty notices to travellers using railway station car parks on a busy commuter line

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Fines of £100 a time were handed out when drivers stayed beyond the permitted period at car parks belonging to Chiltern Railways.

But MET Parking Services was using the wrong law to issue the tickets, and is now accused of demanding money under false pretences from as many as 40,000 commuters.

The tickets were issued using a law introduced in 2012 which banned the use of wheel clamping on private land, but allowed the owners to issue penalty notices. However railway car parks are covered by different byelaws.

Commuter Trevor Carvey took on MET after receiving a ticket in Ruislip, Middlesex. He used the Freedom of Information Act to discover MET was using automatic number plate recognition cameras to identify drivers via the DVLA database, then pursue them for payment – often with the threat of court action.

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Communities Secretary Eric Pickles said rogue firms will not be tolerated, and launched Government investigation

A single beam pierces the sky as the lights go out across Britain: Tributes to the fallen a century since World War One was declared. Daily Mail

  Idea inspired by former foreign secretary Sir Edward Grey's famous words when war was declared 100 years ago

  Houses of Parliament, Tower Bridge, St Paul's Cathedral and Buckingham Palace all took part in London

  PM David Cameron urged families to join in the 'gesture of remembrance' by leaving on a single light

The London Eye, 10 Downing Street and the Houses of Parliament were among Britain's landmarks which turned out their lights for an hour at 10pm last night to remember those who died in the First World War.

Homes, businesses and public buildings across the UK were asked to leave on a single light or candle to commemorate the moment then-prime minister Herbert Asquith declared Britain had entered the First World War at 11pm on August 4, 1914.

Buildings around the country yesterday took part in the 'hour of reflection' between 10pm and 11pm, leaving just a light illuminating a window.

The plan was inspired by the words of then-foreign secretary Sir Edward Grey, who said just before the announcement: 'The lamps are going out all over Europe; we shall not see them lit again in our lifetime.'

Other buildings taking part in an hour-long lights switch-off last night were Broadcasting House in London, the Eden Project in Cornwall, St Paul's and Durham cathedrals, and Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff.

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The Bewildering Call of God, Oswald Chambers, My Uttermost for His Highest, Daily Devotionals

’. . . and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of Man will be accomplished.’ . . . But they understood none of these things . . . —Luke 18:31, 34

God called Jesus Christ to what seemed absolute disaster. And Jesus Christ called His disciples to see Him put to death, leading every one of them to the place where their hearts were broken. His life was an absolute failure from every standpoint except God’s. But what seemed to be failure from man’s standpoint was a triumph from God’s standpoint, because God’s purpose is never the same as man’s purpose.

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I am a part of the fellowship of the Unashamed

The Fellowship of the Unashamed -- Is This for You?

by Dave Brown, WACMM Director and Pastor-at-Large

When Paul wrote "I am not ashamed of the Gospel for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes..." (Rom 1:16), he took an unyielding, unequivocal stand for the Gospel and became a marked man by ungodly people. But Paul knew the power of the gospel  because  it radically transformed him and it also bring a fallen world from sin and death to victory and eternal life in Christ.. If you've been touched by the power of this gospel, you have no excuse to be ashamed and every reason for hope and joy. Because in Him you have your true identity, legacy and destiny. Life out now who you really are in Christ Jesus.

Dr. Robert Morehead tells the story a young man from Rwanda who was forced by his tribe in 1980 to renounce Christ or face death. He refused to renounce Christ, and he was murdered on the spot. The night before he had written the following commitment which was found in his room: Can you make this kind of commitment for the Gospel of Christ and become a member of the Fellowship of the Unashamed?

"I am a part of the fellowship of the Unashamed. I have the Holy Spirit Power. The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still. My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is secure. I am finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tame visions, mundane talking, chintzy giving, and dwarfed goals.

"I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don't have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded, or rewarded. I now live by presence, learn by faith, love by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by power.

"My pace is set, my gait is fast, my goal is Heaven, my road is narrow, my way is rough, my companions few, my Guide is reliable, my mission is clear.

I cannot be bought, compromised, deterred, lured away, turned back, diluted, or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of adversity, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.

"I won't give up, back up, let up, or shut up until I've preached up, prayed up, paid up, stored up, and stayed up for the cause of Christ. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I must go until He returns, give until I drop, preach until all know, and work until He comes.

"And when He comes to get His own, He will have no problem recognizing me. My colors will be clear for "I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.." (Romans 1:16)."

These "No Matter What the Cost" disciples of Jesus Christ are the ones who consider the cost of God's call on their lives and then with perfect freedom and with a clear understanding that this road will be very difficult - overwhelming at times - they choose to answer by saying, ’Here am I Lord! Send me’ (Isaiah 6:8)

The Fellowship of the Unashamed are also the ones who like Paul in Phillippians 3:5-11 boldly proclaimed,

"But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.  What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith.  I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead".

Does Faith in God Really Combat Sickness?, Charisma Magazine

As a cardiologist, I use every tool at my disposal to help my patients win their battles against heart disease. In addition to cholesterol-lowering drugs, cardiac medications, tests and procedures, I also frequently recommend that my patients give their local church a try. In fact, I've found this to be one of my most effective therapies.

Researchers studying the relationship between high blood pressure and religious activity recently examined 4,000 older adults. Their study, published in the International Journal of Psychiatry in Medicine, found that those who attended religious services once a week or more and prayed or studied the Bible once a day or more had a 40 percent lower diastolic blood pressure reading than those who attended services and prayed less often.

This does not surprise me. I've written before about one of my patients I call "Alligator Annie," who ran a small country store in the Everglades and kept a shotgun on hand to scare away alligators.

Her high blood pressure was resistant to most medications, and I came to realize that she was suffering from anxiety. I tried a number of techniques to help her lessen her stress, but all failed. Finally, I asked her if it was OK if I prayed for her. She accepted, and eventually, she began to follow a more church-oriented path, going to services and becoming involved in the religious community.

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Stonewall boss wants pro-gay books in all preschools

Stonewall boss wants pro-gay books in all preschools

Ruth Hunt, the new head of homosexual lobby group Stonewall, says she wants to put pro-gay storybooks into all preschools.

In what she described as a “radical” campaign, “a suite of books that celebrates difference in all its forms” could be commissioned by the group for under-fives.

Stonewall has previously produced a pack for schools which backed books such as And Tango Makes Three, which is about a penguin chick raised by two male penguins.

Independence: No camp ‘scaremongering’ over banks, The Scotsman

Sir George Mathewson, Ex Rbs Chief Executive.

CAMPAIGNERS for the Union have been accused of “scaremongering” about the impact of independence on Scotland’s financial sector, with a former Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) boss insisting this would be “an opportunity not a threat”.

Sir George Mathewson, a former RBS chief executive and chairman, argued that financial services in Scotland had been “neglected by the Westminster government and its London-centric policy”.

He also claimed that banks such as RBS and Lloyds could “scarcely be described as Scottish banks”, adding that if there was a Yes vote in next month’s referendum it should be the rest of the UK government that should be primarily responsible for dealing with the situation.

Sir George also gave his backing to Scottish Government plans for a currency union with the rest of the UK to be established if there is a Yes vote on September 18, allowing an independent Scotland to continue to use the pound.

These proposals have already been dismissed by the three main Westminster parties and last week First Minister Alex Salmond was accused of a ‘’huge deception’’ over his plan.

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Independence: RBS reiterate ‘Yes’ concerns

Scottish independence: Row over banking sector