ChristiansUnite Forums

Revised Roman Empire:
The Kingdom w/The Feet of Iron mixed w/clay...Daniel/Rev.). And the kingdom of 10 toes/horns are among us today. It's the E.U! The little horn the 11th will rise out of the 10 Kingdoms (perm.10 that rule over the others) I believe there's 23 right now. Turkey want's/wanted in real bad,
However I see Conflict coming between the E.U and them & many others!(scriptually backed)
Mark my words "someone within the E.U will rise with a 7 yr peace plan between Isreal & others"."That Anti-Christ" will rise from this! Should be real soon now! Yes, i know no man knows the day nor hour in which our lord shall come! However if you keep reading that chapter and others, you would find out in what Season you live in and to WATCH! Do you know that the jewish people are rebuilding the instruments of gold necessary to carry out the daily sacrifice again?
And that it would only take 3 1/2 yrs. to rebuild the temple from start to finish?
I Praise God for the times we live in...
P.S,
Mark my words "the E.U is that goverment" in the book of Daniel

If you look through the many threads here in the Prophecy section you will see many conversations on this subject including the Temple Institute that is making the temple instruments that you mentioned. Please feel free to read them and to post in them.

I'm sorry Pastor,
I thought thats where i was?
I'm not to bright when it comes to this kinda stuff !
I will figure it out GOD willing :)

You are in the Prophecy section. I was speaking of the other threads that are here.

Amen Pastor Roger!

I was just giving thanks for the outstanding Bible Study material we have here for Bible Prophecy. It really is a tremendous amount of resources in one place, and the material is presented in many different ways:  briefs, outlines, details, and an extensive number of issues covered with heavy Bible documentation. I give thanks that GOD has provided Christians Unite and the number of Christians who have participated in the furnishing of materials.

I know that GOD is using this material, and I pray that HE continues to.

Love In Christ,
Tom

John 10:29-30 NASB
"My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand. "I and the Father are one."

Hello Littleboy,

Some people who love to study Bible Prophecy refer to the Roman Empire as a "Revived Roman Empire", but it would be more accurate to call it a "Revived AND Revised Roman Empire".

There are big peace talks involving Israel scheduled to take place next month - November, 2007. Things are moving fast in this evil world. More and more appears to be coming together in an overall picture that looks like Bible Prophecy either being fulfilled or about to be fulfilled. I wouldn't be surprised at all to hear about a possible 7 year peace plan soon. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised to to hear about something like this resulting from talks next month. I'm not saying this will be the result, rather that I wouldn't be surprised with this result.

We do have many highly detailed threads that indicate the big picture of Bible Prophecy coming together. Countless events are happening right now around the world that indicate the last days of this Age of Grace will be soon. Nobody here is claiming any special revelation, dates, or times - just some common sense in the long-term study of Bible Prophecy. Things are moving so quickly around the world now that I wouldn't be surprised to see a chain of events identical to Bible Prophecy starting at any time. Many of the SIGNS of Bible Prophecy are already PRESENT. We do have some highly detailed threads already on the forum that document these events and SIGNS.

Love In Christ,
Tom

James 1:2-4 NASB
Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

I thought so.
sorry, but I have no idea what a thread is?

Hello Littleboy,

A thread is just a conversation on a specific subject. This thread is "The E.U. = The 10 toes/Horns". "Thread" indicates that everything under that heading should be on the same topic - thus, a common "thread" being the listed topic matter.

I apologize for using forum jargon. I should know that many people are new to using forums, so I'll try harder to remember that.

Love In Christ,
Tom


   

Me, too. Sorry.

Thanks you guy's,
I'm sad to say that was alot of help...
UGH BOY!
God Bless You
Love Duane

Brother Duane,

If you're completely new to using forums, you're doing great and have nothing to worry about. Ask whatever questions you want and have fun. We're just glad to have you with us, and we were all new at one time.

Love In Christ,
Tom

   

Much, thanks to all of you for your support and kindness..
This place (CU) is a true God send!
Your loving Brother,
Duane
P.S
I just noticed: Newbie, Man it's been 29 yrs. since I've been called that! (USMC) :)
I am Battle ready, Armor's on, sword is in hand...
God Bless all you Soldiers of the Lord!

Hello Brother Duane,

If I remember right, that "Newbie" label changes at 50 posts, so you're only 20 posts away. I really enjoy reading your posts and having fellowship with you, so I sincerely hope that you enjoy Christians Unite enough to stay with us.

We have members who have served in just about all of the Armed Forces, including the Marines. I'm a retired police officer. However, we are most proud of being Christian Soldiers in the Army of the LORD. Our Commander is Holy, Keeps HIS Promises, and HE never makes a mistake. In fact HE is the LORD OF HOSTS AND THE KING OF KINGS, and HE loves us. My rank is "Child", and I give thanks for that every day. ONWARD CHRISTIAN SOLDIERS!

Love In Christ,
Tom

John 1:14-17 NASB
And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. John *testified about Him and cried out, saying, "This was He of whom I said, 'He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.'" For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.

God Willing I'm not going anywhere...
I love this site, CU.
There's alot of likeminded people here, That's worth its weight in Gold...
I am/was a 1st responder, HAZ-MAT Oper. level...
1 post closer:Newbie :)

Hi Guys!  I just have to pipe up here and say what fun it was to watch you guys work this all out!

Hello Grammyluv,

Before I forget, I just came from your web site, and I really enjoyed it. It was fun and it Glorifies the LORD. I also signed your guest book. It's a beautiful site.

One of the hard things about forums is getting to know people without the typical things we use in communicating with others (i.e. facial expressions, eye contact, voice tones, hand gestures, etc.). We have some little smiley faces to help us some, but they are inadequate. We also have all-caps to highlight something that we think is very important, and many people who use forums consider all-caps to be yelling. As an example, I use all-caps for the names of GOD, but I don't intend it to be yelling.

We can also use various colors to highlight portions of posts, and we can also use larger fonts if we want to. Regardless, it takes some time to really get to know someone on a forum. We have a common interest here: Loving GOD and having JESUS CHRIST as our LORD and SAVIOUR. So, fellowship with other Brothers and Sisters in CHRIST is easier here. In fact, fellowship and sharing the GOSPEL of the Grace of GOD is our primary focus here. As a result, Christians should have an easier time communicating here, especially considering that being Christian family friendly is also one of our priorities. That includes children, and we try very hard to keep Christians Unite completely safe for family use.

Regardless, it's still somewhat difficult to determine the personalities of each other. That takes some time, but we eventually get a pretty good idea about others. I'll help everyone out a little bit with me. I'm a retired police officer and grandpa who has been a Christian for over 50 years. I'm usually considered to be old fashioned, but some of the younger folks might call me an "old fundy" or worse.   :D   I've been married to only one beautiful Christian woman for nearly 35 years, and GOD has richly blessed us. Lastly, I believe in old fashioned morals, values, and ethics that match Biblical principles. A wild night might involve hanging out at Wal-Mart for a few minutes.   ;D

Love In Christ,
Tom

John 17:21-23 NASB
that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me. "The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one; I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me.

I never knew that meant you we're YELLING,
I'm going to stop doing that, I thought it was bringing attention to that part!
OUGH BOY !(woops sorry) :)
So much to learn and so little time....
P.S
I know what you mean about this type of forum:
I reread one of my replies to someones post & i thought to myself,
That reads different than how i meant it!

You are doing fine littleboy. :P

As Brother Tom said, some people take it that way but most of us here on this forum use it just to bring greater attention to that portion. So doing it is no problem here. Sometimes I just use the "bold" function instead of all caps.

Thanks, you Guy's
The last thing i want to do is offend someone...(because of my pc skills or should i say, the lack of them!)
It's good to know that people understand that....
You are good Brothers, THANK YOU (this was yelling) :)
Duane

Hello Brother Duane,

You're doing great. We're just a bunch of Christians here trying to have fellowship, so we're really not the super-sensitive types that get upset over little things. If we treat each other like Christians should, things work out fine, and I'm convinced that GOD helps us. We are gathered here together in HIS Name, and the Bible tells us that HE is with us. That's GOD'S Promise and I believe it.

I think that the best practice is to simply ask when there is possible confusion in what someone means in a post. This is much better than getting upset and finding out later that there was simply a misunderstanding - a communications failure. Many people have misunderstandings and communications failures when they are talking face to face in normal conversations. Maybe they aren't on the same sheet of music or any number of other communication failures. So, multiply the chances for misunderstanding on a forum. I made a simple typo the other day that I was really embarrassed about. I many times start a post with "Hello" and the person's name. I missed typing the "o" in "Hello", and I don't know how many people read it before I saw my error. My spell checker obviously didn't catch it because what was left is spelled correctly, but I don't talk that way. There are tons of examples like this.

I want to give one example of a mistake that happens fairly frequently. Let's first say that the conversation is fairly long and might be numerous pages. I see a post on page one that I want to reply to. You made the last post on page 5 and I haven't even read that far yet. I don't make it plain which post I am replying to, and you think that it must be you since you were the last to post in the thread. You get upset and think that I'm implying things that you didn't say - AND you didn't say them - the person on page one said them - BUT you don't know that. Whew! - Does anyone understand what I just said?   :D

We also kid around with each other fairly often. Christians are allowed to have fun. However, some people don't always recognize the kidding nature of some posts, even if we put smilies in them.

As a perfect example, Dreamweaver has given me several   :P  , and I'm behind in getting even. So Dreamweaver, if you are reading this, this   :P  is for you.   ;D   If Dreamweaver asks me why, I'll just say that I don't remember, but he has it coming anyway and he knows that he does.   ;D

I'd say that the big point here is to ask if something is confusing or upsetting in a post. Have fun and enjoy the Christian fellowship.

I just want to say that I love you Guy's...
Godspeed my Brothers & Sisters!

And nor do I.  I was enjoying the camaraderie that I saw happening though.
I agree with Brother Tom, and Pastor Roger (from another post) that internet etiquette can be tricky.  As a receptionist at a large software company we are well versed in it and still I sometimes fail.  As Pastor Roger pointed out, sometimes one is in hurry and direct to the point and it came come out as being short when not intended that way at all.

As to having fun on here.... I sure hope we can!  I'm a fun loving gal and like to kid around and be kidded in return!

As Little boy said,
I love you guys too and so much appreciate you all!
In Christ,
Yvette

It's really hard for an uneducated person, 9th grade ed...
They gave me criedits for the 10th grade, so i could go into the USMC...
I love to kid around its just hard when you think you might offend someone,
and in this type of forum that is very easy too do...
Whats cool is theirs alot of people here that understand that...
And i think you hit it on the head ,people get in a hurry and to the point & it is taken as beening short...
God Bless You Sister
Your loving Brother

Littleboy,Praise God for a big Brother like you,love in Jesus Littleboy..Def (+¸+)
Ps: in all my life i have 5 years of schooling. have been almost around the world.seen the deep of hell and back was taught by the Holy Spirit in french and anglais.learn his word was powered by faith in Jesus Christ and never mist a beat. and now i am a broken cripple rapture inside ready for the shout " come on Def come" amen  praise God for my ignorance but intelligence that he kept only for his Word.i have work with criminals and homeless in Court houses, theather, acting ,you name it you got it, and all that comes with it. never had a diploma always guided by the Lord until he called me in (1 Corinthians 8:3)
Well Big Brother Littleboy God bless you for whom you were willing to be .
all i can now say Is" COME LORD JESUS COME."
Love in Jesus Def
.My education was my experiences and experience I have in every form  and stages of this life ( they say 9 lives  so seperate them),and that was God plan ,so that i could understand the human sufferings of my brothers and sisters were ever He sent me.
now i am a mirror on His cross at the foot of the cross.and I am at peace and full of joy..WAITING!!!Seeyou when I see you..byebye

HI Def,
God bless you!
We maybe lowered now, but, soon we will be Exalted!
Not knowing the full measure of what we shall be, BUT we DO know, we will be like he is in a blink of the eye,
in a Shout and we will travel the great vastness between us and Heaven...
OH! how i pray for that day, Everyday!!!
Comfort yourself with this,
As you know, When our Brother was here the 1st time, the blind was given their sight, the dead rose, the possesed was cleansed, and the lame & mamed We're made WHOLE... 
ALL those who have affirmities WILL BE AS HE IS ON THAT DAY!!!!
YOU will be Whole, I Swear it... when ya know ya know...
What a Wonderful GOD(FATHER) we have, that would love & make the likes of people like me/us HIS children...
Praise be to our father, Bless'ed be his name...
Thank you Jesus for carrying us all this time,
Your Bride readys herself for the Marriage Supper, Come Lord COME...
Your Loving Brother Duane :)

And you have this coming brother............................. ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

 ;D   ;D   ;D    ROFL!

All I can say is that your portrait is of amazing quality, but you're supposed to smile and look pretty for your portrait like me below:


I even brushed my teeth and wore my best coat.

(Small Print:   ;D )

Looks like you have a few teeth out of place brother.

By smiling, you mean like this.......................

 ;D   ;D   ROFL!

Did anyone ever tell you that your face could get stuck in one of those positions for life?

   

Good Morning Boys!  Have you two been up playing all night???  ;D ;D ;D ;D
Looks like you've been having fun!

Good Morning Grammyluv,

I have been up all night playing, but the others wimped out on me. I have plenty of things to do on my "to do" list, so I decided to start on it. Things go faster in the middle of the night. I might try to get a few more things done and take an old guy nap. In case you're wondering, I'll define "old guy nap" for you: sleeps whenever he wants to and as long as he wants to.   :D   I worked shift work for many years, and my body clock is so messed up that I never know when I'm going to sleep. I'm retired, so it doesn't matter anyway. All I really need to do to stay out of trouble is get my "honey-do" list done all the time and on time. I do that, so I'm safe.   ;D

More like this for you:

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v311/randers/DoneFor.gif)

 :D :D :D :D :D :D

Ouch!
Those are the faces i make at the Satan while i'm telling him his day's ARE numbered......

I do know what you mean.  I usually sleep the whole afternoon away on Saturday just to get caught up.  I don't have to be to work until 8AM but I'm up no later that 5AM and sometimes I can't get to sleep until Midnight.  By Friday night I'm beat but I also have my 3 year old grandson with me on the weekends too!  I'm not "old", I'm just busy!

You have seen, "One Crazy Summer" to many times brother. ;D ;D ;D 


hows this for a smile..........................  ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

We do have fun sister, it helps take my mind away from my disease. I only sleep a few hours at a time because of my fibromyalgia.

 ;D   ;D   That's much better - you handsome rascal.

 

Thats a nice smile for suitcase material... :-\

 ;D   ;D   It's been a long time since we've seen this pretty bird. I made a copy of it once, but I can't find it since I said goodbye to Windows and hello to Linux. SO, I snagged it and have a fresh copy.

I do have a new graphics program that I'm trying to learn. I haven't made any new Scripture graphics in some time. It's called Gimp, and it should be able to do whatever I need. I might even be able to make some weird looking animal eating that pretty bird.   ;D

Tripie stuff Brother...
Looks like something i seen in Hell once ;D

I haven't seen anything in hell and I pray that I miss that experience.  ;)

AMEN!!

Hi Pastor,
You would'nt have known this, but i meant the Hell & it's Demons,that i can invision in my mind.
I hav'nt been their physically or spiritually, Nor do i want to be!
God Bless

 ;)  I would hope not.

I know this is off topic(E.U), but, you sure are a blessing to alot of people!
Godspeed Brother...

Thank you, but it is God that is the Blessing not me.

I know, and that's humble of yourself to say so Brother.
But, you are being used as a instrument of our God(Father)
and from what i can see, you are being a Faithful friend,son,brother & tool for our God & his Son...
Many have and will continue to find the lord here, for as long as the Lord wills it!
And that my Brother means you are a blessing to those who have found their way out of Darkness
because what you have sacrificed for our Father, #1 Laboring in the word of God so that you could help others do the same, and find the joy that their is in the family of God!
Their are others, but i have to go, be back later, God Willing!

Being able to serve God is a blessing to me.

EU warns Israel not to impose 'collective punishment' in Gaza
By Amos Harel and Avi Issacharoff, Haaretz Correspondents

The European Union cautioned Israel on Monday against imposing "collective punishment" against the 1.5 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip by cutting of delivery of fuel supplies to the territory.

The protest came one day after Israel began reducing fuel supplies as part of a new sanctions policy in what Israel says is a response to Palestinian rocket fire on Israeli towns from the Hamas-controlled coastal enclave.

"I think collective punishment is never a solution," Benita Ferrero-Waldner, the EU's commissioner for external relations, told reporters in Jerusalem.

She said she would raise the issue in meetings with Israeli leaders during her visit.

Israel continues to allow money into the Gaza Strip from the West Bank despite increased sanctions, including the fuel reductions, on the Strip. Israel agreed last week to another shipment of funds into Gaza via the Erez crossing.

Security forces said the money was intended for salaries Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas has committed to pay.

The tens of millions of shekels will pay tens of thousands of PA workers and Fatah activists' salaries. Hamas has thus far not blocked the transfer.

The Gaza Strip is experiencing a dwindling of shekels following the shutdown of some Israeli banks and the desire of others to stop activities in Gaza. Last week the Bank of Israel Governor Stanley Fischer asked Bank Hapoalim to postpone by two months its intention to stop activity in the Strip.

Finance Minister Roni Bar-On and his Egyptian counterpart, Youssef Boutros-Ghali, suggested at an International Monetary Fund meeting in Washington last week that Israel could transfer shekels to banks in Egypt for transfer to Gaza. This would address the concerns of Israeli banks that the funds they transfer would reach terror organizations.

However security officials said recently that they opposed the plan because they would lose all control over the transfers and the money would reach the terror organizations indirectly.

Israel began Sunday to decrease its fuel supply to the Gaza Strip as part of its policy to intensify sanctions against the Hamas government.

The plan to disrupt the electricity supply to Gaza has not yet been implemented in light of a petition to the High Court of Justice Sunday by the Arab-Israeli legal advocacy center Adalah against the disruption.

The Palestinian Fuel Authority in the Gaza Strip reported Sunday that the shortfall in fuel supplies was noticeable. According to the authority, the supply of diesel has been cut from a normal level of 350,000 liters per day to 200,000 liters. Similarly, the supply of gasoline, which normally stands at 150,000 liters per day, has dropped to about 90,000 liters. Ahmed Ali, deputy chairman of the Fuel Authority, told the press Sunday that shortages would be felt in a few days, since there was sufficient fuel in Gaza Strip storage for another four days. However, Palestinians joined long lines Sunday to stock up on fuel before the imminent shortages.

Dor Alon, the Israeli firm supplying fuel to the Palestinians, acknowledged it had cut down on diesel and gasoline to the Gaza Strip on instructions from the defense establishment.

Next week, another reduction will go into effect. The Sufa crossing in the southern Gaza Strip was also closed down Sunday for an unlimited period. The passage had been operating since the Hamas takeover of the Strip in June instead of the Karni crossing that was closed down due to terror alerts. Most of the merchandise moved to the Gaza
Strip  about 100 to 120 truckloads a day went through the Sufa crossing.

Merchandise will now be able to enter the Gaza Strip only at Kerem Shalom, which has a much smaller capacity of up to 55 trucks a day.

EU warns Israel not to impose 'collective punishment' in Gaza (http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/917832.html)

Praise be to God, His will, is being done on Earth...
I was called an Idiot, among many other things for years, :)
For telling people to watch Europes (E.U) rise for Global power and that the AntiChrist(littleHorn) would rise from it's Goverment.
And that started when i was 12 yrs. old(1974)
Most people I encountered back then alway's said that He(antichrist) would come from America & the U.N was the Goverment that's spoken of!
And/or that we're the Great Whore Babylon!
OUGH BOY!
I take alot of pride in knowing that God gave me the Truth at such a young age..
Your loving Brother Duane
P.S
Please keep keeping us up to date,
I Love this stuff because, our "God will be Glorified"

EU greenlights expansion of 'no borders' area on December 21 Thu Nov 8, 1:59 PM ET
 
BRUSSELS (AFP) - European Union interior ministers approved Thursday the entry of nine new countries into Europe's passport-free Schengen area on December 21, freeing up travel and giving a boost to economic activity.

 
"The member states concerned are sufficiently prepared," the ministers said a document laying out conclusions of their talks in Brussels.

The move, seen as an early Christmas present, will bring an end to long queues of people and road freight at borders at a peak travel time, a problem which has grown into a priority since the countries joined the EU in 2004.

Sea and land border controls between the current 15 Schengen area nations and the nine -- Malta plus eight Central and East European countries -- will end after midnight on December 20.

Air travel is to be opened up from March 30.

Travellers will be able to visit the entire Schengen area, from Tallin in Estonia south to Lisbon in Portugal and east to Budapest, Hungary, with a single visa.

"It's a symbol to the new (EU) member states that they are no longer living behind the Iron Curtain," German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schauble told reporters, on the sidelines of the EU meeting.

As an indicator of what effect the move will have, a German official said that 83 million people crossed his country's border with Poland from January to September, while 91 million people crossed the German-Czech border.

At the moment the Schengen treaty, which abolished border checks between its members, counts all the oldest EU members except Britain and Ireland, plus non-EU nations Norway and Iceland.

The decision to expand it was taken following a detailed assessment carried out over two years.

The first of the two conditions needed for joining was met by the nine in early September when the countries plugged into an electronic database that allows authorities to swap details on wanted people, objects or vehicles.

For the second condition, concerning the security of their borders with non-EU countries, experts have over the last year inspected the controls and described them as "satisfying".

The European Parliament must also give its opinion on the entry of the nine -- the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia -- but this is considered a formality.

The ministers will then rubber stamp the decision in December.

Bulgaria, Cyprus, Romania and Switzerland, the latter which signed an agreement on its association with the Schengen bloc in 2004, are expected to fully join the border-free zone in coming years.

Apart from easing travel restrictions, the Schengen treaty improves cooperation between police forces, allowing hot-pursuit of criminals into a member country as well as cross-border surveillance of suspects.

 EU seeks leadership trio for new institutions By Yves Clarisse
Mon Nov 5, 12:08 PM ET
 


BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Even before European Union leaders sign a treaty reforming the bloc's institutions next month, speculation is rife in Brussels about who will take the three key leadership jobs in the new EU structure from 2009.
 
The reform treaty provides for a long-term president of the European Council of national leaders, appointed for a renewable two-and-a-half year term, a strengthened foreign policy chief at the head of an EU foreign service, and a president of the executive European Commission.

Diplomats say Jose Manuel Barroso, the centre-right former Portuguese prime minister, has a good chance of a second term as Commission president in 2009 thanks to the backing of France and Germany, whose previous leaders were cool towards him.

Barroso, 51, has implemented a relatively modest vision of the EU executive's role, preserving the single market, reducing new legislation to a trickle, axing some old regulations and focusing on the economy and environment rather than on politics.

A senior Commission official called Barroso's ambition for a second five-year term "the worst kept secret in Brussels."

Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker, 53, the EU's longest-serving leader, has emerged as favorite for the new job of president of the European Council, with backing from Paris, Berlin and smaller EU states -- if he wants it, diplomats say.

The president would prepare and chair the bloc's four annual summits and be the EU's top face on the world stage.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy cited both Juncker and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair as good candidates for the post last month, but diplomats say Blair, 54, would face hurdles because of Britain's semi-detached membership of the EU.


"Britain is not in the euro, not in Schengen (zone of borderless travel), not in the Charter of Fundamental Rights and now it has opted out of police and judicial cooperation," one senior diplomat said. "That's a lot, and when you realize that Blair wanted these new exceptions, it's too much."

By contrast, Juncker already chairs the Eurogroup of finance ministers of the 13 member states that share the single currency and has been in the thick of every EU compromise since he became head of government in 1995.

The chain-smoking Christian Democrat, who bridges most EU political divides but is seen by London as too much of a European federalist, chose to stay in Luxembourg rather than seek the Commission presidency in 2004.

If two moderate conservatives from small countries get two of the top jobs, the third member of the leadership triangle is likely to be a socialist from a bigger member state, for reasons of political and geographical balance.

That description fits perfectly with Javier Solana, the EU's current foreign policy chief, who is said by diplomats to be keen to stay on, although he will turn 67 in July 2009 and will have been in the job for a decade.

Solana, a former Spanish foreign minister and NATO chief, has built up the role through patient diplomacy, deferring to the big EU nations and staying onside with the United States.

EU diplomats said he might stay on as a bridge for a few months until a new European Commission is appointed in late 2009, but a new face is likely to take over after that.

Among possible contenders are former German foreign minister Joschka Fischer, Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt, respected but perhaps too outspoken for some, and current EU enlargement chief, Olli Rehn of Finland. But none is a socialist.

If Juncker goes to the European Council, diplomats say it will be hard to find a stable successor as Eurogroup chairman, an increasingly important role. Few euro zone finance ministers are guaranteed his longevity in domestic office.

If neither Juncker nor Blair runs, Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern, who proved a skilled negotiator during Dublin's 2004 EU presidency, is seen by some EU officials as a possible compromise candidate.