URGENT PRAYER REQUESTS:
North Korea Detains 85-Year-Old American Veteran - CBNNews.com; November 21, 2013; http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2013/November/North-Korea-Detains-85-Year-Old-American-Veteran/ - "North Korea has detained another American, this time an 85-year-old veteran of the Korean War...Merrill Newman took a sight-seeing trip to North Korea in late October."
[11/21 - People in some rural areas continue to be in desperate need of even food. PRAY for relief suppplies to reach people in a timely way.] "Missionary in Philippines: 'Bodies Laying Everywhere'- By Dale Hurd and Heather Sells, November 12; http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2013/November/Truckloads-of-Bodies-Filipinos-Plead-for-Help/ - The official death toll from the Philippines typhoon stands at nearly 1,800, but authorities expect it to rise considerably. An estimated 11 million people were impacted by Super Typhoon Haiyen, with it's near 200 mile-per-hour winds and 20 foot storm surge. More than half a million people have been left homeless. In some areas, the survivors are being forced to live among piles of corpses. "It's just really death and devastation everywhere. Bodies laying everywhere. People need help," American missionary and storm survivor John Wynn said. [PRAY that relief supplies will get to the needed area in time to help the tens of thousands who are in great need. PRAY that security can be established in the midst of looters causing problems in the midst of the devastation. - Stan]
NEWS ALERT: Monday, November 04, 2013 - Saeed's Life in [Greater] Jeopardy After Prison Transfer - CBNNews.com, ; http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2013/November/Saeeds-Life-in-Jeopardy-after-Prison-Transfer/ Saeed Abedini, an American pastor imprisoned in Iran for his faith, is facing life threatening conditions after a recent prison transfer, the America Center for Law and Justice reports. Saeed's family says he has been moved from the brutal Evin Prison to Rajai Shahr Prison, known to be an even more dangerous jail. "Going to Karaj is a severe punishment," Loes Bijnen, a Dutch diplomat from the embassy in Tehran, described the jail in a 2005 report. "Once in there one stops to be a human being," she wrote. "One is put out of sight, even of human rights activists and the press. Murders or unexplained deaths are a regular occurrence." ... "While there is broad bi-partisan support for a Senate resolution calling for Saeed's release, ... it's crucial President Barack Obama step in "directly and forcefully" to save his life. "[Go to http://beheardproject.com/saeed#sign and sign a new petition.][PRAY for President Obama to forcefully speak out against this latest development; for the pastor to be finally released. (See below for more info.)]
NEWS ALERT: Oct. 23: "Christians Fleeing IRAQ Area Once Considered Safe," - CBNNews.com, http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2013/October/Christians-Fleeing-Iraq-Area-Once-Considered-Safe/ "Increased violence in northern Iraq is pushing Christians out of that part of the country. The Kurdish north was considered a safe area for Christians fleeing from violent persecution in the central and southern regions. But bombings in recent months are causing panic and many are fleeing the country. Al qaeda has claimed responsibility for several of those attacks. Some Christians have been told by local police that they "should not be in Iraq because it is Muslim territory." The Christian charity Open Doors International is urging people around the world to pray for Christians in Iraq. They say that if the persecution continues, there may be no Christians left in Iraq by 2020.[PRAY that believers in Iraq will know God's protection and provision; that believers will know[ whether they are called to flee or remain and persevere; and that their persecutors may come to hear the gospel and come to faith in Christ. - Stan]
"SYRIAN Christians Brace for Strike, Ask for Prayer," - by Gary Lane, August 31, http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2013/August/Syrian-Christians-Brace-for-Strike-Ask-for-Prayer/"As Syrians brace themselves for a possible U.S. military attack, many of the county's Christians are praying for divine intervention. They say military action against the Assad regime will only bring them greater hardship and suffering and they're asking Christians worldwide to pray that God intervenes to bring peace to their nation. They believe the collective prayers of Christians around the world could reverse an escalating conflict..."
Continue to Pray for EGYPT - Continue to pray for the tense situation in Egypt and especially for the Christian believers who are being targeted with violence by Muslim Brotherhood members.]
Oct. 14, NORTH KOREA -"Kenneth Bae, Mom Meet; Release Not Guaranteed" - CBNNews.com, http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2013/October/Mother-Visits-Missionary-Jailed-in-North-Korea/Update on Kenneth Bae: "US Ready to Bargain with N. Korea for Bae's Release,"- CBNNews.com, Aug 14, 2013 http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2013/August/S-Ready-to-Bargain-with-N-Korea-for-Baes-Release/ - The United States is willing to engage North Korea to secure the release of imprisoned American Christian Kenneth Bae. State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said the United States is "willing to consider a number of different options" to bring him home.In a video recently released by a North Korean newspaper, Bae requested the United States send a high-ranking official to North Korea to seek his pardon. It is unclear if he spoke of his own volition in the video. Bae, 45, was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor for sharing his faith. He suffers health problems such as diabetes and is currently hospitalized.[PRAY for 1) God's healing of and presence with Pastor Bae, 2) His earliest release by the North Korean government, and 3) God's comfort for his family and friends.]
Oct. 14, NORTH KOREA -"Kenneth Bae, Mom Meet; Release Not Guaranteed" - CBNNews.com, http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2013/October/Mother-Visits-Missionary-Jailed-in-North-Korea/Update on Kenneth Bae: "US Ready to Bargain with N. Korea for Bae's Release,"- CBNNews.com, Aug 14, 2013 http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2013/August/S-Ready-to-Bargain-with-N-Korea-for-Baes-Release/ - The United States is willing to engage North Korea to secure the release of imprisoned American Christian Kenneth Bae. State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said the United States is "willing to consider a number of different options" to bring him home.In a video recently released by a North Korean newspaper, Bae requested the United States send a high-ranking official to North Korea to seek his pardon. It is unclear if he spoke of his own volition in the video. Bae, 45, was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor for sharing his faith. He suffers health problems such as diabetes and is currently hospitalized.[PRAY for 1) God's healing of and presence with Pastor Bae, 2) His earliest release by the North Korean government, and 3) God's comfort for his family and friends.]
IRAN - Vigils Mark One Year Imprisonment of Pastor Saeed - CBNNews.com, Thursday, September 26, 2013 - Today marks one-year that American pastor Saeed Abedini has been held in an Iranian prison. He is serving an eight-year sentence because of his Christian faith. It has been a year of torment as he has suffered beatings, physical pain from untreated medical conditions, and separation from his wife and two children... The suffering has not dampened his passion for Jesus. Pastor Abedini has led more than 30 prisoners to Christ during his time in prison. This afternoon, thousands of Americans from coast to coast will pray for his release. Events will be held in 40 states at capitols, city halls, parks and churches. Thousands more will join from 15 nations around the world
PRAY: - For comfort and peace for Saeed’s wife and children here in the U.S.\
- For a strong witness and testimony from Pastor Abedini in the prison where God has placed him
- For Christians around the world who are being persecuted for their faith in Christ
- BOLDly (Beside Our Leaders Daily) for leadership from the White House and State Department in defending the freedoms of Abedini and other Americans
- GO TO SaveSaeed.org to sign a petition over 600,000 others asking for his immediate release
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"Overcoming Evil with Good - Saints and Squanto" - November 24, 2011; Chuck Colson, Breakpoint.com [NOTE It's telling that though written 2 years ago, the following commentary's first paragraph - and of course the entire article - is still very relevant today. - Stan]
AS I SEE IT: A year ago, God prompted me to begin jotting down
in a special notebook things for which I was thankful to God for. I had
originally set aside that notebook for spectacular God-moments in my life but
beginning that day I began to note phone calls, emails, and visits with people
that were encouraging to me. (Each notation was preceded by the letters “TY” for
“thank you.”). I was amazed that after just a month or so, I had dozens of such
notes of thanks to God. Then, after about 6 months, God spoke to
me about even jotting down things that happened that I could not understand but
which He still wanted me to thank Him for anyway. (Those got the designation of
“TYA” for “thank you anyway.”) Now, a year later, that notebook has almost 200
notations but as I reflected on them, I wonder if God is not more honored by
the “TYA” designations than the “TY” designations. I wonder if it’s one thing
to remember and thank him for the blessings in our life but that He looks more
for those things we CHOOSE to thank Him for by faith. (2 Cor. 4:16-18) - Stan]
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"Overcoming Evil with Good - Saints and Squanto" - November 24, 2011; Chuck Colson, Breakpoint.com [NOTE It's telling that though written 2 years ago, the following commentary's first paragraph - and of course the entire article - is still very relevant today. - Stan]
"Overcoming Evil with Good - Saints and Squanto" - November 24, 2011; Chuck Colson, Breakpoint.com [NOTE It's telling that though written 2 years ago, the following commentary's first paragraph - and of course the entire article - is still very relevant today. - Stan]
You can't turn on the TV these days without seeing the sides lined up, prepared for battle: Republicans versus Democrats, Tea partiers versus tax raisers, Occupy Wall Street versus — well, everybody. And so far they’ve given us no indication they're ever going to agree on anything, never mind solving the problems of this country. But as John Murray wrote in a marvelous Wall Street Journal column, Thanksgiving is a reminder that people of very different backgrounds can join together to solve life-and-death problems.
Murray, headmaster of Fourth Presbyterian School in Maryland and one of our Centurions graduates, paints the scene: The year was 1621, and the people were the Pilgrims and two memorable Indians, Samoset and Squanto. And it may surprise you to learn that it was the Indian Squanto who truly exemplified the words of St. Paul: To overcome evil with good.
As every school child should know, the Pilgrims’ trip to the New World was extremely difficult. Once they arrived, things got worse. Nearly half of them died that first winter, leaving the other half wondering if it wouldn’t be better to return to the Old World.
But something happened that spring to make them decide to stay. As Pilgrim Governor William Bradford wrote in his journal, in the middle of March, 1621, “a certain Indian came boldly among them and spoke to them in broken English, [and] told them of another Indian whose name was Squanto...who had been in England and could speak better English than himself.” Squanto acted as their interpreter with the local Indian tribes, and, Bradford wrote, “was a special instrument sent of God for their good beyond their expectation.
”Why would Bradford think that Squanto's help was “beyond their expectation?” Perhaps because many years before, Squanto had been kidnapped by Spaniards and taken to Europe to be sold as a slave. But as John Murray writes in his column, “Providentially, Squanto was purchased by a group of Catholic friars who taught him about the Bible and Jesus Christ in preparation to send him back to America to be a missionary among his tribe.”
Squanto eventually made his way back to America, where he found that his entire tribe had died of disease. And soon after that, he met up with the Pilgrims. Squanto taught them local farming and fishing practices, using his knowledge of both English and Indian languages. He helped negotiate a peace between the Pilgrims and nearby Indian tribes.
Thanks in part to Squanto, the Pilgrims reaped a generous harvest in the fall of 1621. And in order to thank God for saving them, and for providing life-saving help from their neighbors, they held a three-day feast of thanksgiving to God, to which they invited their Indian friends.
As for Squanto, Murray writes, “Considering the trials of his own life, it would have been understandable for Squanto to sow bitterness and seek war against the Pilgrims. Instead, his generosity and forgiveness enabled their survival.” He lived out the words of Paul, overcoming evil with good.
Nearly 400 years later, are we willing to emulate Squanto's attitude, to stop fighting and start working together for our mutual good? Now that would be something to really be thankful for.
[bold and italics emphasis mine]
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