The Bulletin Board: (Please SCROLL DOWN this page to find the article titled on this post in LARGE CAPITAL LETTERS. Thank you.)
LATEST NEWS ALERT - US Pastor Saeed Remains in Iranian Hospital, Instead of Prison - By
Jordan Sekulow, Filed in IRAN, Mar. 31;http://aclj.org/iran/us-pastor-saeed-remains-in-iranian-hospital-instead-of-prison "American Pastor Saeed Abedini remains in a hospital room instead of a prison cell. As we reported in mid-March, Pastor Saeed was taken from Rajai Shahr Prison to a hospital where he has received and continues to receive medication. Family members reported that a physician actually examined him yesterday. He is still suffering from internal injuries he received in prison. There's no word on how long Pastor Saeed will remain hospitalized. Family members who were able to visit with him this weekend said it's clear the time he has spent in the hospital is a significant improvement over how he was being treated in prison. According to his family, he is receiving meals and medicine - but the much-needed surgery to address internal injuries has not yet occurred. We continue to pray for Pastor Saeed - that his health will improve and that he will be re-united with his wife and two young children who live in the United States. We also remain hopeful that in addition to getting the medical care he so desperately needs, that Iranian officials display the kind of humanitarian treatment that often accompanies the start of the Iranian New Year which began on March 21st. This is the time of year when the Iranian government frequently offers clemency to prisoners of conscience. [If you have not yet, please sign the petition for his clemency- http://beheardproject.com/saeed#sign]
LATEST NEWS /PRAYER ALERT"100,000 Russian Troops at Ukraine Border, Could Invade ’At a Moment’s Notice’" - 3/28/2014;http://www.presidentialprayerteam.com/Prayerwatch?pw=3716
The U.S. State Department believes the Russian army is now prepared to launch an invasion of eastern Ukraine if President Vladimir Putin decides to pull the trigger, according to a senior Administration official."At this point, they are amassed and they could go at a moment’s notice if Putin gave the go ahead," the official said...Top Ukrainian security officials said Thursday that Russia now has 100,000 troops on its side of the Russia-Ukraine border.(Sources: CBS News, Washington Post, Huffington Post, Daily Beast)
As the Lord leads, please pray:
*For God to suppress President Putin’s ambitions to "restore" the Soviet empire.
*For the people of Ukrainen [esp. for the church 'to be THE church'] as they wait to see if the Russian troops will advance.
*About President Obama and to use wisdom in crafting our foreign policy, and wisdom for his advisers.
PRAYER ALERT! "As Many as 108 People May be Missing in Washington State Mudslide" - March 25th; Presidential Prayer Team News Watch/ "
As the Lord leads, please pray:
* For rescue crews and other first responders as they work through unsafe conditions in search of the missing.
*For the families and friends as they await information regarding loved ones who may have been caught up in the mud slide.
SIGN A PETITION TO THE UN FOR THE PROTECTION OF CHRISTIANS :" The church in Syria has shone brightly for 2,000 years. But today violence and persecution threatens its survival. Thanks to an incredible response, Open Doors is helping 8,000 families in Syria survive each month. We believe the signatures and prayers of 500,000 people will encourage the UN to act and protect the rights and lives of all Syrians, especially the vulnerable Christian community." Go to: http://lp.opendoorsusa.org/emails/nov-13-action/save-syria.html?utm_source=action&utm_medium=email&utm_content=button&utm_campaign=november
WORLD-WDE PRAYER REQUESTS:
NEWS /PRAYER ALERT! - Ukraine Accuses Russia of 'Invasion, Occupation'- By George Thomas, Friday, February 28, 2014; http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2014/February/Ukraine-Accuses-Russia-of-Invasion-Occupation-/ - SIMFEROPOL, Ukraine -- Russian troops now control an airport near their naval base in Sevastopol, Ukraine. Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov is calling the siege a "military invasion and occupation." "It is in violation of all international treaties and norms," he charged. "This is a direct provocation to armed bloodshed on the territory of a sovereign state."... [Let's be in prayer as the Ukraine is facing an ever increasing threat of civil war. 1) Pray esp. for beievers to be submitted to and guided by the Holy Spirit in how to BE JESUS during these turbulent times. 2) Also keep in prayer Oleksandr Turchynov, a prominent evangelical Christia who continues to be the newly-appointed President of theUkraine, and 3) Pray that many who are and will encounter great suffering as a result of this continuing conflict find their hope and strength in Jesus by coming to faith in Him. - Stan]
NEWS ALERT/PRAISE! "Iran Allows Surgery on Ailing, Imprisoned Pastor" - CBNNews.com,March 07, 2014;http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2014/March/Iran-Allows-Dire-Surgery-on-Ailing-Imprisoned-Pastor-/ The Iranian government has finally allowed doctors to perform surgery on imprisoned Pastor Benham Irani.Irani suffered from a herniated disc and bleeding intestines and urgently needed medical care. PRAY for the final release of Pastor Irani and others imprisoned for their faith.
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/ 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]
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.]
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/ - 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.]
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/ 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.
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
- 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
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.]
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/ - 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.]
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/ 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.
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
- 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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In 532 A.D., a series of riots pitting the supporters of two different chariot racing teams, the “Greens” and the “Blues,” nearly toppled the Byzantine Emperor, Justinian. The Nika riots resulted in 30,000 deaths and half of Constantinople being burned or otherwise destroyed. If it sounds like these people took popular entertainment far too seriously, well, you might Google “Noah” and “Christian.”
As several colleagues of mine have pointed out, the level of vituperation among Christians over Darren Aronofsky's film is “nuts.” In the most-recent high-profile salvo, a theologian accused Christian leaders who endorsed the film of missing “a blatantly Gnostic subversion of the biblical story when it was right in front of their faces.” This of course prompted denials and retorts from those being criticized. As my BreakPoint colleague Roberto Rivera put it, “and the wheels on the bus go round and round.”
As Roberto pointed out in a recent column online, what’s missing in all the back-and-forth “is any consideration about why Christians should be so invested in what comes out of Hollywood.” He’s not saying that we shouldn’t take note of what the entertainment industry is up to. Of course not. Given its outsized role in our culture, to ignore it would be folly. Nor is he saying that we shouldn’t be prepared to praise the good stuff and criticize the rest.
But he is saying that we shouldn’t look to the entertainment industry for validation of our beliefs and way of life. And that, sadly, is what too many of us are doing. We long to see ourselves—or an idealized version of ourselves—on the screen. Like Sally Fields said at the Oscars thirty years ago, we want to say “I can't deny the fact that you like me, right now, you like me.” But while Fields was being humorous, many of us aren’t.
What makes this especially unfortunate is that mass entertainment is, almost by design, intended to be a substitute for the Christian worldview that answered what Brad S. Gregory, a historian at Notre Dame, has called the “Life Questions.” According to Gregory, consumerism, including the consumption of mass media, grew out of the rejection of Christian ideas about the good life and human flourishing. As he put it, we have exchanged the “good life” for the “goods life.”
These “goods” aren’t limited to cars, houses, and electronics. They include mass media: TV, music, movies and the internet. Even more than tangible “stuff,” mass media distracts us from the emptiness and the purposelessness of much of modern, post-Christian existence. That’s why “people who couldn’t begin to tell you about the biblical Noah can talk your ears off about ephemeral pop culture matters.” In many instances, it’s the only thing they can talk about.
There are of course exceptions. Some films and TV can serve as illustrations of Christian themes and “conversation starters.” But as my friend says, “the goal of such illustrations conversation starters should be to direct people’s primary gaze away from the screen (of whatever size) and toward the places where the ‘Life Questions’ are supposed to be answered,” such as in scripture and worship—not to mention in fellowship and in acts of service.
So let’s leave the online rioting to fans of chariot racing.
[bold and italics emphasis mine]
RESOURCES
"Get Off My Lawn: Why Are Christians Fighting so Hard about 'Noah' ? - Roberto Rivera | BreakPoint.org | April 3, 2014; http://www.breakpoint.org/features-columns/breakpoint-columns/entry/2/24932
"Undrownable Truth: ‘Noah’ Brings Together Legend, Controversy, and a Surprisingly Biblical Message" - G. Shane Morris | BreakPoint.org | March 28, 2014; https://www.breakpoint.org/component/content/article/71-features/1594-a-peek-behind-the-toob?spMailingID=8309495&spUserID=MTMyMjM2ODE5OQS2&spJobID=280464326&spReportId=MjgwNDY0MzI2S0
"Not Sermons, but Stories - Eric Metaxas | BreakPoint.org | August 22, "2013; https://www.breakpoint.org/bpcommentaries/entry/13/23085?spMailingID=8309495&spUserID=MTMyMjM2ODE5OQS2&spJobID=280464326&spReportId=MjgwNDY0MzI2S0
"A Peek behind the Toob" - Eric Jacobson | BreakPoint.org | Spring 2003; https://www.breakpoint.org/component/content/article/71-features/1594-a-peek-behind-the-toob?spMailingID=8309495&spUserID=MTMyMjM2ODE5OQS2&spJobID=280464326&spReportId=MjgwNDY0MzI2S0
Amusing Ourselves To Death - Neil Postman | Penguin Books
Hollywood Worldviews - Brian Godawa | IVP Books | 2009
Reel Spirituality Robert Johnston | Baker Academics | 2006
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