ANSWERED PRAYER!! - Sudan Mom Sentenced to Die for Faith Set Free - CBNNews.com, June 23, 2014: http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2014/June/Sudan-Mom-Sentenced-to-Die-for-Faith-Set-Free/ :The Sudanese mother condemned to die for refusing to renounce her Christian faith has been set free, according to her attorney. Meriam Ibrahim's release came after her sentence was overturned by an appellate court..."
6/26 - Miriam and her family were detained for several hours at the airport yesterday BUT THEN WERE RELEASED.
PRAY FOR AMERICA: THANK GOD for His many blessings on America throughout it's history. May we then ask that AMERICA once again be a blessing TO GOD, by once again submitting to HIS will in our affairs - both personal and national - that He may truly "heal our land." (2 Chron. 7:14)
PRAY FOR the U.S. Supreme Court as it prepares to hand down 17 decisions before the end of this month. ["Supreme Court to Rule on 17 Cases by End of Month" - Kara Jones | Jun 16, 2014; http://townhall.com/tipsheet/karajones/2014/06/16/supreme-court-has-17-cases-to-decide-by-junes-end-n1852016?utm_source=thdailypm&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=nl_pm
Month of RAMADAN - Please make note that THIS SATURDAY begins the Muslim month of Ramadam, this year June 28-July 27. This is the second year I will join with the over 1 billion Muslims in their annual time of prayer and fasting (sun-up to sun-down each day) and ask God to reveal Himself to them in dreams and visions. As this is the time each year when they are most open to spiritual things, I ask you to join me that God would speak clearly to each one and come to lead millions to leave their kingdom of darkness for Jesus' kingdom of light. (Col. 1:13-14) - Stan]
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:
6/13 - PRAY FOR THE CRISIS HAPPENING NOW IN IRAQ (see post #907)
(6/12-7/13) PRAY for the WORLD CUP IN BRAZIL - that God will show favor to the many thousands who are there to present the message of Christ to the athletes and visitors from around the world. May many return to their home countries having come to Christ and sharing that same new faith with family and friends.
"Will You Pray for Meriam? - A Christian Woman’s Nightmare": By: Eric Metaxas| Breakpoint.org,: June 12, 2014 ;http://www.breakpoint.org/bpcommentaries/entry/13/25394?spMailingID=8798979&spUserID=MTMyMjM2ODE5OQS2&spJobID=321046582&spReportId=MzIxMDQ2NTgyS0 - A Sudanese Christian mother has been sentenced to death for apostasy
LATEST SAHEED NEWS! May 22 - "Pastor Saeed Forcibly Returned to Prison after Beating" - By Caitlin Burke,CBN News, May 22, 2014;http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2014/May/Pastor-Saeed-Beaten-Sent-Back-to-Iran-Prison/ "Saeed Abedini, a U.S. pastor imprisoned for his faith, was severely beaten at an Iranian hospital before being returned to the brutal Rajai Shahr prison. His Iranian family claims the transfer was unexpected and the reason is unclear. But one of the guards involved in the transfer suggested recent Iranian nuclear talks could be a motive, the family said...""
We need to 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]
PRAY ALSO : - 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
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.
NEWS/PRAYER ALERT!"Kim Jong-un Calls for Execution of 33 Christians" - 3/7/2014; http://www.presidentialprayerteam.com/Prayerwatch?pw=3651 "North Korea tyrant Kim Jong-un has reportedly ordered that 33 Christians believed to be working alongside South Korean Baptist missionary Kim Jung-wook be put to death. The South Korean missionary - who was arrested last year - and his accomplices have reportedly started 500 or so underground churches..."[PRAY that the plans for execution would be rescinded, and these believers released.] [Che\ck out: They'll Be Dead By Morning (What Difference Will It Make) http://loristanleyroeleveld.blogspot.com/2014/03/theyll-be-dead-by-morning-what.html
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.]
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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.]
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A group of farmers form a brigade to defend Iraq. (Photo: Ali Jassem/Transterra Media/Newscom)
President Obama is fond of saying he was elected to “end” wars, not start them. He clearly is tapping into Americans’ well-known weariness of wars and sees himself as merely carrying out their will. But there’s a problem. Americans may indeed be war-weary (although how much may be exaggerated), but that only means they assume Obama’s policies will actually end the wars and bring peace.
By this measure, the president’s “no war, no way” policy isn’t working. Clearly, Iraq is exploding into a major new war that our continued presence could possibly have prevented. By the same token, our precipitous withdrawal from Afghanistan may result in the Taliban’s return to power.
President Obama is banking on the gamble that we can walk away without any damage to our security. After all, this is the essence of “ending” a war versus actually winning it. So long as we’re not dragged back into the fighting, the thinking goes, there’s really no skin off our nose if our side loses. Otherwise we’d be doing everything in our power to make sure that doesn’t happen.
Clearly this is not the case. By withdrawing from Afghanistan on a timetable dictated by politics, not military conditions on the ground, we are leaving our friends to their own fate. This implies not only that the original purpose of fighting the war — i.e., preventing safe havens for terrorists who can kill us — was not worth it, but also that all our sacrifices could be in vain.
The president seems to believe the fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan cannot deteriorate enough to drag us back in. But what if he’s wrong? What makes him think a reconstituted Taliban, either partially or throughout the country, won’t be a magnet for future terrorists plotting another strike on our homeland?
What would we do if there were another 9/11? Launch a few cruise missiles, as President Clinton did in 1998 after our embassies in Kenya and Tanzania were attacked, which did nothing to stop the attacks on New York and the Pentagon?
Or what if a new terrorist regime is carved out of Syria and Iraq by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS)? That could lead to a full-fledged regional war, possibly involving Iran, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and even Jordan and Israel. Are we to stand by as oil prices go through the roof and terrorist plots on us are hatched from there as well?
As the old saying goes, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and in Iraq and Afghanistan we are failing mightily in the prevention department. Make no mistake: It was Obama, not President George W. Bush, who failed in that particular duty. When Obama entered office in 2009, Iraq was in fairly good shape. The war was not yet over, but if we’d maintained a residual military force for training and advising Iraq’s security forces and for counterterrorism missions, as Bush had planned, the ISIS threat would have been mitigated. And Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki would not have been as dependent on Iran.
We are left with an escalating civil war in Iraq that could very well have been prevented. President Obama’s shortsighted focus on pulling out of Iraq not only left a power vacuum now being filled by Iran and Islamist terrorists; it also risks a greater conflagration that pales in comparison with what we are now seeing.
We’ve watched this movie many times before. After World War I, war-weary Americans thought merely “avoiding” wars would stop them. Hitler showed them differently. We thought we could walk away from Vietnam, only to witness the “killing fields” of Cambodia.
Once again we seem to be learning the wrong historical lessons. For America, it’s not merely “staying out” of wars that prevents them. It’s a strong engagement on the ground with training, diplomacy and military support to deter attacks on us and our allies.
Originally posted on the Washington Times.
[bold and italics emphasis mine]
Kim R. Holmes, a distinguished fellow at The Heritage Foundation, oversaw the think tank’s defense and foreign policy team for more than two decades.
"Three Frightening Facts About Iraq" - James Carafano/ June 24, 2014 / http://dailysignal.com/2014/06/24/three-frightening-facts-iraq/?utm_source=heritagefoundation&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=morningbell
Iraqi Shiite fighters raise up their weapons as they show their willingness to join Iraqi security forces in the fight against Jihadist militants on June 23, 2014. (Photo: Haidar Hamdani/AFP/Getty/Newscom)
What is going in Iraq has nothing to do with American politics. The enemies of America don’t care if the West Wing is run by the left-wing or the right-wing. They just celebrate our defeats and look for new opportunities to roll back the frontiers of freedom. They have three big cheers for what is going on in Iraq. Here is why.
1. Prepare for the Next Wave of Transnational Terrorist Attacks. The war in Syria was fueled in part by a pipeline of foreign fighters, which gravely concerned European officials. [http://washingtonexaminer.com/the-pipeline-problem/article/2532674] Last month, a U.S. citizen committed a suicide bombing in Syria. [http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/05/31/us-syria-usa-bomber-idUSKBN0EA2BO20140531] The numbers have grown dramatically with the ISIS intervention in Iraq. These fighters, whether as “lone wolves,” organized cells or serving as inspiration for others will become the foundation for the next wave of transnational terrorists attacks against the West. Governments should start preparing now. It is going to happen. Homeland Security will be back in style.
2. Expect Endless Civil War. With ISIS seizing the border crossings in Western Iraq, Syria and Iraq have become one contiguous battleground. The U.S. utterly failed to help end the civil war in Syria. The deal the administration brokered over chemical weapons only strengthened Syrian leader Bashir Assad’s hand, earning him stronger backing from Russia and Iran. Meanwhile, ISIS built up the military capability that allows it not only to continue on that front but take the battle elsewhere. In Iraq, ISIS has been able to split the divisions in the country between the Sunni, Shia and Kurd to establish a foothold that will be difficult to take away. There is going to be war in this region for the foreseeable future.
3. America Lost. In the movie “Patton,” the general was disappointed to learn that his arch-rival, the German General Rommel, wasn’t present when U.S. troops rolled back the enemy army in North Africa. Then his aide reminded him that Patton just defeated the troops that had been trained by Rommel. If the general defeated Rommel’s troops, he defeated Rommel. Patton beamed. So too, must the extremists’ propagandists rejoice in the fact that ISIS mowed down a military and crippled a government trained and supported by the U.S. ISIS already has begun waging a terrifying propaganda war on the web demonstrating its military prowess.[http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2014/06/19/ISIS-s-Gruesome-Iraq-Propaganda-Includes-Severed-Heads-Romantic-Music-Videos] In a part of the world where “honor” equals “power,” its stock is way up and Washington’s is way down. That is just a fact.
These are three hard truths. But they are realities that the U.S. will have to confront. They can’t be changed now.
[bold and italics emphasis mine]
James Jay Carafano, a leading expert in national security and foreign policy challenges, is The Heritage Foundation’s Vice President, Foreign and Defense Policy Studies, E. W. Richardson Fellow, and Director of the Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International Studies.
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