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)
Month of RAMADAN - Please make note that the Muslim month of Ramadam this year is 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
RAMADAN 2014 - Day # 11 Joy - "Please God, send a hot water bottle [to keep her alive], and a doll so she'll know You love her," prayed 10-year old Ruth. A neighborhood mother had died during childbirth, and she feared the same fate for the baby. Father, this precious prayer from a child is filled with trust in You. Today, fill Christians living in Muslim-dominated countries with a child-like trust and joy. from Open Doors Ramadan Prayer Guide for the Persecuted Church.
7/1 - PRAY - 3 Israeli Teens Found Murdered - PRAY esp. for the comfort of the 3 families who lost their teenage sons just discovered murdered by Islamist terrorists after being missing for almost3 weeks. PRAY that those responsible might come to know God and His mercy before they have to face His justice. PRAY that Israel will determine a just and measured response to these murders.
7/1 - PRAY - "Boko Haram Attack Christians, Burn Down Churches in Nigeria" - 7/1/2014;http://www.presidentialprayerteam.com/Prayerwatch?pw=7997 - " Islamic terrorist group Boko Haram has killed scores of worshipers and burned down four churches in a major attack on Christians in Kwada and Kautikari villages in Nigeria. As the Lord leads, please pray: For the Christians of Nigeria living in fear of the Boko Haram. 2) About the rampant rise of Islamist militancy in Africa and the Middle East.
Contact President Obama to Get Miriam Out of Sudan: http://members.opendoorsusa.org/site/MessageViewer?dlv_id=100961&em_id=70401.0
ANSWERED PRAYER! 'SCOTUS Hands Hobby Lobby an HHS Mandate Victory" - By Paul Strand, June 30, 2014; http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2014/June/CEO-Hobby-Lobby-Case-Strikes-at-Heart-of-US-Life/ WASHINGTON -- In a victory for Hobby Lobby, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that profit-seeking businesses such as the arts and crafts chain can hold religious views under federal law. ... Kristina Arriaga is executive director of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, the legal group representing the Hobby Lobby owners. She told CBN News if Hobby Lobby had lost, federal fines would have crushed them, adding that the Green family wasn't asking much of the government. "They have a terrific health care plan and all they objected to was four out of 20 FDA-mandated drugs," Arriaga said of the owners. "And the government said 'fine. You don't have to provide them and we'll fine you $1.6 million a day.' The fines would have been crushing."
ANSWERED PRAYER! "High Court Strikes Down Abortion Clinic Buffer Zones" - CBNNews.com, June 26, 2014; http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2014/June/High-Court-Voids-35-foot-Abortion-Clinic-Buffer/ - The Supreme Court handed a victory to pro-lifers Thursday.The justices unanimously struck down a 2007 Massachusetts law that created a 35-foot protest-free zone outside abortion clinics in Massachusetts. [AS I SEE IT: As one who used to pray outside of abortion clinics, this is a great decision, esp. as it was UNANIMOUS! - Stan]
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..."
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.
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.
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.]
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"Hobby Lobby and What’s Next for Religious Freedom - More Battles to Come" - By: John Stonestreet| Breakpoint.org: July 2, 2014; http://www.breakpoint.org/bpcommentaries/entry/13/25566
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.]
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So what does the Supreme Court’s decision in favor of Hobby Lobby and Conestoga Wood really mean?
No sooner had the Supreme Court’s decision in the Hobby Lobby case been announced than a narrative began to take shape in the mainstream media. In this narrative, the victory for the Green and Hahn families was a defeat for American women.In a particularly egregious example of this narrative, Senator Elizabeth Warren tweeted that she could not believe that “we live in a world where we’d even consider letting big corp[oration]s deny women access to basic care based on vague moral objections.”
While, to be fair, Warren isn’t a member of the media, her take is representative of the misrepresentation of the Court’s decision.
For instance, the “corp[oration]s” she refers to are family-owned businesses, families that include women like Barbara Green who supported the challenge to the HHS mandate.Furthermore, no one is denying anyone “basic health care.” The decisions involve a particular group of abortion-inducing drugs. In fact, as the Court noted, “the Hahns and Greens and their companies have religious reasons for providing healthcare coverage for their employees.” They didn’t need the Affordable Care Act to do the right thing by their employees.And it’s not only health care. A recent Time magazine profile of the Greens noted that the starting wage at Hobby Lobby is $15 an hour, twice the minimum wage in Oklahoma, where the company is based. And they are, as one person quoted by Time put it, practitioners of a “radical generosity.”
All of which makes talk about “vague moral objections,” well, objectionable. The same beliefs that motivate their generosity prompted them, as a last resort, to challenge the HHS mandate in court.
An especially astute take on the case was written by Emma Green of the Atlantic Monthly. After recounting the basic facts of the case and the legal issues decided by the Court, she approvingly quotes John DiIulio of the Brookings Institution who said, “Love it or loathe it, the Hobby Lobby decision is limited in scope.”
And so, even though we continue to hear that this will allow Jehovah's Witnesses to deny coverage of blood transfusions, that represents an ignorance of the decision in which that application was specifically ruled out. And it was limited in scope as to which businesses the ruling applies: closely held businesses for whom, as Time said about the Greens, “the business is the mission.” It did so in a way that explicitly foreclosed that kind of worst-case scenario bandied about by the most strident supporters of the HHS mandate.
What’s more, as Green writes, the decision doesn’t “necessarily prevent women who work at Hobby Lobby, Conestoga Wood, or other religious companies from accessing birth control through their insurance plans.” Actually, they already could before the decision: the Greens and Hahns only objected to four abortifacients of the twenty contraceptive methods listed in the HHS Mandate.What the decision means is that these families, and others like them, don’t have to pay for contraceptive methods that violate their conscience.
So for starters, we should be thankful for this decision. If HHS and the mandate’s supporters had prevailed, they would have created an entire class of people who would have to choose between following their conscience and running a business. But be clear, what the decision does is not so much advance the cause of religious liberty as it does draw a line beyond which government cannot go in a particular area, in this case, health care. And there are plenty of other battles in other areas that await us.
You know, ... Eric Metaxas thanked the Green and Hahn families for standing up against the mandate. And I'd like to add my thanks to the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, which argued the case so effectively, and to the many organizations that signed amicus briefs defending religious freedom, including Prison Fellowship Ministries.
[bold and italics emphasis mine]
GROUPS THAT DEFEND RELIGIOUS LIBERTY:
Becket Fund for Religious Liberty - http://www.becketfund.org/
Christian Legal Society - http://www.clsnet.org/
Alliance Defending Freedom - http://www.alliancedefendingfreedom.org/
American Center for Law and Justice - http://aclj.org/
RESOURCES:
"The Supreme Court Isn’t Waging a War on Women in Hobby Lobby" - Emma Green | The Atlantic | June 30, 2014; http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/06/hobby-lobby-isnt-waging-a-war-on-women/373717/
"Hobby Lobby Ruling Is a Win for Separation of Church and State" - Russell Moore | TIME | June 30, 2014; http://time.com/2942651/hobby-lobby-church-state/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+time%2Fmostemailed+%28TIME%3A+Most+Emailed+Story+of+the+Day%29
"Supreme Court Narrowly Rules for Hobby Lobby" - Bob Smietana and Ruth Moon | Christianity Today | June 30, 2014; http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2014/june-web-only/supreme-court-sides-with-hobby-lobby-in-5-4-decision-on-hea.html
"Five False Perceptions About The Hobby Lobby Case" - Ashley McGuire | The Federalist| March 25, 2014; http://thefederalist.com/2014/03/25/five-false-perceptions-about-the-hobby-lobby-case/
"What Hobby Lobby Means" - Robert George | First Things| July 1, 2014; http://www.firstthings.com/web-exclusives/2014/06/what-hobby-lobby-means
Supreme Court decision transcript - http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/13pdf/13-354_olp1.pdf
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