The Bulletin Board:(Please SCROLL DOWN this page to find the article titled on this post in LARGE CAPITAL LETTERS. Thank you.)
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 PRESENT CONFLICT BETWEEN ISRAEL AND HAMAS TO END SOON BEFORE MORE INNOCENT LIVES ARE LOST ON BOTH SIDES.
PRAY FOR THE CRISIS HAPPENING NOW IN IRAQ (see post #907) Pray that allied forces will be able to drive the group ISIS back (see post #964)
Please PRAY for Dr. Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebol from Samaritan’s Purse:
Two Americans working for Samaritan’s Purse to battle the deadly Ebola virus plaguing Liberia, unfortunately have both tested positive for the this terrible virus and are fighting for their lives.
Dr. Kent Brantly, medical director for the Samaritan’s Purse care center serving the Liberian capital of Monrovia, and Nancy Writebol, part of the joint Serving In Mission/ Samaritan’s Purse team, are currently undergoing intensive treatment at an isolation center in ELWA Hospital.
Please join us by praying for both of these heroic individuals and their families at this time. For more information please visit their website at www.samaritanspurse.org. [from Crosswalk.com]
"Keeping Faith: Missionary 'Refused' to Flee Liberia" - By Heather Sells,August 06, 2014;http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2014/August/Keeping-Faith-Missionary-Refused-to-Flee-Liberia/ "The faith of David and Nancy shows a maturity that is teaching all of us," Cashwell said. "They know that God can move in at any time and heal Nancy." "But they also recognize that if God chooses to call her home, that He's going to bring a healing there as well," he added. "And that's the healing that we all hope for." .
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------"Not Everyone Happy with Religious Ambassador Pick," Caitlin Burke,July 29, 2014;
http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2014/July/Obama-Taps-Rabbi-for-Religious-Freedom-Ambassador/ "President Barack Obama's decision to nominate Rabbi David Saperstein to the post of Ambassador for International Religious Freedom is drawing mixed reactions. Saperstein has spent his career in Washington focusing on social justice and religious freedom issues as an activist in the liberal reform branch of Judaism .... An estimated 76 percent of the world's population live in countries where religious freedom is restricted. Secretary of State John Kerry said the United States must take a strong stand against those violations. "Around the world repressive governments and extremists groups have been crystal clear about what they stand against, so we have to be equally clear about what we must stand for," Kerry said. "We stand for greater freedom, for greater tolerance, greater respect, for rights of freedom of expression and freedom of conscience," he said A key development in the 2013 report is the large number of displaced members of religious communities, including entire Christian communities in Syria and Iraq that have been forced to flee their homes because of persecution."
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:
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]
/PRAYER ALERT- UKRAINE: 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!"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.
“You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.”
– Matthew 24:6
I’m not quite ready, just yet, to put on my “The End is Nigh!” sandwich board and go about street preaching in Times Square. Still, for anyone gifted with the Spirit of discernment, it’s hard to ignore the heavy stench of unparalleled spiritual warfare that hangs thick in the air. It pongs as sulfur from Old Faithful in every corner of the earth.
The world is in chaos as never before. Read the news. You see it. You feel it. You know it. Here’s the shortlist: The specter of an Ebola pandemic, jihadist genocide, the exploding conflict in Israel, Gaza and the larger Middle East, Russia, China, a nuclear Iran, the American border crisis, the collapsing global economy, sexual anarchy, child corruption, the deconstruction of marriage, the abortion holocaust, worldwide rebellion against God’s natural order and a whole lot more. It looks as though, at any moment, it might all come crashing down with universally catastrophic consequences.And it might.
The enemy of man knows that his time is short. A spirit of antichrist has come upon the world. It has come to deceive and it has come to destroy. He is the father of lies. He hates all mankind, but, mostly, he hates God’s faithful – “People of the Book,” Christians and Jews, those who have been washed, redeemed and made whole by the blood of the lamb, as well as our old-covenant brothers and sisters.
None of this is unexpected. For the Christian, “Everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of. …” (2 Timothy 3:12-14). Have we reached the end of the age? I don’t presume to know. But I do wonder.
The world has aligned against Israel. Even the United States, under the pagan governance of Barack Hussein Obama, has betrayed its once greatest ally. “When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near” (Luke 21: 20). To this end, the enemy has enlisted an unholy trinity, an Islamo-”progressive” axis of evil, consisting of Islamists, Western “progressives” and the false church (e.g., Christians-in-name-only such as the anti-Semitic, pro-abortion, pro-sexual-immorality Presbyterian Church USA).
The only explanation, as far as I can tell, as to what drives this bizarre and superficially incongruous alliance is best illustrated by the maxim: “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.” But, who is this common enemy?
Well, it, too, is signified by an alliance. It consists of Christians and Jews worldwide. It, too, is built around a shared cause. But unlike that of the Islamo-”progressive” axis, this cause intends freedom, not tyranny – representative democracy, not control. Most importantly, this Judeo-Christian cause is built upon the rock of truth given us by the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The God of the living, not the dead. The great “I Am.”
At this very moment around the globe – Gaza, Israel, Sudan, the Philippines, Syria, Iraq and elsewhere – we lay witness to a monumental jihadist uprising that seeks to impose an Islamic caliphate and Shariah law on the entire civilized world. Yet, despite this exploding campaign of mass Muslim genocide and a burgeoning anti-Christian holocaust, we likewise witness an inexplicable groundswell of anti-Semitic and anti-Christian hostility in the West.
Incredibly, we see a mass spiritual deception that has led to widespread support for Islamic terrorists, not unlike those in Iraq and Syria, who are gleefully slaughtering, by the thousands, Christians, Jews and even other Muslims perceived to pose a political threat (consider the Western left’s obtuse support for the terrorist group Hamas).
No amount of evidence, logic or reason seems sufficient to pry open the eyes of Western liberals, “moderate” Muslims and other apologists for that violent socio-political tradition called Islam. That’s because it’s spiritually, rather than cerebrally, discerned. Still, for the believer, for the true Christ follower, there is joy amid chaos. My friend John Kirkwood, a pastor and columnist from the Chicago area, addressed this phenomenon in a recent exchange he had with one of his readers.
Reader: How do you stay sane with all that’s happening in the world?
Me: I’m a Christian. The central questions are all answered for me so the peripheral distractions can’t steal my joy. Paul wrote the Epistle of Joy while under Roman house arrest and awaiting the verdict of Nero for a capital crime. Obama is a piker compared to Nero.
For the believer, life is beautiful regardless of circumstance, of others, of things or the lack of things, or even of worry. Anxiety isn’t an option for the faithful. I fail often in only recognizing the ugly, but I’m making a point not to allow the world to obstruct my view. May both my witness and my testimony become more and more redemptive.
On his death bed, Patrick Henry said, “Doctor, I wish you to observe how real and beneficial the religion of Christ is to a man about to die. … I am, however, much consoled by reflecting that the religion of Christ has, from its first appearance in the world, been attacked in vain by all the wits, philosophers, and wise ones, aided by every power of man, and its triumphs have been complete.” This is how the Christ follower, the true believer, faces death. Triumphantly.
Indeed, even as a toxic cloud of anti-Semitic, anti-Christian hate swells black and envelops our blue-green orb, those who attack – that unholy pagan trinity of Islam, “progressivism” and the false church – attack in vain. The world may, or may not, be on its deathbed. But it is terminally ill.
Yet even as I write these words, deep joy wells within. For as it is written, “You are my refuge and my shield; I have put my hope in your word” (Psalm 119:114).
Fellow believers, we are but visitors in a foreign land. Our home is elsewhere. And so we tarry in joy, even amid the chaos, so that others may join us.
[bold and italics emphasis mine]
Matt Barber is founder and editor-in chief of BarbWire.com. He is an author, columnist, cultural analyst and an attorney concentrating in constitutional law. Having retired as an undefeated heavyweight professional boxer, Matt has taken his fight from the ring to the culture war.
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 PRESENT CONFLICT BETWEEN ISRAEL AND HAMAS TO END SOON BEFORE MORE INNOCENT LIVES ARE LOST ON BOTH SIDES.
PRAY FOR THE CRISIS HAPPENING NOW IN IRAQ (see post #907) Pray that allied forces will be able to drive the group ISIS back (see post #964)
Please PRAY for Dr. Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebol from Samaritan’s Purse:
Two Americans working for Samaritan’s Purse to battle the deadly Ebola virus plaguing Liberia, unfortunately have both tested positive for the this terrible virus and are fighting for their lives.
Dr. Kent Brantly, medical director for the Samaritan’s Purse care center serving the Liberian capital of Monrovia, and Nancy Writebol, part of the joint Serving In Mission/ Samaritan’s Purse team, are currently undergoing intensive treatment at an isolation center in ELWA Hospital.
Please join us by praying for both of these heroic individuals and their families at this time. For more information please visit their website at www.samaritanspurse.org. [from Crosswalk.com]
"Keeping Faith: Missionary 'Refused' to Flee Liberia" - By Heather Sells,August 06, 2014;http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2014/August/Keeping-Faith-Missionary-Refused-to-Flee-Liberia/ "The faith of David and Nancy shows a maturity that is teaching all of us," Cashwell said. "They know that God can move in at any time and heal Nancy." "But they also recognize that if God chooses to call her home, that He's going to bring a healing there as well," he added. "And that's the healing that we all hope for." .
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------"Not Everyone Happy with Religious Ambassador Pick," Caitlin Burke,July 29, 2014;
http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2014/July/Obama-Taps-Rabbi-for-Religious-Freedom-Ambassador/ "President Barack Obama's decision to nominate Rabbi David Saperstein to the post of Ambassador for International Religious Freedom is drawing mixed reactions. Saperstein has spent his career in Washington focusing on social justice and religious freedom issues as an activist in the liberal reform branch of Judaism .... An estimated 76 percent of the world's population live in countries where religious freedom is restricted. Secretary of State John Kerry said the United States must take a strong stand against those violations. "Around the world repressive governments and extremists groups have been crystal clear about what they stand against, so we have to be equally clear about what we must stand for," Kerry said. "We stand for greater freedom, for greater tolerance, greater respect, for rights of freedom of expression and freedom of conscience," he said A key development in the 2013 report is the large number of displaced members of religious communities, including entire Christian communities in Syria and Iraq that have been forced to flee their homes because of persecution."
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:
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
*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!"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.] ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Finding Joy Amid World’s Chaos" - Matt Barber | Aug 04, 2014; http://townhall.com/columnists/mattbarber/2014/08/04/finding-joy-amid-worlds-chaos-n1874282/page/full
“You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.”
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.] ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Finding Joy Amid World’s Chaos" - Matt Barber | Aug 04, 2014; http://townhall.com/columnists/mattbarber/2014/08/04/finding-joy-amid-worlds-chaos-n1874282/page/full
"Finding Joy Amid World’s Chaos" - Matt Barber | Aug 04, 2014; http://townhall.com/columnists/mattbarber/2014/08/04/finding-joy-amid-worlds-chaos-n1874282/page/full
– Matthew 24:6
I’m not quite ready, just yet, to put on my “The End is Nigh!” sandwich board and go about street preaching in Times Square. Still, for anyone gifted with the Spirit of discernment, it’s hard to ignore the heavy stench of unparalleled spiritual warfare that hangs thick in the air. It pongs as sulfur from Old Faithful in every corner of the earth.
The world is in chaos as never before. Read the news. You see it. You feel it. You know it. Here’s the shortlist: The specter of an Ebola pandemic, jihadist genocide, the exploding conflict in Israel, Gaza and the larger Middle East, Russia, China, a nuclear Iran, the American border crisis, the collapsing global economy, sexual anarchy, child corruption, the deconstruction of marriage, the abortion holocaust, worldwide rebellion against God’s natural order and a whole lot more. It looks as though, at any moment, it might all come crashing down with universally catastrophic consequences.And it might.
The enemy of man knows that his time is short. A spirit of antichrist has come upon the world. It has come to deceive and it has come to destroy. He is the father of lies. He hates all mankind, but, mostly, he hates God’s faithful – “People of the Book,” Christians and Jews, those who have been washed, redeemed and made whole by the blood of the lamb, as well as our old-covenant brothers and sisters.
None of this is unexpected. For the Christian, “Everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of. …” (2 Timothy 3:12-14). Have we reached the end of the age? I don’t presume to know. But I do wonder.
The world has aligned against Israel. Even the United States, under the pagan governance of Barack Hussein Obama, has betrayed its once greatest ally. “When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near” (Luke 21: 20). To this end, the enemy has enlisted an unholy trinity, an Islamo-”progressive” axis of evil, consisting of Islamists, Western “progressives” and the false church (e.g., Christians-in-name-only such as the anti-Semitic, pro-abortion, pro-sexual-immorality Presbyterian Church USA).
The only explanation, as far as I can tell, as to what drives this bizarre and superficially incongruous alliance is best illustrated by the maxim: “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.” But, who is this common enemy?
Well, it, too, is signified by an alliance. It consists of Christians and Jews worldwide. It, too, is built around a shared cause. But unlike that of the Islamo-”progressive” axis, this cause intends freedom, not tyranny – representative democracy, not control. Most importantly, this Judeo-Christian cause is built upon the rock of truth given us by the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The God of the living, not the dead. The great “I Am.”
At this very moment around the globe – Gaza, Israel, Sudan, the Philippines, Syria, Iraq and elsewhere – we lay witness to a monumental jihadist uprising that seeks to impose an Islamic caliphate and Shariah law on the entire civilized world. Yet, despite this exploding campaign of mass Muslim genocide and a burgeoning anti-Christian holocaust, we likewise witness an inexplicable groundswell of anti-Semitic and anti-Christian hostility in the West.
Incredibly, we see a mass spiritual deception that has led to widespread support for Islamic terrorists, not unlike those in Iraq and Syria, who are gleefully slaughtering, by the thousands, Christians, Jews and even other Muslims perceived to pose a political threat (consider the Western left’s obtuse support for the terrorist group Hamas).
No amount of evidence, logic or reason seems sufficient to pry open the eyes of Western liberals, “moderate” Muslims and other apologists for that violent socio-political tradition called Islam. That’s because it’s spiritually, rather than cerebrally, discerned. Still, for the believer, for the true Christ follower, there is joy amid chaos. My friend John Kirkwood, a pastor and columnist from the Chicago area, addressed this phenomenon in a recent exchange he had with one of his readers.
Reader: How do you stay sane with all that’s happening in the world?
Me: I’m a Christian. The central questions are all answered for me so the peripheral distractions can’t steal my joy. Paul wrote the Epistle of Joy while under Roman house arrest and awaiting the verdict of Nero for a capital crime. Obama is a piker compared to Nero.
For the believer, life is beautiful regardless of circumstance, of others, of things or the lack of things, or even of worry. Anxiety isn’t an option for the faithful. I fail often in only recognizing the ugly, but I’m making a point not to allow the world to obstruct my view. May both my witness and my testimony become more and more redemptive.
On his death bed, Patrick Henry said, “Doctor, I wish you to observe how real and beneficial the religion of Christ is to a man about to die. … I am, however, much consoled by reflecting that the religion of Christ has, from its first appearance in the world, been attacked in vain by all the wits, philosophers, and wise ones, aided by every power of man, and its triumphs have been complete.” This is how the Christ follower, the true believer, faces death. Triumphantly.
Indeed, even as a toxic cloud of anti-Semitic, anti-Christian hate swells black and envelops our blue-green orb, those who attack – that unholy pagan trinity of Islam, “progressivism” and the false church – attack in vain. The world may, or may not, be on its deathbed. But it is terminally ill.
Yet even as I write these words, deep joy wells within. For as it is written, “You are my refuge and my shield; I have put my hope in your word” (Psalm 119:114).
Fellow believers, we are but visitors in a foreign land. Our home is elsewhere. And so we tarry in joy, even amid the chaos, so that others may join us.
[bold and italics emphasis mine]
Matt Barber is founder and editor-in chief of BarbWire.com. He is an author, columnist, cultural analyst and an attorney concentrating in constitutional law. Having retired as an undefeated heavyweight professional boxer, Matt has taken his fight from the ring to the culture war.
No comments:
Post a Comment