|  RNC SET TO DELIVER BIG STATEMENT ON ABORTION
In an unprecedented show of opposition to abortion, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus is delaying the start of the party's annual winter meeting so he and other committee members can join the March for Life on the Mall, The Washington Times has learned.
Mr. Priebus, a plain-spoken Greek Orthodox lawyer from Wisconsin, will join members of his party's national committee and thousands of other abortion opponents in the annual right-to-life march scheduled for Jan. 22, the anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision that declared abortion a constitutional right. Give thanks for this encouraging answer to the prayers of the many U.S. Christians who pray for "Life" and for the upcoming "March for Life" (January 22) throughout the preceding year. Some of you are reading this alert. Thank the Lord for Reince Priebus' principled stand vs. political pragmatism. Ask God to bless and vindicate his bold pro-life leadership, even within a divided political party and divided nation. Intercede that many of his fellow Republicans will likewise be convicted to "come out" strongly with a stand for "Life" for the innocent not-yet-born babies. Pray, too, for the March and the day itself: for its leaders and all participants, for those who will travel to Washington, DC to be safe and protected from harassment or physical harm. The opposition is often threatening. And where supporting Scriptures call on the Lord to destroy His enemies, Christians understand that these "enemies" are not the spiritually blind people who oppose us, but are spiritual forces of wickedness and demonic powers. "The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms; He will thrust out the enemy from before you, and will say, 'Destroy!'" (Deuteronomy 33:27) [God says] "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire [of testing], you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you." (Isaiah 43:2) |
 NSA WIL NOT SAY WHETHER IT SPIES ON CONGRESS Congress is just like everyone else. That's the message the National Security Agency has for Sen. Bernie Sanders.
The independent senator from Vermont sent a letter to the agency Friday, asking whether it has or is "spying" on members of Congress and other elected American officials.
The NSA provided a preliminary response Saturday that said Congress has "the same privacy protections as all U.S. persons." We are praying here for the emergence of Truth. The following quote is not from the Bible, but the poet spoke truth when he wrote, "Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive." The "practice to deceive" is rampant across our nation, and many high-ranking political leaders are leading the way. Cheating, scandal, and deception abound on all sides and in all branches of our government. One cover-up leads to the next, until systematic lying or withholding of truth becomes the order of the day. The Framers' ideal of balance of powers and intra-branch accountability seems hopelessly outdated. How desperately the nation needs a resurgence of truth, moral uprightness, and integrity at all levels. Pray for the Church to awaken as well. It strays from truth by sending an "easy grace" message that obscures the claims of Jesus Christ and compromises the cost of discipleship and holy living. Interceding effectively requires courage and honest introspection. Let us ask God to move by His Spirit with transforming revival, even to the discomfort of our own plans and desire for peace and security. "Come, Holy Spirit, and once again shake everything than can be shaken. Rend the heavens and come down. Visit our nation with Your salvation. We ask You for extended mercy and the grace to repent." Righteous people can repent on behalf of an unrighteous nation. "Oh, that You would rend the heavens! That You would come down! That the mountains might shake at Your presence-as fire burns brushwood, as fire causes water to boil-to make Your name known to Your adversaries, that the nations may tremble at Your presence! When You did awesome things for which we did not look, You came down; the mountains shook at Your presence." (Isaiah 64:1-4) "He who speaks truth declares righteousness, but a false witness, deceit. There is one who speaks like the piercings of a sword, but the tongue of the wise promotes health. The truthful lip shall be established forever, but a lying tongue is but for a moment. Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evil, but counselors of peace have joy. No grave trouble will overtake the righteous, but the wicked shall be filled with evil. Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord, but those who deal truthfully are His delight." (Proverbs 12:17-22) "Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. For our God is a consuming fire." (Hebrews 12:28) 
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|  SUING OVER OBAMACARE EXEMPTIONS FOR CONGRESS If the president wants to change the health-care law, he must ask Congress to do it.
On Monday, Jan. 6, I am filing suit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin to make Congress live by the letter of the health-care law it imposed on the rest of America. By arranging for me and other members of Congress and their staffs to receive benefits intentionally ruled out by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the administration has exceeded its legal authority. Give thanks for Sen. Ron Johnson's attempt to legally address the logjam that characterizes the healthcare law known as Obamacare. Whether we agree with the senator's political philosophy or not, all concerned Christian citizens and intercessors can petition God to bring "truth in the inward parts." Almost all analysts agree that the law is out of control, and news reports make it clear that most members of Congress fear facing voters' wrath and legitimate charges of hypocrisy and cronyism in an election year. Let us pray for divine restraint on government structures (e.g., the health care law) that are steeped in lies and confusion. Nothing brings division to our nation more quickly or decisively than for elected officials to turn themselves into a ruling class, immune from the laws they sponsor and pass. Let us pray accordingly. These themes will continue into the new year ahead of us. Let us be much in prayer. In a constitutional republic, which Americans have in theory, leaders are elected to serve and represent, not to rule and be "above" the citizenry.
"These six things the Lord hates, yes, seven are an abomination to Him: A proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that are swift in running to evil, a false witness who speaks lies, and one who sows discord among brethren." (Proverbs 6:16-19)
"Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, and in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom." (Psalm 51:6) |
|  RISE OF THE EXORCISTS IN CATHOLIC CHURCH Forty years after The Exorcist scared the wits out of cinema audiences around the world, the Roman Catholic Church is training up a new generation of priests to meet a growing demand for exorcisms.
Dioceses across Italy, as well as in countries such as Spain, are increasing the number of priests schooled in administering the rite of exorcism, fabled to rid people of possession by the Devil. Despite widespread denial, Bible-believing people know that Satan (the devil) is real, as are demonic forces. Jesus recognized demons as having will and intelligence. He had authority over them and when He demanded they stop their torment and leave their victims, in every case they were compelled to obey His commands. The apostles and early disciples were given similar authority in His name, and the demons knew whom they had to obey and who were bogus, without divine anointing or spiritual credentials (see Scripture below). Today, demonic activity persists, and there are those servants of Christ who are able to minister effectively to demon-oppressed people who may have physical and/or emotional symptoms that manifest as diseases. Give thanks for a reawakening to these spiritual realities, and pray that such ministry to the oppressed be approached soberly, reverently, in faith, and in the fear of God. Genuine exorcism or deliverance ministry, when properly given, will always be done by Christian believers in the authority of Jesus' name and for the glory of God. "Now in the synagogue there was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon. And he cried out with a loud voice, saying, 'Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are-the Holy One of God!' But Jesus rebuked him, saying, 'Be quiet, and come out of him!' And when the demon had thrown him in their midst, it came out of him and did not hurt him." (Luke 4:33-35) "Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them. Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, 'Weexorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.' Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so. And the evil spirit answered and said, 'Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?' Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified." (Acts 19:11-17) |
|  A CENTURY OF BLACK AMERICAN ISLAM The year 2013 marks the centenary of the reported founding of the Canaanite Temple in Newark, N.J. That was the very earliest form of an indigenous black American Islam, one completely distinct from normative Islam, the 1,400-year-old religion from Arabia founded by Muhammad. From this movement came Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm X and Louis Farrakhan.
The century divides into two main eras: inventing a new religion (1913-1975) and moving toward normative Islam (1975-2013). When Jesus was on earth teaching, preaching, and healing the sick, He was moved with great compassion, seeing the multitude of people weary and scattered like sheep without a shepherd. Similarly, let us see people-regardless of their religion or of no religion-as needing the peace, security, and inner balance that only He can bring to the human experience. We follow His example through prayer and evangelistic witness, treating all people with respect on the basis that all are made in the image of God; but also knowing that image in us all is tainted and distorted by sin. From the Christian perspective, all pathways do not lead to God or to heaven, which makes true Christianity both inclusive and exclusive. This article reminds Christians that only the Gospel of Jesus Christ can save men and women from their sins and from the wrath of God that will bring eternal judgment apart from His salvation. In this regard, Christianity is exclusive, in that there is only one way. But the invitation is inclusive, calling "whosoever will" to come and find forgiveness of sin and peace with God through Christ. Let us pray for a resurgence of a powerful Christian witness in our nation. Faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior results in changed lives and turning from hostilities toward others, whether they become believers or not. "But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, 'The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few.Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.'" (Matt. 9:36-38) "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.For My yoke is easy and My burden is light." (Matt. 11:28-30) |
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COURT PUTS UTAH HOMOSEXUAL MARRIAGE ON HOLD The Supreme Court has put homosexual marriages on hold in Utah, at least while a federal appeals court more fully considers the issue.
The court issued a brief order Monday blocking any new homosexual unions in the state.
The order follows an emergency appeal by the state following the Dec. 20 ruling by U.S. District Judge Robert Shelby that the state's ban on homosexual marriage violates gay and lesbian couples' constitutional rights. We have several prayer points. 1) Evangelical Christians can respect and learn from the Mormon solidarity in Utah that creates a state-sanctioned ban on homosexual "marriage" at least for the near future. Pray for renewed unity and for reconnections within the larger Christian Church, to set a similar example and support a united cause represented by this challenge to a biblical lifestyle; 2) Pray for renewal and spiritual awakening in our nation through sweeping revival, where God shows His power while extending His mercy for a nation to return to its roots in God's Word and in practical righteousness; and 3) Pray for the Supreme Court, for Chief Justice John Roberts, and for the associate justices by name, for salvation to come to those who do not know the true and living God, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. In several pending cases, we will intercede much this year, asking God to intervene, to restrain, and to sovereignly uphold righteous causes and restrain from wrong decisions. "Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people." (Proverbs 14:34) "Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus ..." (1 Timothy 2:1-5 |
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