(Mark 10:27)
Today's Daily Brief
1. Spitzer: Sorry, Thanks, and Goodbye - CNSNews
His wife at his side, New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer, a Democrat, announced that he is resigning his office, effective on Monday. Spitzer said Lt. Gov. David Patterson requested that Spitzer wait until Monday, to ease the transition. The inquiry was triggered by a bank that noticed unusual movements of money from Spitzer's accounts.
· "I hope all New York will join my prayers for my friend David Patterson, as he embarks on his new mission. And I thank the public once again for the privilege of service." And with that last remark today, Eliot Spitzer resigned the Office of Governor of the State of New York. May we remember to pray for New York and its new governor, David Patterson. May this event lead one of our nation's original colonies, now called the State of New York, back to its founder and Savior, Jesus Christ. And, may those who Mr. Spitzer wrongly hurt over his political career and the Spitzer family themselves; be comforted, restored and saved unto Jesus Christ, their Lord and Savior. In Your Name we pray. Amen.
· "Flee sexual immorality." (1Corinthians 6: 18a NKJV)
2. Cheney Says U.S. Needs Missile Defense - Associated Press
Borrowing a theme from the presidential contest, Vice President Dick Cheney said Tuesday that the possibility of a 3 a.m. emergency call to the White House is all the more reason for the next commander in chief to follow through on President Bush's plans for a national missile defense.
As for a national missile defense system, the vice president said, "We're a lot further along than we would have been if Ronald Reagan hadn't set this in motion 25 years ago. Bush has set in motion a more modest version of Reagan's original plan. On Sunday, Cheney embarks on a trip to the Middle East, with stops in Oman, Saudi Arabia, Israel, the West Bank and Turkey.
· In the waning days of the Bush administration, may we not become complacent in our prayers for safety and wisdom for America. May our gracious Lord continue to give His guidance through those whom He chooses to minister to President Bush and Vice President Cheney. May these families and this administration turn to You, God, for help in all that they do and may Mr. Cheney be protected on his upcoming trip to potentially hostile countries. In Your Name we ask these things. Amen.
· "'For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now I will arise,' says the Lord; 'I will set him in the safety for which he yearns.'" (Psalm 12: 5 NKJV)
3. Obama Wins Mississippi Democratic Race - ABC News
With a six-week breather before the next primary, Hillary Rodham Clinton turned her attention to Pennsylvania and beyond to counter the latest in a string of victories by Barack Obama in Southern states with large black voting blocs.
· Do not stop praying for God's selection for the next President of the United States. May we continue to ask for strength in this battle just like Moses did when Aaron and Hur lifted up his arms so that Joshua could win the battle! In Your Name we pray. Amen.
· And Moses said to Joshua, 'Choose us some men and go out, fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with rod of God in my hand.' And so it was, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed; and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses' hands became heavy; so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it. And Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. So Joshua defeated Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword. And Moses built an altar and called its name, 'The Lord Is My Banner." (Exodus 17: 9, 11, 12 & 15 NKJV)
4. Foreclosure Crisis Has Ripple Effect As Stocks Boom On Fed's Bank Booster - USA Today and Associated Press
The mortgage foreclosure crisis has caused a drop in cities' revenues, a spike in crime, more homelessness and an increase in vacant properties, a survey released today by the National League of Cities shows. For example, California cities rely heavily on sales tax revenues since the 1978 passage of Proposition 13, which caps real estate taxes. Riverside, CA faces a $12 million deficit this fiscal year. Riverside Mayor Ronald Loveridge's solution: "We handle that by essentially not filling positions."
Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve promised a $200 billion booster shot for ailing markets -- and Wall Street answered with its biggest bounce in more than five years. The Dow Jones industrials shot up more than 416 points, the biggest single-day point gain since July 2002, after the Fed announced the move as part of a worldwide effort to help struggling banks and mortgage providers.
· Father of all treasures, we humbly ask You to work out for Your glory, this economic crisis for Americans apparently caused by lender greed, but more importantly, because of decisions by our national leadership to divide Israel. May America be forgiven for her election of officials who do not recognize Your providence in everything we do in every area of our lives. May America, Israel, and her allies be saved. In Your Name we pray. Amen.
· "And in that day you will say: 'O Lord, I will praise You; though You were angry with me, Your anger is turned away, and You comfort me. Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; for Yah, the Lord, is my strength and song; He also has become my salvation.'" (Isaiah 12: 1-2 NKJV)
5. U.S. Examines Laptops Seized In Ecuador Raid - Washington Times and Wall Street Journal
The Bush administration is examining the contents of a laptop computer captured in Ecuador, which reportedly documents pledges by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez to pay hundreds of millions of dollars to guerrillas fighting the Colombian government.
The laptop was captured by Colombian commandos in Ecuador during a March 1 raid, in which it killed a senior commander of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and more than a dozen FARC guerrillas. FARC is also believed responsible for the killings of five New Tribes American missionaries in the 1990's, David Mankins, Mark Rich, Rick Tenenoff, Steve Welsh and Tim Van Dyke.
· Oh Lord, you are the God of Justice and Righteousness. May Mr. Chavez and other leaders throughout the world who have gained and maintained power because of their allegiance to terrorist groups be stopped and removed by You, Gracious Lord. And Lord, You knew that these dear brothers in Christ, who were kidnapped over 10 years ago, would be martyred for Your sake. May more come to know You as their Savior because of their sacrifice, and may You continue to comfort and restore their families and the South American countries who have suffered at the hands of FARC. In Your Name we pray. Amen.
· "But with righteousness He shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, and faithfulness the belt of His waist." (Isaiah 11: 4-5 NKJV)
6. Study Finds at Least 1 in 4 US Teen Girls Has a Sexually Transmitted Disease - Associated Press
At least one in four teenage American girls has a sexually transmitted disease, suggests a first-of-its-kind federal study that startled some adolescent-health experts. Disease rates were significantly higher among black girls - nearly half had at least one STD, versus 20 percent among both whites and Mexican-Americans. Among those who admitted having sex, the rate was even more disturbing - 40 percent had an STD.
The overall STD rate among the 838 girls in the study was 26 percent, which translates to more than 3 million girls nationwide, researchers with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found. They released the results Tuesday at an STD prevention conference in Chicago.
· Dear Lord, we ask for Your forgiveness for being a nation that promotes sexuality before marriage. As we stand in repentance for having established policies that promote sex before marriage, we ask You to remove the influences of sexual perversion now oppressing our youth, and may the cruel spirit of death trying to destroy us be removed in every aspect of American life. We cry out to You to spare our youth and nation from our negligence and iniquities. May these wrongs be corrected for Your glory. In Your Name we pray. Amen
· As Job pleaded and prayed with God to release him from his death sentence, so may our youth be released from theirs. "Are not my days few? Cease! Leave me alone, that I may take a little comfort, before I go to the place from which I shall not return, to the land of darkness and the shadow of death, a land as dark as darkness itself, as the shadow of death, without any order, where even the light is like darkness." (Job 10: 20-22 NKJV)
The Middle East in Focus
This week, for all the headlines cited below, please join us in proclaiming THIS DECREE:
"It is of LORD'S [YHWH's] mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Your faithfulness. LORD is my portion, says my soul; therefore will I hope in him." (Lamentations 3:22- 24)
1. Olmert in Ashkelon: Get used to rocket fire - Ynet News
"Don't conduct yourselves as though the Grad rocket attacks were not a one-time thing; this has been Israel's reality for the past 60 years, and this demands restraint as well as strength," Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told board members of the Barzilai Medical Center in Ashkelon Tuesday.
2. Abbas agrees to resume peace talks - Jerusalem Post
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has agreed to resume peace talks with Israel without prior conditions, a senior PA official said Tuesday, even as a rocket attack on Ashkelon revived concern of renewed violence in the South.
3. Hamas: No truce unless Israel ends Gaza siege - Ha'aretz
Hamas publicly set its terms on Wednesday for a ceasefire with Israel, calling for an end to Israel Defense Forces raids in Palestinian territory and a reopening of Gaza border crossings.
Pray for the Persecuted Church
Prayers for the Persecuted Church
This week, for all the headlines cited below, please join us in proclaiming THIS DECREE:
"The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." (James 5:16)
1. EGYPT: U.S. Department Report on Human Rights - U.S. Coptic Association
According to the U.S. State Department on Human Rights in Egypt, Christians in that country face discrimination and other forms of persecution.
2. RUSSIA: Local Methodist Church Dissolved for Not Filing Report on Time - Assist News Service
In a move said reminiscent of Soviet control in Russia, the Belgorod Regional Court dissolved a Methodist congregation on February 29 for failing to file an activity report on time.
3. LEBANON: Sfeir says country near "abyss," Fadlallah blames pressure from outside - The Daily Star House Muslim Caucus Doubles (Key point) Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) is no longer the only Muslim in Congress. Yesterday, Andre Carson (D-IN), a Muslim convert, won a special election to represent Indiana's Seventh Congressional District. That's a pretty amazing development given that we are constantly being told by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and others that America is biased against Muslims in the wake of the 9/11 atrocities. While there is no religious test for public office in America, I find it disturbing that the media in Indianapolis refused to question whether or not Carson's Muslim faith would impact his views on the war against Islamofascism, Israel's right to exist, the rights of women, etc. The media did not hesitate to make an issue of Mitt Romney's Mormonism or Mike Huckabee's evangelical faith. So why did this Muslim candidate get a free ride? What are his views on Sharia law, which sees Islam and the state as inseparable? (Source: Gary Bauer; End-of-Day; March 12, 2008; excerpts)
Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Butros Sfeir voiced concern on Tuesday for the Christian community in Lebanon amid what he described as "the tragic situation the Lebanese are sinking in." "The situation in Lebanon has dragged the country to the edge of the abyss," he said during a conference on "Christian Presence" in Fatka. "We can say that disturbance in the country is due to political affairs with which ulterior motives and selfishness have interlaced." Meanwhile, senior Shiite cleric Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah said Tuesday foreign pressure was hampering solutions to Lebanese crisis. (Read more.)
House Muslim Caucus Doubles
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Bush Defends Broadcast Freedoms
Bush Defends Broadcast Freedoms
SUMMARY: President pledges to veto so-called Fairness Doctrine.
President Bush assured members of the National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) on Tuesday he will not let Congress take away their freedom to use the airwaves to spread the truth.
Congressional Democrats have threatened to reinstate the Fairness Doctrine, which was put in place by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in 1949 and later repealed. It required the nation's TV and radio broadcasters to make time for voices on both sides of controversial issues. For example, pro-life stories would need to include comments from Planned Parenthood or another pro-abortion group, if the Fairness Doctrine is reinstated.
Bush told the NRB conference it won't happen on his watch.
"The very First Amendment to our Constitution includes the freedom of speech and the freedom of religion," he said. "The Founders believed these inalienable rights were endowed to us by our Creator. They are vital to a healthy democracy, and we must never let anyone take those freedoms away.
"Some members of Congress want to reinstate a regulation that was repealed 20 years ago. It has the Orwellian name called the Fairness Doctrine. Many programs wanting to stay on the air would have to meet Washington's definition of balance.
"We know who these advocates of so-called balance really have in their sights: shows hosted by people like Rush Limbaugh or James Dobson, or many of you here today."
Rep. Mike Pence, R-Ind., is circulating a discharge petition to force a vote on the Broadcaster Freedom Act, which would prohibit the FCC from reinstating the Fairness Doctrine.
Just 24 signatures are still needed to send the bill to the House floor.
"I urge other members to join in this discharge petition," Bush said. "If Congress should ever pass any legislation that stifles your right to express your views, I'm going to veto it."
TAKE ACTION:
Check the list to see if your representative has signed the petition. If not, please ask him or her to do so, as well as support the Broadcaster Freedom Act (H.R. 2905). You can find more information through our Action Center.
(Source: Focus on the Family; CitizenLink, 3/12/08)
Bush Supports Abstinence Education
President Bush Proposes $28M Boost for Abstinence Education
President Bush's budget proposal for 2009 includes $204 million to support Community-Based Abstinence Education (CBAE) - a $28 million increase over last year's budget for the program.
U.S. Reps. Lee Terry, R-Neb., and Mike McIntyre, D- N.C., have co-signed a letter to the chairman and the ranking member of the House Appropriations Committee, urging support for CBAE funding and current guidelines
The president's proposal coincides with a new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) showing that one in four teen girls in the U.S. has a sexually transmitted infection (STI).
"With 3 million teen girls infected with STIs, safer sex in adolescents does not exist," said Linda Klepacki, sexual health analyst for Focus on the Family Action. "For the current and future health of teens, we must teach them how to have strong relationships not based on sex."
(Source: Focus on the Family; CitizenLink; 3/12/08) Convicted Murderer Jack Kevorkian Plans to Run for Congress Convicted murderer Jack Kevorkian says he's running for Congress. He told The Oakland (Mich.) Press he plans to run with no party affiliation for Michigan's 9th District seat, held by Republican Joe Knollenberg. Kevorkian is on parole after serving eight years for the second-degree murder of Thomas Youk, which aired on CBS News. He claims to have helped at least 130 people die, but has promised not to assist in any more suicides. Dave Gorcyca, the Oakland County, Mich., prosecutor whose office indicted Kevorkian, said the announcement was likely a publicity stunt. "To call attention to himself is standard protocol for Jack when he doesn't have the limelight focused on him," he told The Associated Press. "I would not consider his candidacy to be a legitimate one." (Source: CitizenLink; 3/12/08) PRAYER REQUEST: · "Let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the just." (Psalm 7:9)
"Dr. Death" Runs for Congress
Kevorkian, 79, needs 3,000 signatures by mid-July to appear on the November ballot. He plans to focus on prison reform and bringing integrity to the government, The Associated Press reported.
Dave Gorcyca, the Oakland County, Mich., prosecutor whose office indicted Kevorkian, said the announcement was likely a publicity stunt.
Pray the Mr. Gorcyca's words hold true, and that a "withering spirit" be loosed against this petition. Pray that Jack Kevorkian will come to salvation in Jesus Christ -- the One who brings us LIFE from death. In His Name, amen.
