| Today's Daily Brief | |
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1. Bush tells Knesset U.S. "stands by Israel in war on terror" - Ynet News
"I'm honored to be here . . . America is proud to be Israel's closest ally and best friend in the world; our alliance is unbreakable," visiting US President George W. Bush told a special Knesset session held in his honor Thursday.
· Praise the Lord that our President is committed to stand as a covenantal ally with Israel. Surely, God's heart is pleased with George Bush. Pray protection over President Bush' mind that no more false counsellors will distract him into creating a two-state nation of Israel and Palestine. Pray also for protection over our President, for many will hate him for these words and commitment. Hallalujah!
· "He shall not be afraid of evil tidings; his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord." (Psalm 107:7)
2. Bush Warns Against "False Comfort of Appeasement" in Remarks to the Knesset - AP
McCain, Obama Escalate War of Words Over 'Appeasement' Remarks - Fox News The war of words over whether an American president should negotiate with sponsors of terrorism escalated Friday as John McCain took Barack Obama to task for saying earlier in the day that McCain and President Bush were engaging in fear-mongering by questioning such diplomacy.
"Senator Obama would meet unconditionally with some of the world's worst dictators and state sponsors of terrorists. I would not add to the prestige of those who support violent extremists or seek to destroy our allies," McCain said at a meeting of the National Rifle Association in Louisville, Ky. "It is reckless . . . it is reckless to suggest unconditional meetings will advance our interest," he said.
McCain was aligning himself more closely with Bush, who touched off the foreign policy firestorm Thursday when, during an address to the Israeli Knesset, he criticized politicians who would negotiate with "terrorists and radicals" and compared that approach to the appeasement of the Nazis prior to World War II . Though Bush did not name Obama, who has said he would meet with nations like Iran without preconditions, Democrats quickly accused the president of a broadside attack on their front-running presidential candidate.
· Oddly, Democrats are attacking the President for his comments on the "false comfort of appeasement" as if he had named them each personally. In referring to the historical account of what actually happened in 1939, President Bush was being quite accurate. So, we must ask, is this a case of a "tempest in a teapot" or guilt by association on the part of certain presidential candidates? Please pray that the "tempest" will die down so that our nation can deal with the problems that the Middle East is facing and so that truth will be exposed.
· "The wicked is snared by the transgression of his lips: but the just shall come out of trouble." (Proverbs 12:13)
3. Saudis: Oil Production Just Fine - AP
Saudi Arabia's leaders tell Bush they see no reason to boost oil production until customers demand it, apparently rebuffing President Bush amid soaring U.S. gasoline prices. During Bush's second personal appeal this year to King Abdullah, Saudi officials stuck to their position that they are already meeting demand, the president's national security adviser told reporters. "What they're saying to us is . . . Saudi Arabia does not have customers that are making requests for oil that they are not able to satisfy," Stephen Hadley said on a day when oil prices topped $127 a barrel, a record high.
· With all respect to the Saudis, the world is bigger than Riyadh. There are MANY OTHER sources of oil out there -- known and unknown. Offer earnest prayers that these sources be revealed, released, and available to all of us who, indeed, DO need to be paying MUCH LESS AT THE GAS PUMPS than we are now! Praise God -- He CAN and He WILL make a way . . . even when there seemeth to be no way! AMEN!
· "With God, all things all things are possible." (Matthew 19:26)
4. Fed's Direct Loans to Banks Climb to Record Level - Bloomberg
The Federal Reserve's direct loans of cash to commercial banks climbed to the highest level on record in the past week as money-losing lenders increasingly turn to the central bank for funds.
· Greed caused many of the commercial banks to make bad loans. Surely, there should be some penalty, rather than being bailed out by the Federal Reserve Board. Pray for wisdom to prevail in this situation. Pray also that money cartels do not run this country and its economy. God knows the truth.
· "Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him: fret not thyself because of him that prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass." (Psalm 37:7)
5. Aftershocks Trigger Landslides in China, Cutting Off Ravaged Areas - AP
Foreign rescue workers were allowed on the scene of a devastating earthquake in China as a strong aftershock sparked landslides Friday near the epicenter of the 7.9-magnitude temblor, again cutting off ravaged areas of central China. An aftershock rattled parts of central Sichuan province Friday afternoon, the official Xinhua News Agency said, burying vehicles on the road repaired only Thursday to take supplies into the epicenter. The number of new casualties there was unknown. Xinhua said urgent repairs reopened the road and restored mobile phone links four hours later.
· It is time to begin praying for miracles to visit the people of China. So many lives now hang in the balance over there, and miraculous intervention now seems to be their only hope. Pray!
· "With God, all things all things are possible." (Matthew 19:26)
| The Middle East in Focus | |
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The Middle East in Focus
This week, for all the headlines cited below, please join us in proclaiming THIS DECREE:
"Yet have I set My king upon My holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: LORD [YHWH] has said unto Me, You are My Son; this day have I begotten You." (Psalms 2:6-7)
1. Bush and Olmert said to have discussed U.S. strike on Iran - Ha'aretz
Sources in Jerusalem believe that the U.S. administration could carry out an operation against Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's regime over the next year, Army Radio reported on Friday.
2. Bin Laden vows to fight Israel on 60th anniversary - NewsMax
Osama bin Laden vowed in an audio tape marking Israel's 60th anniversary celebrations to continue the fight against the Jewish state and its allies and not give up an inch of Palestinian land.
3. Gaza: Bomb explodes at Christian school - Jerusalem Post
Unknown assailants detonated a bomb outside a Christian school in Gaza City before dawn Friday, causing no injuries.
4. Israeli delegation protests UN's use of term 'Nakba' - ICEJ News
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon's office is reporting that the Israeli mission to the United Nations is persuing action which would outlaw use of the term "Nakbah," the Arabic word for 'catastrophe' which Palestinians use to describe the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. Daniel Carmon of the Israeli mission to the UN has lodged a complaint about the word being used to undermine the legitimacy of the Jewish State's founding. Israel insists the word should not be used in the United Nations for official purposes. Meanwhile, Ban expressed empathy with the Palestinain people in a telephone call to Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday night.
