In This Issue• The Daily Brief
• The Middle East in Focus
• Anatomy of an Ailing Health Plan
• Abortion Will Be the Rule Without Exceptions
• Repentance: Step Nine
• The Good News Corner
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The Daily Brief - Wednesday, July 22, 2009
"And the LORD said to me, 'See, I have begun to give Sihon and his land over to you. Begin to possess it, that you may inherit his land.'" (Deut. 2:31)
"Occupy till I come. . . " (Luke 19:13)
The Daily Brief
1. Experts: Obama's 'Public Option' Insurance Will Abandon 100 Million Citizens - NewsMax.com
Up to 100 million people would lose their current healthcare plan within the next three years if Congress passes the "public option" health bill now making its way through Congress, policy experts tell Newsmax. Defections on that scale would mean the death of the health-insurance sector within five years, a leading GOP congressman says.
* As it means so much to us that God cares for us like no other, please ask Him to wake the American people up to the height and depth of the long-term damage that this administration is willing to thrust upon us. Pray that the volumes of pages in this bill mandate the reading of it, with hearings on it. First and foremost, ask that clarity surface and that time is allotted for our Senators and Congressmen to carefully consider every detail before such legislation is enacted. Prevail in the spirit for patience in these matters on the Hill, that God would be our fortress.
*Then the Lord said to me, "You have seen well, for I am ready to perform My word." They will fight against you, But they shall not prevail against you. For I am with you," says the Lord, "to deliver you." (Jeremiah 1:12,19)
2. Dems Plotting Health Bill Seek $245B for Doctors - AP
House Democrats want to give doctors a $245 billion sweetener that helps ensure their critical support for a health care overhaul bill. Next up: Trying to explain how they could do it without breaking President Barack Obama's promise that health legislation won't increase the federal deficit. Obama reiterated the pledge in a "CBS Evening News" interview Tuesday, saying: "It's got to be deficit neutral. It can't add to our deficits."
* Please pray and ask that every dollar that is or will be spent is called forward and accounted for in the overall cost of this bill. Intercede for this matter so that no man will be clever enough to hide or bury costs in the background and no "pay-offs" for tearing down the private sector will be enforced or accepted. Thank God for coming to our aid and to our rescue in this matter.
*"For thus says the Lord: 'Just as I have brought all this great calamity on this people, so I will bring on them all the good that I have promised them." (Jeremiah 32:42)
3. Abortion roils already tense health debate - Cross Action News
A coalition of anti-abortion groups is set to open a new front against Democrats' efforts to restructure American health care, claiming the plans open a back door to publicly financed abortions. The groups, which are launching a broad campaign on the issue this week, claim that existing health care proposals constitute a stealth "abortion mandate" that will spend taxpayer money on abortions and require insurance companies to cover abortions - allegations that health care reform supporters call misleading.
* Ask wisdom to prevail in standing up for what is decent and right. Thank God and ask Him to continue to protect the heart cry of these people, that the voice of the moral majority would once again ring loud and clear in this country. Decree in the spirit that this bitter battle and selfish debate will end for the sake of the innocent and the lost, and that wise council is now being heard and adhered to. Intercede that the fascination toward and the agenda of death to our children and our families is being snuffed out by wisdom, love, and truth.
* By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. (I John 3:16)
4. Bailouts could cost U.S. $23 trillion - Worthy News
A series of bailouts, bank rescues and other economic lifelines could end up costing the federal government as much as $23 trillion, the U.S. government's watchdog over the effort says - a staggering amount that is nearly double the nation's entire economic output for a year.
* As one must ask if big government is still what some Americans actually want, best or worse cases pending, please pray that our Father's plan is superseding the plans of men. Ask that the Perfect Father, from Whom all good gifts flow, would give this administration of our government the over all gift of prudence. Intercede fervently for a few good men with a few good minds to overrule the mindset of the spendthrifts and the careless, that life and financial discipline would remain.
* Do not say, "Why were the former days better than these?" For you do not inquire wisely concerning this. For wisdom is a defense as money is a defense, But the excellence of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to those who have it. (Ecclesiastes 7:10,12)
5. US state budgets hit by shrinking tax take - Worthy News
Sharply falling tax revenues across the US have left states facing fresh budget shortfalls and threatening further painful spending and service cuts following previous multiple rounds of belt-tightening.
In the first quarter of the calendar year, tax collections dropped by 11.7 per cent, the largest fall on record, according to the Rockefeller Institute of Government. Of 50 states, some 45 reported declines.
* Please pray for our individual states and ask God to show them their way back to abundance. Thank Him that, now more than ever, they are willing to comply with and enact His truths and the laws of our Constitution. Intercede for the Governors to be acutely aware at this time, watching over the branches of government that touch the very lives of the people in their states. Ask that we be reminded of and taken back to the place where State Government ran smoothly and accountability persevered.
*"Now gather the leftovers," Jesus told his disciples, "so that nothing is wasted." (John 6:12)
6. Sen. DeMint: We Have to Stop Obama's Politics - AP
An outspoken Southern Republican says it's time to "put the brakes on" President Barack Obama, saying he's advocating too much government spending and ballooning the deficit. At the same time, Sen. Jim DeMint of South Carolina refused to take back his assertion earlier that the health care overhaul Obama is pushing will be his "Waterloo." Appearing on NBC's "Today" show Wednesday, DeMint was asked if he stood by that statement. He replied, "It's not personal. We've got to stop his politics."
* As this has made big news, continue to pray that this administration will halt spending and halt hasty legislation, thereby protecting the generations to come. Pray that the heart of this matter, as Sen. DeMint has brought it to the forefront, will be addressed and dealt with, without delay. Intercede, as there is never a good time to intervene, for more mediators to be raised up, that good government policy and principles be held fast.
* If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done. (Ecclesiastes 11:4)
The Middle East in Focus
This week, for all the headlines cited below, please join us in proclaiming THIS DECREE:
For God will save Zion, and will build the cities of Judah: that they may dwell there, and have it in possession. The seed also of His servants shall inherit it: and they that love His name shall dwell therein. (Psalm 69:35-36)
1. Members of US Congress press Obama on Iran - ICEJ News
Both Democrats and Republicans in the US Congress have increased pressure on President Barak Obama to get tough on Iran, including economic sanctions on the Central Bank of Iran and other measures if the Islamic Republic fails to comply with demands to halt it's renegade nuclear program by September.
2. Evangelicals lobby for Israel in Washington - ICEJ News
Several thousand Christians are gathering in Washington this week to advocate for Israel on Capitol Hill during the annual summit of Christians United for Israel. Headed by Pastor John Hagee, CUFI has brought together Christian leaders and supporters of Israel from around the country for a three-day conference which will end with lobbying sessions in Congress on Wednesday
3. Arrow-III System to undergo advanced tests - ICEJ News
Israel's Arrow III air defense system and the Oren Adir radar system is scheduled for series of rigorous tests off the coast of California, including a simulation with an Iranian Shihab III-type missile, which theoretically can carry a nuclear warhead.
Anatomy of an Ailing Health Plan
Humorist Robert Orben once asked, "Do you ever get the feeling that the only reason we have elections is to find out if the polls were right?" He might well have been thinking about today's health care debate.
Four national polls (USAToday/Gallup, ABC News/Washington Post, CBS News and Quinnipiac University) are now showing that at least half of all Americans disapprove of President Obama's handling of health care reform. This diagnosis is striking: Although the President is appearing virtually everywhere trying to make the case for his more than $1 trillion proposal for the government to take over the American health care system, support for his plan is sinking.
Why? Because the more our friends and neighbors learn about the content and implications of what Mr. Obama is proposing, the more concerned they become. The Obama plan would erode and deplete employer-based health insurance--and instead of replacing it with personal responsibility, it would compel tens of millions of people to become dependent on Uncle Sam for their medical needs.
The people are catching on, and they're rightfully dismayed. There's a difference between public opinion, as reflected in the ups and downs of various surveys, and public judgment, as reflected in the data from multiple polls about a serious issue. When it comes to health care, that judgment is in -- and it's a big thumbs-down for government-run health care. (Family Research Council)
Abortion Will Be the Rule Without Exceptions
Experts from both sides are waking up to what we all knew already - that is without specific exclusions, forcing taxpayers to fund abortions will become the norm under the current health care plans being discussed in Congress right now. The latest admission comes from White House budget director Peter Orszag, who yesterday told Fox News Sunday that the White House is not looking to remove abortion coverage under any government plan being discussed in Congress. Mr. Orszag's comments came just two days after 20 pro-life Democrats sent a letter, headed up by Pro-Life Caucus chairman Bart Stupak (D-Mich.), to the House Democratic Leadership letting them know that the signatories "cannot support any health care reform proposal unless it explicitly excludes abortion from the scope of any government-defined or subsidized health insurance plan."
With the House health care bill (H.R. 3200) getting more and more criticism from both sides of the aisle, every single vote will be important in this debate in helping to highlight the importance of the pro-life concerns in the bill. Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) has highlighted in a letter to his colleagues the public comments of officials like President Barack Obama and pro-abortion groups, excited that the new health care plan will definitely cover abortion - unless we move to stop them.
Seventy-one percent of Americans do not want to pay for abortion nor have their employers provide health care that pays for abortion, according to a November 2008 Zogby poll. Eighty-seven percent of American adults in an April survey by The Polling Company said it is important to "make sure that healthcare professionals in America are not forced to participate in procedures and practices to which they have moral objections." Clearly, under its current form, health care legislation without specific exclusions would fund and mandate abortion coverage, trump state pro-life laws and undermine healthcare workers' conscience rights. (Family Research Council)
Repentance: Step Nine
PREPARING OUR HEARTS TO ENTER IN
Ten steps of Repentance, Redirection and Renewal in Christ
Step Nine: CULTIVATE THE QUIET TIME
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from Your presence,
And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of Your salvation,
And uphold me by Your generous Spirit.
Then I will teach transgressors Your ways,
And sinners shall be converted to You.
(Psalm 51:10-13)
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from Your presence,
And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of Your salvation,
And uphold me by Your generous Spirit.
Then I will teach transgressors Your ways,
And sinners shall be converted to You.
(Psalm 51:10-13)
Cultivate your quiet time -- preferably in the morning. We have talked about Christianizing your relationships; we come now to the central relationship, with God. When that relationship is intact, then every other relationship is toned up. If that relationship gets loose, then every other relationship goes loose with it. For the Christian, there is one responsibility and only one responsibility -- to keep in union with God. When that union with God is intact, everything flows from it.
I know of no one thing that cultivates union with God more surely and constantly than the regular practice of the Quiet Time. If I have a Quiet Time, I have a quiet heart; but if the Quiet Time goes, the quiet heart goes with it. I can take it or leave it, but this is one of life's inexorables. Close your eyes, drop into the silence of the heart, and then listen to God. He tells you how much time you can spend in the Quiet Time. Take the figure that fixes itself in your mind with a sense of approval, and start it. Pray by the clock. If it starts being mechanical, it will soon become medicinal -- it will heal your heart.
Today's teaching is drawn from a book by E. Stanley Jones, The Way, published in 1956 by Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, New York, p. 82.
The Good News Corner
Good News from Maine
Mainers are sending a strong message to their elected officials, who voted in May to redefine marriage. Needing roughly 56,000 petition signatures to place a "People's Veto" of this legislation on the November ballot, the pro-marriage coalition has exceeded all expectations by collecting over 90,000 and counting.
Pastor Bob Emrich, whom we honored with the Watchmen Pastor award a couple of years ago, is helping guide a statewide grassroots coalition to gather the signatures. Emrich and StandforMarriageMaine.com want to submit these signatures to the Secretary of State by July 31, but he had this to say: "I am finding it difficult to get people to stop collecting signatures and send me their petitions so we can get them processed." (Family Research Council)
