In This Issue• The Daily Brief
• The Middle East in Focus
• The Daily Jot
• Obama and the Mosque
• Stand4Marriage
• IPT Alert #1
• IPT Alert #2
• IPT ALert #3
• The Good News Corner
• Worship with Us Today!
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The Daily Brief - Monday, August 16, 2010
". . . " the LORD alone will be exalted in that day." (Isaiah 2:11)
The Daily Brief
1. John Bolton: Russia's Loading of Nuke Fuel Into Iran Plant Means Aug. 21 Deadline for Israeli Attack - Newsmax
News that Russia will load nuclear fuel rods into an Iranian reactor has touched off a countdown to a point of no return, a deadline by which Israel would have to launch an attack on Iran's Bushehr reactor before it becomes effectively "immune" to any assault, says former Bush administration U.N. Ambassador John R. Bolton.
Once the fuel rods are loaded, Bolton told Fox News on Friday afternoon, "it makes it essentially immune from attack by Israel. Because once the rods are in the reactor an attack on the reactor risks spreading radiation in the air, and perhaps into the water of the Persian Gulf." Read more.
- Father, this is an extremely difficult decision for Prime Minister Netanyahu. We ask that You cover him with Your wisdom and courage. Whichever way this goes, lives will be lost without Your intervention. Lord, You can stop the fuel rods from being loaded, and never let them reach Iranian soil. You can destroy the Bushehr reactor. We place our trust in You for the answer that will stop the Middle East from becoming a nuclear holocaust.
- "Thus I will magnify Myself and sanctify Myself, and I will be known in the eyes of many nations. Then they will know that I am the Lord." (Ezekiel 38:23)
2. Petraeus: War strategy 'fundamentally sound' - Washington Post
Gen. David H. Petraeus says the U.S. strategy to win the nearly nine-year-old war in Afghanistan is "fundamentally sound." In a wide-ranging, hour-long interview with The Washington Post, he said he sees incipient signs of progress in parts of the volatile south, in new initiatives to create community defense forces and in nascent steps to reintegrate low-level insurgents who want to stop fighting.
For more information, go here.
B) Petraeus: No Guarantee of Afghanistan Drawdown in July 2011- Fox News
Gen. David Petraeus will not say whether U.S. troops will begin to pull out of Afghanistan next summer as President Obama pledged last year, saying any drawdown will be conditions based.
- Lord, we thank You for the wisdom You have given to General Petraeus. We ask that You download Your strategies to him, that great strides would be made in Afghanistan. We pray for the people of that region to know You as their Savior- that Your Spirit would move mightily across the region, causing all to put down their weapons of war and hearts of violence.
- "Every purpose is established by counsel; by wise counsel wage war." (Proverbs 20:18)
3. Gates to Leave Pentagon by the End of 2011 - Fox News
Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced Monday he will retire by the end of 2011, Fox News confirmed.
Gates, the only Bush holdover in President Obama's Cabinet, made the announcement in an interview conducted at the Pentagon with Foreign Policy magazine on July 12 that was published Monday.
- Lord, we ask that by the time Mr. Gates leaves office, the balance of power in Washington DC will have shifted to a more conservative level. We pray for the person who takes his place. We ask for someone who knows You, and is balanced with wisdom and understanding of military matters so that our security and strength will not be diminished.
- "Wisdom strengthens the wise more than ten rulers of the city." (Ecclesiastes 7:19)
4. WikiLeaks Founder Describes Possibility of Casualties as Acceptable Risk- Fox News
Any U.S. and allied casualties that result from the publication of classified Afghan war documents would be an acceptable risk, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange suggested Monday, saying "such information is also likely to save a great many lives."
U.S. military officials have warned about the danger posed to Afghan informants and others since Assange released 76,000 once-secret war documents. The founder of the whistleblower website says he will publish the remaining 15,000 documents within a month despite more warnings from the U.S. government.
- Lord, as this man obviously cares nothing for either the souls of men or the security of the United States, we ask that You judge his actions, and cover the people listed in these documents with Your protection.
- "Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man." (Psalm 71:4)
5. American Muslim Leaders Visit Concentration Camps to Learn About Holocaust, Pay Respects to Victims - Fox News
A group of eight American Muslim leaders have visited the Dachau and Auschwitz concentration camps to learn more about the Holocaust and to pay respects to its victims.
The excursion, which ran from August 8 through August 10, was organized by Marshall Breger, an Orthodox Jew who served as a senior White House official under Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. The trip was co-sponsored by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, a German think tank, and the Center for Interreligious Understanding, a New Jersey-based interfaith dialogue group, the Jewish Daily Forward reported.
- Father, we rejoice at this excursion to show Muslims the horror of the holocaust. We pray that Your Holy Spirit will bring truth and light to them, that the horrors they saw in this trip will provide an open door to find Your heart.
- "that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:10, 11)
6. Airliner with 131 Aboard Crashes on Landing in Colombia - AP
A Boeing 737 jetliner with 131 passengers aboard crashed as it prepared to land and broke into three pieces at a Colombian island in the Caribbean early Monday. The region's governor said it was a miracle that only one person died.
- Lord, we rejoice that You spared the lives of most of these passengers. We ask that You be with the family of the one who died, and bring comfort. May all of the survivors be visited by Your Holy Spirit, that they understand their lives are in Your hand.
- "Remember your Creator before the silver cord is loosed, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher shattered at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the well. Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it." (Ecclesiastes 12:6, 7)
7. BREAKING NEWS: Calif. Gay Marriages Blocked - Fox News
Federal appeals court blocks same-sex weddings in California while case is considered. Read more.
- Offer a chorus of PRAISE for this breaking news! Continue to petition to the High Court of Heaven that this wicked decision will be overruled permanently, so that only the will of the millions of voters in the state of California, who voted to uphold traditional marriage, would be honored. PRAY!
- "Blessed are those who keep justice, and he who does righteousness at all times! Remember me, O Lord, with the favor You have toward Your people; Oh, visit me with Your salvation." (Psalms 106:3-4)
The Middle East in Focus
This week, for all the headlines cited below, please join us in proclaiming THIS DECREE:
It shall be said to Jerusalem, "Fear thou not." (Zeph. 3:16)
1. Hamas, 10 other groups reject all forms of compromise with Israel - Ha'aretz
Eleven militant Palestinian groups based in Syria warned on Sunday against a "concession and compromise" policy ahead of a possible round of direct talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.
2. Hamas, Palestinian groups say no to direct talks - Ynet News
Hamas and 10 Damascus-based Palestinian organizations declared they oppose the resumption of direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority on Sunday. The Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front -- General Command and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine were among the groups represented in the statement.
3. Israel sees battlefield hidden in southern Lebanon - MSNBC
With tensions mounting along their shared border, Israel's military says Hezbollah is moving fighters and weapons into the villages of south Lebanon, building up a secret network of arms warehouses, bunkers and command posts in preparation for war.
4. End Israel's nuclear secrecy - Jerusalem Post
Ignoring a US warning, Arab nations urged Washington and other powers to end support of Israel's nuclear secrecy and to push Israel to allow international inspections of its program, diplomats told The Associated Press Sunday.
5. Barak approves purchase of F-35s - Jerusalem Post
Defense Minister Ehud Barak gave his approval Sunday for the purchase of the fifth-generation F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) by the Israeli Air Force from the US.
6. The Point of No Return - The Atlantic
For the Obama administration, the prospect of a nuclearized Iran is dismal to contemplate-- it would create major new national-security challenges and crush the president's dream of ending nuclear proliferation. But the view from Jerusalem is still more dire: a nuclearized Iran represents, among other things, a threat to Israel's very existence. In the gap between Washington's and Jerusalem's views of Iran lies the question: who, if anyone, will stop Iran before it goes nuclear, and how? As Washington and Jerusalem study each other intensely, here's an inside look at the strategic calculations on both sides -- and at how, if things remain on the current course, an Israeli air strike will unfold.
7. Report: Netanyahu to offer withdrawal from 90% of West Bank - Ynet News
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has prepared a "tempting" plan to be presented to the Palestinians in the direct negotiations, as part of which Israel will offer to withdraw from up to 90% of the West Bank, excluding east Jerusalem, the London-based Arabic-language al-Sharq al-Awsat newspaper reported Friday.
The Daily Jot
The False Prophets of religious freedom and submission to tyranny
Since September 11, 2001, both President George W. Bush and the man who currently occupies the Oval Office have been trying to convince Americans that Islam is a peaceful religion. Both hosted dinners either at the White House or the State Department celebrating Islamic holidays, especially Ramadan. Both attempted to extoll the virtues of Islam to the American people. Now the president has gone too far by throwing his support behind a mosque and Islamic center proposed to be built in New York near where Muslims brutally murdered 2,752 innocent American citizens. He uses the old argument of religious freedom to justify his position. It is a false argument
Given the definition of "sound religion" that was used by the Founding Fathers of this nation to build out the First Amendment, Islam would hardly qualify as a religion. Benjamin Franklin summed up the Founder's take on religion in a letter to Ezra Stiles, president of Yale University: "I believe in one God, the Creator of the universe. That he governs it by his providence. That he out to be worshipped. That the most acceptable service we render to him is in doing good to his other children. That the soul of man is immortal, and will be treated with justice in another life respecting its conduct in this. These I take to be the fundamental points in all sound religion.
Here we see that when George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Franklin and others framed up their Constitutional positions on religion, it met essentially five criteria to qualify: First, one God that created all things and who should be worshiped; Second, God has established a providential government; Third, that all people are to treat one another according to the principles of God; Fourth, the soul of man is immortal; and Fifth, will mankind will answer justly to God according to the life lived here on earth. Analyzing this criteria, which is held consistent through the Founders writings on religion, only the Judeo-Christan religion qualifies. All others, especially Islam, violate these principles in some ways.
God's law was given to Moses, and the Founders used it to fashion America's laws. There is blessing in keeping the commandments, statutes and judgments given by the LORD. They are enumerated in Deuteronomy Chapter 7. Moreover, Jesus Christ gave the true law of love for all mankind to follow. He said in 13:34, "A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another." Even Mohammed recognized Jesus as a great prophet, yet he wrote in the Koran that his god wanted all Christians and Jews killed. Building an Islamic Center near the 911 site is not about religious freedom. Its about submission to political Islam. And the Oval Office knows it.
Have a Blessed and Powerful Day!
Bill Wilson
Word of Life Ministry
www.dailyjot.com
Obama and the Mosque
The Ground Zero Mosque: Obama Divorced From Reality
A few weeks ago, I suggested that President Obama ought to state his position on the proposed Ground Zero mega-mosque. Obama was quick to condemn the planned construction of new homes in Jerusalem, but he refused to comment on "a local zoning issue" in New York City.
The American people wanted to know whether President Obama would side with the 9/11 families or an imam with a questionable background and the mosque's mystery funders. Friday night, at a White House Ramadan dinner, Barack Obama sided with the mosque organizers. That is all any voter needs to know about Obama's mindset. Below is an excerpt of the president's remarks and my analysis:
"But let me be clear: as a citizen, and as president, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as anyone else in this country. That includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and ordinances. This is America, and our commitment to religious freedom must be unshakeable. The principle that people of all faiths are welcome in this country . . . is essential to who we are." (Gary's comment)
• To be lectured by Barack Obama on religious liberty is beyond ironic. Obama is lock, stock and barrel a man of the Left. For the past 30 years, the Left has been at war with religious expression anywhere in the public square.
It has banned prayer in schools and suppressed the free speech rights of valedictorians. It has mocked "know-nothing" Americans for "clinging to their guns and religion" and put secular activists on our courts. Faithful taxpayers will be forced to pay for abortions as part of healthcare "reform," and efforts to preserve traditional marriage are denounced as "bigoted" and "mean-spirited." The modern Left has done its best to push faith into the closet.
But when the religion that birthed the 9/11 jihadists decides to build a 13-story shrine just yards away from the site of the worst terrorist attack on American soil, Obama lectures us on religious liberty. This latest decision is proof positive that Barack Obama does not understand the values and sentiments of the American people, especially while we are still at war around the world with jihadists. I believe these remarks demonstrate that Obama is irrevocably divorced from reality. The concerns of millions of Americans are underscored by the terrorist group Hamas' applause for Obama's comments.
• If the president was intent on doing this, it could have been done more wisely and in ways that championed American values. For example, after Obama finished lecturing us about America's commitment to religious liberty, he should have said the following: "Someday soon, I hope we'll see a major Muslim nation afford the same rights to Christianity and Judaism." But there was no such sentence. He is stuck in the same elitist mindset that suggests we have something to prove to Islam, when it is the opposite.
By all measures, America is a broadly Judeo-Christian nation. Yet we have no problem with religious liberty and tolerance. New York City is not lacking for mosques, but where are the cathedrals and synagogues in Mecca? If America became an 80% Muslim nation someday, would there still be religious liberty in this country? Where is the model Muslim nation today that proves Islam tolerates religious minorities? (By Gary Bauer; End-of-Day, 8/16/10; edited)
Stand4Marriage
Let the Obama Administration Know Where You Stand on Marriage
Many who support marriage and believe that it is defined as the union of one man and one woman, were shocked when Judge Vaughn Walker of the U.S. District Court in San Francisco, decided to single-handedly throw out Proposition 8, California's voter-approved constitutional amendment defining marriage.
Throughout the trial, Judge Walker revealed his bias against the amendment itself. He discarded constitutional arguments in favor of whatever "facts" were presented by opponents of marriage and also refused to recuse himself even though he is openly homosexual. His poorly-developed ruling reflects his prejudice towards both religion and marriage. The judge even states in his decision that "religious beliefs that gay and lesbian relationships are sinful or inferior to heterosexual relationships harm gays and lesbians."
As Judge Walker's decision is appealed to higher courts, another case in Massachusetts challenged the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). The Defense of Marriage Act merely defines marriage -- for federal purposes -- as being between one man and one woman, and protects states from having to change their state definitions. Not surprisingly, a liberal court in Massachusetts -- after a weak defense from the Obama Justice Department -- ruled DOMA unconstitutional. Amazingly, the federal government appears to be dragging its feet as they contemplate whether or not to EVEN APPEAL the decision! If the Department of Justice does not appeal, it is unlikely outside defenders of marriage will even be allowed to defend marriage in court.
The Department of Justice is supposed to vigorously defend statutes passed by Congress, not to roll over to appease President Obama's political base. Please sign our petition asking the Justice Department to either file an appeal or get out of the way and allow others to take up the case!
Thank you and God bless you.
Please sign the petition and insist that the U.S. Justice Department do its job and defend marriage!
Sincerely,
Tony Perkins, President
Family Research Council
IPT Alert #1
Official: Iran to build new nuke site (The Investigative Project)
Iran said Monday it will begin building a new site to enrich uranium by March, moving ahead with a plan that defies international efforts to curb its nuclear development. Enriching uranium creates fuel for nuclear power plants but, if taken to higher levels, also can produce the material for weapons. Iran's growing capacity in this process is at the center of its dispute with the international community. The U.N. Security Council already has passed four sets of sanctions against Iran to try to force it to stop enriching uranium. Last year, Iran flouted international concerns by claiming it would build 10 new enrichment plants. Monday's announcement said the locations for the sites have been determined but gave no details. (AP) Read more.
IPT Alert #2
Obama's Mosque Remarks Reverberate (The Investigative Project)
President Barack Obama's weekend remarks supporting the right to build a mosque near Ground Zero reverberated across the country, nationalizing a debate over the New York City project. A number of Republicans on Sunday folded the president's remarks into their election-year narrative that Mr. Obama, a former constitutional scholar, is out of touch with the American citizenry. The dispute over the mosque is just the most prominent in a series of debates around the country where Muslim groups have sought to build mosques. In the community of Temecula, Calif., where a proposed mosque has sparked an intense dispute, Mr. Obama's comments spurred a surge of letters to local newspapers decrying his statements. Pastor William Rench of Calvary Baptist Church, next door to the proposed mosque site, said he now expected opposition to the mosque plan to harden. (The Wall Street Journal) Read more.
IPT ALert #3
Muslim leaders to abandon plans for Ground Zero community center (The Investigative Project)
After weeks of heated debate over plans for an Islamic community center near Ground Zero - the site of the 9/11 attacks on New York - it seems Muslim leaders will soon back down, agreeing to move to a new site. The decision follows a high-profile campaign against the project that included advertisements on New York buses showing images of the burning Twin Towers, an iconic landmark razed when al-Qaida terrorists flew packed passenger planes into them in 2001. The New York Republican party is also said to be planning a hostile television campaign. Sources in New York said on Monday that Muslim religious and business leaders will announce plans to abandon the project in the next few days. (Ha'aretz) Read more.
Editorial Comment:
Please note that this community center is not the same building as the actual "Ground Zero Mosque," but was instead planned to be erected alongside the mosque. Offer praise that this building will NOT be built and ask the LORD to intervene and to BLOCK THE MOSQUE from being built, too!!
The Good News Corner
A Palestinian Terrorist Meets Christ
The Amazing Testimony of Kamal Saleem:
"A Muslim Cries out to Jesus!"
Here is the key to our conflict with Islam. Here is the solution to Islamic oppression, and to the Middle East conflict. Listen, pray, and rejoice!!!
Worship with Us Today!
"I Just Want to Be Where You Are"
Dan Moen
I just want to be with you.
