In This Issue• The Daily Brief
• The Middle East in Focus
• The Daily Jot
• Good News In The Gulf
• Missouri Rejects ObamaCare
• Update: Internet Gambling
• Signs and Wonders . . .
• The Good News Corner
• Worship with Us Today!
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The Daily Brief - Friday, August 6, 2010
"Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done." (Rev. 22:12) The Daily Brief
1. BP Oil Spill: 'Static Kill' Seals off Well - ABC News
Obama Says Most of Oil Is Gone
On the 107th day of the oil spill crisis in the Gulf of Mexico, the leaky well that has discharged about 200 million gallons of crude is finally sealed for good, BP and the federal government say.
- Thank You Lord for beginning the restoration of the Gulf. We ask for a quick removal of all residual oil along the shoreline and in the wildlife. We also ask that drilling not be banned, but that solid protections prevent such an occurrence again.
- "For I will restore health to you and heal you of your wounds, says the Lord." (Jeremiah 30:17a)
2. Senate Approves $600M in Emergency Spending for Border - AP
Just before leaving for its month-long summer break, the Senate agrees to add $600 million to the effort to stop the flow of illegal immigrants across the U.S.-Mexico border, using the money for things such as aerial surveillance drones and more agents.
- Offer praise to the Lord that the Senate has released these funds to secure our southern border. Pray now that these monies would be utilized correctly, so that our nation can continue to thrive under the rule of law.
- "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him." (James 1:5)
3. Top Obama Adviser Romer Bailing Out - Fox News
Christina Romer, one of President Obama's top economic advisers, plans to step down effective Sept. 3. Romer, head of the president's Council of Economic Advisers, has been one of the administration's most prominent voices on the economy, making frequent appearances on TV and at White House events to promote Obama's policies. She also was reported to have butted heads with other members of Obama's economic team, in particular Larry Summers, director of the National Economic Council.
- Pray for Ms. Romer as she transitions now into private life. Pray also that, if she has not yet found Christ as her Savior and Lord, that this will happen, and soon! Ask the LORD to raise up another in her place who will bring wise counsel to the president.
- "Arise, O LORD, let not man triumph; let the nations be judged in your presence. Strike them with terror, O LORD; let the nations know they are but men." (Psalm 9:19,20)
4. WikiLeaks Ready to Release More Docs? - Fox News
Whistle-blower website WikiLeaks posts huge encrypted file sparking concerns that the organization may be prepared to release more classified information.
- Because this is an issue in cyberspace, we go to the heavens where God also reigns. Ask Him to release His angelic host to block any communications online that would endanger the lives and safety of our troops here and overseas. Ask that the perpetrators of this crime be revealed and brought to justice. Pray!!
- "Woe to you, O destroyer, you who have not been destroyed! Woe to you, O traitor, you who have not been betrayed! When you stop destroying, you will be destroyed; when you stop betraying, you will be betrayed." (Isaiah 33:1)
5. FBI says new al-Qaida leader who is planning attacks on America lived in US - Fox News
A suspected al-Qaida operative who lived for more than 15 years in the U.S. has become chief of the terror network's global operations, the FBI says, marking the first time a leader so intimately familiar with American society has been placed in charge of planning attacks.
- Pray that all plots against our nation be thwarted and that the terrorists be found and apprehended. Pray for their souls.
- "Call together the archers against Babylon, All you who bend the bow, encamp against it all around; Let none of them escape. Repay her according to her work. According to all she has done, do to her, For she has been proud against the Lord, Against the Holy One of Israel." (Jer. 50:29)
6. Arab majority backs nuclear Iran - Washington Times
A new poll shows that the percentage of the Arab world that thinks a nuclear-armed Iran would be good for the Middle East has doubled since last year and now makes up the majority.
- We call those things that are not as though they were, through the Blood of Jesus and the power of His Word. Ask our Lord to renew the minds of those Arabs who were polled for this survey, that they begin to see the truth: a nuclear Iran is a direct threat to the safety of the nations of the world.
- So it was, whenever the ark set out, that Moses said: "Rise up, O Lord! Let your enemies be scattered, And let those who hate you flee before you." And when it rested, he said: "Return, O Lord, To the many thousands of Israel." (Numbers 10: 35,36)
7. Russia bans grain exports due to drought - AFP
Russia, the world's third wheat exporter, has banned grain exports until the year end after a record drought and fires ravaged millions of hectares (acres) amid a scorching heat wave.
- God is a God of mercy. Pray first for the people of Russia, that they will find relief from the drought they are facing. May they cry out to the LORD God Almighty for help in their time of need. As their grain is being withheld from other nations, ask our Lord to provide. He is the Bread of Life.
- "And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, "A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine." (Rev. 6:5,6)
- "I am the bread of life." (John 6:48)
8. Japan marks atomic bomb anniversary - AP
Representatives from 74 nations - including the US, for the first time - gathered to mark the moment the bomb was dropped. The Japanese city of Hiroshima is marking the 65th anniversary of the world's first atomic bomb attack.
- The bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are a sad but necessary chapter in the history of our country. Take a moment today to reflect upon the meaning of this event, and offer praise for the reconciliation that has occurred between our two nations since that time.
- "Remember, O Lord, Your tender mercies and Your lovingkindnesses, For they are from of old. Do not remember the sins of my youth nor my transgressions; According to Your mercy remember me, For your goodness sake, O Lord." (Psalm 25:7, 8)
The Middle East in Focus
This week, for all the headlines cited below, please join us in proclaiming THIS DECREE:
"And the heavens proclaim his righteousness, for God himself is judge." (Psalm 50:6)
1. Poll: 85% agree to two-state solution - Jerusalem Post
A new poll finds that 85 percent of the Arab world would agree to a two-state solution with Israel and a plurality endorse a negotiated solution, though most doubt that such an outcome will happen.
2. 'Obama misplaced trust in Netanyahu' - Jerusalem Post
A letter from a group of former intelligence professionals imploring Obama to prevent a war with Iran sharply critiqued Israel and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's policies, saying they should not be trusted.
3. Preparing for future wars - Ynet News
Israel Air Force deployments in various European states are always classified. The host country never knows what hides behind the training sessions held in its territory. Such sessions may take place in Hungary, Romania, Greece, Italy, Germany, Canada, and certainly in the US. In most cases, these training sessions do not include joint drills between Israel's Air Force and the hosting Air Force; rather, the host country provides our Air Force with a training platform for two weeks or longer.
4. West Bank demolitions lead to clashes - Jerusalem Post
The Civil Administration reportedly razed several structures in the West Bank early Thursday morning, leading to clashes between settlers and police in the area.
The Daily Jot
Being rich of soul, but poor, blind, naked and miserable
A call to action
A year and a half ago, Americans were wanting change. And they got it. Things are really messed up. We have a homosexual judge on the Supreme Court; a homosexual judge negating the vote of over 7 million people in California; the federal government owning some 60% of General Motors; the Social Security coffers in the red; Fannie Mae begging for another $1.5 billion; the President spending tens of millions of taxpayer dollars to support an abortion constitution for his cousin's Kenya; the federal government funding the Lebanese military, which is now firing on our ally Israel; Afghan war casualties at record levels; unemployment at 9.5%; and the list goes on. Things are really messed up. I guess I said that.
There was a time in America where the rule of law meant something. Now we have politicians and judges interpreting laws to mean the exact opposite of the words used to write them. How in God's name can we justify abortion, for example, using a Constitutional Amendment that protected Americans from unreasonable search and seizure (Fourth)? Well, that's the problem. God's name is in vain in this country when it comes to the modern interpretation and prosecution of the law. How ironic that God's laws were those used to form the U.S. Constitution and those very tenets of God's law are now being used to justify the very things that God's law prohibits.
I have heard the arguments that Christians ought not be involved in government--that their main objective, according to the word of God--is to spread the gospel. But we can see from experience that a withdrawal of Christian focus in governing the affairs of our nation leads to disaster. And it is also apparent that preaching the gospel is not the focus of Christianity in America, otherwise our nation would know the word of God and be doers of it. We as a church are failing. It is our fault that disastrous events hoover over our nation ready to kill, steal and destroy. The "Church", it seems, is so caught up in distractive doctrines and programs and agreements with other religions that it is by and large ineffective.
These are hard words. These, however, are hard times. We must take responsibility for our inaction. We must repent from our Laodicean ways where Jesus said in Revelation 3:15-17, "I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked..."Its high time to quit playing games with our nation; quit playing church with the word of God; and either retake our government or truly preach the gospel to every creature. We will all someday answer to the Lord.
Have a Blessed and Powerful Day!
Bill Wilson
Word of Life Ministry
www.dailyjot.com
Good News In The Gulf
Every American can feel good today that BP appears to have successfully stopped the leaking in the Deepwater Horizon well. This news is undoubtedly a big relief to BP's corporate executives. But, looking ahead, they still face billions of dollars in liabilities and years of future responsibility, as they should, for the worst oil spill in history. The New York Times reports today that, according to federal officials, nearly three-quarters of the oil "has already evaporated, dispersed, been captured or otherwise eliminated - and that much of the rest is so diluted that it does not seem to pose much additional risk of harm." Local officials demonstrated outstanding leadership, while the Obama Administration's response highlighted why every American should think twice about turning over more areas of their lives, like healthcare, to the federal government.
Bureaucratic red tape kept ships in harbor that should have been out skimming. It delayed getting boom to places that needed it. There were repeated instances of federal agencies issuing conflicting statements. We had to endure the absurd spectacle of the EPA stopping Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal from taking action because it could "hurt the environment," while we were told every day that the environment was being devastated by the oil spill.
Comparisons to the Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska were misplaced because of the climate. The Gulf heat evaporated much of the oil. Obviously more long-term studies must be done. But alarmists in the media and on the political Left who tried to exploit this spill for their own agendas (ending offshore drilling and pushing cap and trade energy taxes) are strangely silent today.
What's needed now is something BP can't do: to restore some of the lost jobs to the entire region by lifting the drilling ban. Only the president can do that. It remains to be seen whether Obama can put his socialist agenda on hold and admit he was wrong. (Gary Bauer)
Missouri Rejects ObamaCare
Three states held primary elections yesterday, but the big news today isn't about a winning candidate, but rather a losing issue. The Missouri legislature put a proposed law (Proposition C) on the ballot exempting Missouri citizens from ObamaCare's individual mandate. The measure passed overwhelmingly - 71%-to-29%. More than 938,000 votes were cast for and against Proposition C, compared to 899,000 votes cast in the Republican and Democrat senatorial primary races. In other words, more Show Me state voters turned out to vote against ObamaCare than for the candidates for U.S. Senate.
An analysis of the vote is very revealing. There were significantly more votes cast in the GOP Senate primary than in the Democrat primary, but not enough to equal Proposition C's winning total. Assuming that every Republican voter supported Proposition C, then nearly one-third of the voters in the Democrat primary must have supported Proposition C too.
The media will try to ignore it, but this was a crucial vote. Missouri is considered a political bellwether state. Since 1904, it has voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election but two. In 2008, the state split, 49.4% for John McCain to 49.3% for Barack Obama. It doesn't get much closer than that. But last night a state that was 50/50 for Obama voted 71%-to-29% against his signature legislative initiative. That's very bad news for congressional Democrats seeking reelection who voted for ObamaCare. (Gary Bauer)
Update: Internet Gambling
House Committee Approves Internet Gambling Bill
The battle is far from over, but House Financial Services Committee Chairman, Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., did succeed on July 28, 2010, in pushing his bill through to decriminalize Internet gambling in the United States. The Committee voted 41-22 in favor of passing H.R. 2267, with 13 approved amendments, despite opposition from 45 U.S. State Attorneys General and two-thirds of Americans. (Citizen Link) Read more.
Signs and Wonders . . .
Amazing Landslide in Italy!
You may have all heard about the recent landslides in Italy . But up to now I have never seen one as it was happening. Use this link and you will see a whole hillside in an Italian residential neighborhood slowly slide away taking grown trees with it.
"For the mountains may be removed and the hills may shake,
But My lovingkindness will not be removed from you,
And My covenant of peace will not be shaken,"
Says the LORD who has compassion on you." (Isaiah 54:10)
The Good News Corner:
"Humility"
[Our Good News report today is that the Bible is true, and does not lie. As we walk the walk that our Lord taught us to do, His promises will come true in our lives.
Read an excerpt below, attributed to Andrew Murray, South African Missionary, 1828-1917.]
"Perpetual quietness of heart. It is to have no trouble. It is never to be fretted or vexed, irritable or sore; to wonder at nothing that is done to me, to feel nothing done against me.
It is to be at rest when nobody praises me, and when I am blamed or despised,
it is to have a blessed home in myself where I can go in and shut the door
and kneel to my Father in secret and be at peace, as in a deep sea of calmness,
when all around and about is seeming trouble."
Worship with Us Today!
My Savior My God
By Aaron Shust
Yes, LORD!!!!
