Capitol Hill Prayer Partners
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The Daily Brief Thursday, April 25, 2013
Anyone who goes through me will be cared for-will freely go in and out, and find pasture. A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of. (John 10:10 Message Bible)
Guidelines for today's American Prayer Initiative can be found by going here.
Today's Daily Jot can be found by going to: www.dailyjot.com or by using
this link.
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The Daily Brief
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The Boston Marathon bombing suspects had Times Square in their sights before law enforcement authorities put an end to their bloody terror spree, according New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Read more.
[ > > > See our additional note, below. Headline #9]
- Offer praise to the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords for this GOOD REPORT.
Praise God!
- "The LORD is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous." (Proverbs 15:29)
2. 'I saw her eyes': Mom dons burqa, rescues kidnapped son in Egypt - Fox News
Through the slit of the burqa she wore to blend in on the streets of Alexandria, Egypt, Kalli Atteya waited and watched until the boy climbed off the school bus. When she saw him, she moved quickly, grabbing his arm and steering him toward the waiting motorized cart.
"Get in," she said to the 12-year-old, who recognized his mother's piercing blue eyes and obeyed wordlessly.
Soon, they were speeding toward a safehouse where they would wait for three weeks before returning to the U.S., and ending a 20-month ordeal that began with another abduction - one the boy, Khalil Mohamed "Niko" Atteya, did not accept willingly. His father, Mohamed Atteya, who is wanted by the U.S. authorities, is accused of luring the mother and son to his homeland, then snatching the boy and leaving Kalli Atteya and her sister on the side of a desolate road between Cairo and Port Said on Aug. 1, 2011.
- Thank You, Father, for this courageous action on the part of a mother. We ask that You protect this woman from retribution, and move mightily on her behalf to bring salvation and freedom to her and the lives of her family.
- "For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved." [John 3:17]
3. New rain could mean worse flooding in drenched Midwest - CBS News
Communities along the Mississippi River and other Midwestern waterways eyed and in some cases fortified makeshift levees holding back floodwaters that meteorologists said could worsen or be prolonged by looming storms.
- Lord, we ask for mercy and comfort for the people of the Midwest at this difficult time.
- "Let Your merciful kindness be for my comfort" [Psalm 119:76a]
4. Obama backs out of Planned Parenthood keynote address - Washington Times
President Obama has canceled plans to deliver a keynote address at Planned Parenthood's annual fundraising dinner Thursday night, citing a desire to spend more time with family of the victims of the fertilizer plant explosion in Texas.
- Thank You, Lord that Mr Obama backed out of this address in favor of something else, even if we are all aware that there is an agenda of a personal nature involved. We ask that You use his desire to manipulate things to bring him to the Kingdom of God.
- "A man shall not be established by wickedness; but the root of the righteous shall not be moved." [Proverbs 12:3]
5. Boston Bomber Received Welfare Benefits - Boston Herald
Marathon bombings mastermind Tamerlan Tsarnaev was living on taxpayer-funded state welfare benefits even as he was delving deep into the world of radical anti-American Islamism, the Herald has learned.
- Lord, this news is infuriating to law abiding citizens. We pray that You will find a way to block people who are on the terror watch list from receiving tax-payer benefits.
- "The wicked are overthrown, and are not: but the house of the righteous shall stand." [Proverbs 12:7]
6. Pentagon Blocks Access to Southern Baptist Website- Fox News
The U.S. Military has blocked access to the Southern Baptist Convention's website on an unknown number of military bases because it contains "hostile content" - just weeks after an Army briefing labeled Evangelical Christians and Roman Catholics as examples of religious extremism, Fox News has learned.
- Lord, how far America has fallen away from You! We bow before Your throne and plead for mercy and forgiveness, as well as protection against the raging liberal hostility toward Your people.
- "All kings shall fall down before Him: all nations shall serve Him. For He shall deliver the needy when he cries; the poor also, and him that has no helper." [Psalm 72:11,12]
7. Internet sales tax bill divides Republicans, vote looms in Senate- Fox News
After holding firm against virtually any kind of tax increase, some congressional Republicans have found one that doesn't make them cringe.
A contentious bill which could come for a final vote in the Senate as early as Thursday would empower states to make online retailers collect sales taxes for purchases made over the Internet. Though it would likely face more resistance in the House, where the anti-tax creed is more pronounced, a number of Senate Republicans -- and Republican governors -- are supporting the bill.
Read more:
- Lord, as the government encroaches even further into the internet, we pray that You will block every attempt to move further into control.
-"I wait for the lord, my soul waits, and in His Word I do hope." [Psalm 130:5]
8. Possible radioactive traces found from North Korea nuclear test - Reuters
Radioactive gases that could have come from North Korea's nuclear test in February have unexpectedly been detected, a global monitoring body said on Tuesday, possibly providing the first "smoking gun" evidence of the explosion.
- Father, the leader of North Korea is even more unstable than his father, and we pray that the world will use this evidence against him. We bind the power-hungry demonic forces influencing Kim Jong Un, and plead the Blood of Jesus against them. We pray that you pursue him and drive him to his knees, or remove him from office.
- "The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar; and he was driven from men" [Daniel 4:33a]
9. Update: 2 Men Arrested In Thwarted Canadian Train Terror Plot
- CBS News/New York/AP
Train was headed for Penn Station, New York City
Police in Canada have foiled a chilling terror plot against a passenger train. . . Canadian authorities would not comment on the specific train or route involved. Amtrak currently operates service from New York Penn Station to Montreal and Toronto in coordination with Canada's VIA service.
U.S. Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.), chairman of the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Counterintelligence & Terrorism, released a statement Monday afternoon.
"I commend our Canadian counterterrorism partners, particularly the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, for their efforts in stopping a major terrorist plot which was intended to cause significant loss of human life, including New Yorkers," King said. (Read more)
- Offer praise that, for now, the cities of Boston and New York have been spared from worse terror attacks. Many intercessors are now concerned that Washington, D.C. may be next in the cross hairs of al Qaeda terrorists.
Pray in particular over the shopping malls and the Metro system in Washington, D.C.; and over all public events that are planned to take place in our nation's capital in coming days. Thank the Lord that, as we pray Psalm 91 over our city, the Blood of Jesus Christ will NEUTRALIZE the plans of any terrorist cells that have been activated against us. Pray!
- "The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth." (Psalm 145:18)
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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:
"Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession." (Psalms 2:8)
1. IAF shoots down hostile drone from Lebanon off Haifa - JPost
The Israeli Air Force shot down a drone over the Mediterranean Sea on Thursday off the coast of Haifa which had flown south from Lebanon. Shortly after 1 p.m. on Thursday the Israeli Air Force identified a drone flying in Lebanese airspace south towards Israel. The drone was flying along the coast line.-Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Thursday said that "Israel is prepared to deal with any threat posed from Syria or Lebanon in the air, land or sea."
2. Swedish Knight walks to Jerusalem - Israel Today
The modern-day knight also explained that the previous year, his order had, after hundreds of years in exile, moved its headquarters back from France to Jerusalem. "Accordingly, in my desire to commemorate our return to the Holy City, I decided to walk to Jerusalem."
3. A second Passover for those who missed the first - Israel Today
Some Israelis today marked the less-recognized "second Passover" prescribed in the Bible for those who could not mark the festival on its appointed day due to ceremonial uncleanliness.
4. Kerry compares Israeli military to terrorists - Israel Today
While visiting Turkey on Monday, US Secretary of State John Kerry compared the deaths of nine Turkish nationals in the 2010 Gaza flotilla raid to those killed in the recent Boston Marathon bombing. By extension, Kerry was comparing the Israeli military to terrorists.
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The Persecuted Church
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Today's Focus: The Persecuted Church
"And now, Lord, take note of their threats, and grant that Your bond-servants may speak Your word with all confidence . . ." (Acts 4:29)
1. Christian Activist in Vietnam Blocked from Meeting U.S. Officials - Christian Solidarity Worldwide
Christian lawyer and human rights defender Nguyen Van Dai has spoken out about being barred from meeting with US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, Dan Baer on 13 April 2013, when he visited Vietnam for the 17th US-Vietnam Human Rights Dialogue.
Deputy Assistant Secretary Baer was able to meet with a number of human rights defenders during his visit, including lawyers, bloggers and advocates. He was also able to meet with some religious leaders. In a statement, the US Embassy, Hanoi said: "While Mr. Baer was able to meet well-known activist Father Nguyen Van Ly in prison, we were troubled that authorities prevented a private meeting with activists Nguyen Van Dai and Dr. Pham Hong Son as planned."
The US Embassy in Hanoi sent Mr. Dai an invitation to meet with Deputy Assistant Secretary Baer, but Mr. Dai says that on Friday 12 April, a security officer phoned him and told him not to go to the Metropol Hotel for the meeting. Mr. Dai then relayed this order to the Embassy, who confirmed that the deputy minister of the Vietnamese Public Security Ministry had agreed that Mr. Baer could meet any Vietnamese citizen.
2. Christian Pastor Suffers More Abuse in Iran's Evin Prison - WND
Lawyers defending an American pastor jailed by the Islamic regime in Iran say there have been more beatings and little medical treatment available.
Saeed Abedini is locked up Iran's notorious Evin Prison.
Jordan Sekulow, executive director of the American Center for Law and Justice, said Abedini's physical condition is worsening amid continued beatings from prison guards.
"Following a brief visit from family members today, we have learned Pastor Saeed continues to suffer from the effects of a brutal beating one week ago and continues to be denied medical care," Sekulow said.
Reports also indicate Abedini is experiencing extreme physical fatigue and attacks of fainting and physical weakness.
3. Christian Leaders Cautions Against Granting Boko Haram Amnesty- allAfrica
The Nigerian cleric urged the government to compensate victims of insurgents' attacks.
The National President of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), Felix Omobude, has advised President Goodluck Jonathan to apply caution in granting amnesty to the Boko Haram sect.
Mr. Omobude's advice is contained in a press statement made available to newsmen on Wednesday in Benin.
He said "in as much as the PFN recognises Federal Government's right in granting amnesty to any group or individuals, it should not send out a wrong signal of encouraging criminality."
He, however, cautioned against creating the impression in the international community that Nigeria is a lawless country.
For more news about the Persecuted Church, and how you can be more involved in intercession for these precious saints, go here.
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The Madison Report
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The Madison Report
www.MadisonProject.com
THE MADISONIAN
Internet Sales Tax
Why would Republicans want to facilitate sales taxes on internet purchases? We'll find out this week. Harry Reid plans to bring the so-called Market Fairness Act (S.743) to the floor late today and work on it throughout the rest of the week. The bill would essentially allow states to join together to force online retailers to collect sales taxes on behalf of all 50 states based on the location of the shipping address. If you think Republicans in the Senate would never support it, think again. This bill already passed the Senate last month by 75-24, with the support of 26 Republicans. At the time, it was a non-binding amendment to the annual budget resolution. This time it's for real. Although the bill never went through regular order and a markup in the Finance Committee, Harry Reid will push for a cloture vote later today to proceed with debate. (This vote has already passed; dated Monday, 4/22/13)
Conservative concerns:
- Taxation without representation: The idea that states could collect sales taxes from companies in other states is an anathema to the founding ideals of our country.
- Hurting federalism and low-tax states: While brick and mortar stores are forced to collect taxes from everyone, they are only subject to the tax of their home state. So if they are located in a state with no sales tax or a low tax they collect the lower tax, even if the customer is from a high tax state. Under the MFA, online vendors in a state like New Hampshire would still have to collect the high rate of taxes of customers from California. So red-state companies will have to serve as tax collector for high-taxed blue states, thereby obviating the benefit of being in a red state and blurring the effectiveness of laboratories of democracy.
- Onerous Burden: This bill would encumber online businesses with the technicalities of establishing a tax collection system that would satisfy nearly 10,000 unique tax jurisdictions in this country? That is a recipe for killing jobs and raising the cost of goods. It's for good reason that in 1992 the Supreme Court referred to such a scheme as a "burden" and violation of due process.
- National Sales Tax: Collection, enforcement, and reciprocity of this tax would be so complicated that it would engender yet another fix in the endless cycle of government incompetence. The only way to effectively collect it would be with a uniform national sales tax. There is no question that the MFA would be the easiest way for liberals to leverage their much sought-after national sales tax - an entirely new revenue stream.
- This is a tax increase: More broadly, why would we ever push for new revenue and a new stream of taxation that will totally disrupt e-commerce? Let's find ways to lower the tax burden on brick and mortar stores instead of raising them on online vendors.
The internet is the most successful invention known to man. Why? Because it is the freest venue of information dissemination in the world, unencumbered by government. We need to keep it that way. The bill is being heavily pushed by Walmart and Amazon, which stand to benefit from such a cumbersome regulatory tax system that disproportionately hurts small online retailers. It is also being pushed by state and local governments who are hungry for the new revenue to grow government, but lack the fortitude to ask for the revenue through new direct taxes or simply enforce collection of use taxes that already exist in most states.
Please call the 26 Republicans who voted for this tax increase several weeks ago, and let them know that you will not tolerate another tax increase on top of the one already passed earlier this year. This bill will likely pass the Senate; we must begin forming a firewall against it in the House.
UPDATE:
On Wednesday, the bill passed a test vote in the Senate, 74 to 23, with 27 Republicans voting in favor. Senators were trying to work out agreements Thursday on potential amendments and the timing of a final vote.
If they can't reach agreement to vote earlier, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said, the Senate will vote Friday morning to end the debate. The Senate is scheduled to go on vacation next week, and Reid vowed Thursday to pass the bill before senators leave town. (AP; Reported by MercuryNews.com; San Jose, CA)
Read more.
> > > There is still time to take action on this bill. Call your senators today, or first thing tomorrow, and let your voices -- and your votes -- be heard on the passage of the Internet Sales Tax Bill. Thank you.
- "Your people shall be volunteers In the day of Your power . ."
(Psalm 110:3)
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The Daily Jot
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America's enemy, The White House?
With the events since Mr. Obama rose to power an appropriate question may well be, "Is this White House purposely trying to destroy America?" Given the overwhelming number of socialists and Islamists that have been appointed to positions in this administration, it becomes a legitimate question. Then to see what would appear almost unbelievable policies playing out in real time, the question becomes not only legitimate, but necessary. From disarmament to abolishing marriage, to selling guns to drug cartels, to refusing to enforce border security to funding The Muslim Brotherhood and al Qaeda, this White House appears bent on remaking America into un-America. And there is more.
On the heels of a report by five Congressional committees that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton lied under oath about reducing security levels prior to the terrorist attacks in Benghazi; that the president and his administration "perpetuated a deliberately misleading and incomplete narrative that the violence grew out of a demonstration caused by a YouTube video," and undermined the ability of the US government to bring the perpetrators to justice, we have yet another catastrophe where this Administration appears to be complicit--the Boston bombing. News reports abound that the FBI was well aware of the two boys accused of setting off the bombs. Now there is more evidence this Administration had prior knowledge.
The Boston Globe reports "In a closed briefing on Tuesday, members of the Senate Intelligence Committee learned that Russia alerted the United States about Tsarnaev in "multiple contacts''--including "at least once since October 2011,'' said Richard Burr, a Republican of North Carolina...Senators said the briefing also revealed failures among federal agencies to share vital information about Tsarnaev, indicating, they said, that the US government still has not established a strong system to "connect the dots'' about would-be terrorists residing in America more than a decade after 9/11." With all the laws that have been passed and all the rights Americans have given up so national security and law enforcement must work together, this is unimaginable, unless it is directed.
Moreover, The Blaze reports and has posted pictures of the First Lady talking with Abdul Rahman Alharbi--the Saudi national that was originally a person of interest in the Boston bombing, has been on the terrorist no fly list, and has or is being deported after Obama met with the Saudi foreign minister. It appears that she is wearing the same dress that she wore during hospital visits in Boston last week.
What is the connection between the White House and these terrorists? Why didn't the administration heed warnings from Russia? What is going on with the FBI? Ephesians 4:25 instructs: "Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbor; for we are members of one another." We need to demand truth, and speak it to one another.
Have A Blessed And Powerful Day,
Bill Wilson
www.dailyjot.com
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Did the White House Drop the Ball?
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Did Obama Administration Drop The Ball? Does The Sun Rise In The East?
After a briefing yesterday on the Boston Marathon bombings for members of the Senate Intelligence Committee, the committee's ranking member, Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-GA), said:
"There now appears that there may have been some evidence that was obtained by one of the law enforcement agencies that did not get shared in a way that it could have been. . .
"Information sharing between agencies is critical. . . we're going to get to the bottom of whether or not somebody along the way dropped the ball on some information and did not share it in a way that it should have been shared."
Chambliss may well be right. The Boston Globe is reporting, "Russian authorities alerted the US government not once but 'multiple' times over their concerns about Tamerlan Tsarnaev." Reuters tells us that Tamerlan's name was included on the government's "highly classified central database of people it views as potential terrorists." Five years of Obama has taken us back to a pre-9/11 mindset in which agencies do not share information.
Meanwhile we are learning a bit more about the bombers and their motivation. They hated America so much they wanted to kill as many innocent Bostonians as possible, and they were also collecting state welfare benefits! The cover of today's Boston Herald reads: "What Nerve -- Mastermind of Boston Terror Hated us. But Took Our Money." Of course they took our money. Why not use the infidel taxpayer to subsidize your jihad?
And while some in America are struggling to comprehend the jihadists' motivation, their mother's comments to CNN are quite revealing:
"My oldest son is killed, so I don't care. I don't care if my youngest son is going to be killed today. I want the world to hear this. And, I don't care if I am going to get killed too. And I will say 'Allahu Akbar!'"
All week she has denied her sons could ever do what they are charged with. Now her own Islamist bile is on display.
By the way, we have been warning for a long time that the problem with radical Islam is more widespread than some people will admit. There are big problems right here in the Washington, D.C. area. Several years ago, a local Islamic school valedictorian was arrested and convicted of plotting to assassinate former President George W. Bush.
Now police in Fairfax County, Virginia are investigating an individual spouting radical Islamic rants who has been trolling a website called the Fairfax Underground making what police have called "disturbing statements." Last week he threatened a massacre at Paul VI Catholic high school and closed the threat with "Allahu Akbar!" (Gary Bauer)
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Update: Benghazi Report
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House Report Blasts Hillary On Benghazi
House Republicans released a preliminary report on the terrorist attacks against our consulate in Benghazi, Libya. The report is a conglomeration of findings from five House committees that have been investigating the attacks. The report has three main conclusions: Hillary misled Congress, there was a cover-up and the Obama White House misled the American people. You can read more here.
The report is a good start. But at this stage I believe it makes more sense to combine and continue the work of the five committees into a single Watergate-style select committee on Benghazi.
Rep. Frank Wolf (R-VA) has introduced a resolution calling for the creation of such a committee specifically empowered to thoroughly investigate the Benghazi attacks. One hundred-twenty House Republicans have co-sponsored his resolution, and the idea is also supported by hundreds of retired Special Operations officers. (See below) [Gary Bauer]
700 Retired Military Special Ops Tell Congress to Form Select Committee on Benghazi
"It appears that many of the facts and details surrounding the terrorist attack which resulted in four American deaths and an undetermined number of American casualties have not yet been ascertained by previous hearings and inquiries," the letter states. It continues further, "Additional information is now slowly surfacing in the media, which makes a comprehensive bipartisan inquiry an imperative. Many questions have not been answered thus far." The letter puts forth over twenty unanswered questions the select committee should address.
Congressman Frank Wolf (R-VA), a sub-committee chairman on the House Appropriations Committee, issued a resolution for a House Select Committee to investigate issues surrounding the Benghazi Attack last November in the 112th Congress. He re-issued his resolution for the select committee when the 113th Congress began. The resolution currently has over 60 co-sponsors.
Only Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) can appoint a Select Committee and Boehner appears to mainly rely on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence to investigate the Benghazi attack. However, any information that may be garnered from that committee will, as always, remain classified.
"As a retired Special Operations officer who spent most of my thirty-six years preparing for and executing rescue missions to save fellow Americans, I am deeply troubled by the events in Benghazi on September 11, 2012. The men and women who I served with lived by an ethos that pledged to never leave a fallen comrade and to make every effort to respond when a fellow American was threatened. I have seen men take great risks to save a fellow warrior. I have even seen men die trying to do so," wrote General William G. 'Jerry' Boykin in a statement to Breitbart News.
Boykin added, "The lack of accountability regarding the Benghazi event disturbs me greatly and bears the earmarks of a cover up. America is entitled to a full accounting of this egregious attack on our people with some explanation as to why there was no effort to save the Americans in the US Embassy annex and the CIA station, or at least to recover their bodies before they fell into Libyan hands. Our Congress has yet to fulfill its responsibility to provide a complete analysis of the attack or to provide answers as to what exactly happened. A bi-partisan Special Committee is needed to determine the truth about Benghazi." (Breitbart News) Read more.
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The Good News Corner
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The Good News Corner:
Federal Judge Rules in Favor of Missouri House of Worship Protection Law
A federal judge last Friday ruled in favor of a Missouri law protecting houses of worship from profane, rude or indecent behavior or noise intended to disrupt a service. A secular law firm had filed suit against the law claiming it violated state and federal free speech rights.
Gov. Jay Nixon signed the Missouri House of Worship Protection Act into law last year. It protects any church, synagogue, mosque, or any other public or private place used for worship, religious instruction or other religious purpose.
"We are grateful to (state officials) and all Missouri legislators who helped enact this important measure to safeguard the integrity of worship services and the security of houses of worship," said Joe Ortwerth, president of the Missouri Family Policy Council. (Read more)
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Pray for the Harvest!
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Pray for the Harvest!
"Do you not say, 'Four months more and then the harvest'? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest." (John 4:35)
Every day, in every nation on earth, tens of thousands of men and women are making decisions for Christ. Now, you can monitor this amazing fact online by literally "watching" as these souls are born again into the Kingdom.
Of course, the identities of those who are coming to the Lord are never revealed, but our God knows who they are!
Join us as we monitor these "names" daily, praying over each one to be mentored and to grow in his or her faith . . . even in these perilous times. You may visit either or both of the sites below, to pray for fields that are ripe for harvest.
> > > OPTION ONE: AboutJesus.net
Go here!
> > > OPTION TWO: The Great Commission Map!
Go here!
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Worship With Us Today!
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Worship With Us Today!
There is Power in the Blood.
Selah
Worship Here
