Wednesday, November 20, 2013

CHPP Daily Brief - Tuesday, November 19, 2013





Good news! China to Change Its
One-Child Policy! See the Good
News report, below!

Capitol Hill Prayer Partners
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The Daily Brief

Praying the Word of God . . .
in the Will of God . . .
over the Issues of the Day

(Isaiah 55:11)

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

. . . He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."
(Hebrews 13:5)

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The Daily Brief

1. Legalizing illegal immigrants is the solution to Obamacare: Democrat - Washington Times

Rep. Jared Polis said Friday the key problem with health care right now is that illegal immigrants aren't included in Obamacare, and said part of the solution is to pass a bill granting them citizenship rights.

- Oh, Father! The reasoning gets more and more strained to justify this unjust law in a free market America. In the name of Jesus, we bind up the backdoor excuses that allows more unreasonable laws to be put in place to fix something that should be done away with.

-"Whoever fears the Lord walks uprightly, but those who despise him are devious in their ways." (Proverbs 14:2)


2. UnitedHealth drops thousands of doctors from insurance plans: WSJ - Wall Street Journal

UnitedHealth Group dropped thousands of doctors from its networks in recent weeks, leaving many elderly patients unsure whether they need to switch plans to continue seeing their doctors, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

- Our Mighty Lord, we ask that You would look upon the needs of the elderly who are having their medical care so shaken at this time. We pray that all are able to receive the care they need in spite of the plans of the enemy to hurt those among us who are full of years and wisdom. Bless them with good health and provision in the face of threats to their well-being.

-"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies:" (Psalms 23:4a, 5a)


3. 'Superbugs could erase a century of medical advances,' experts warn - Independent Co. UK

Drug-resistant "superbugs" represent one of the gravest threats in the history of medicine, leading experts have warned. Routine operations could become deadly "in the very near future" as bacteria evolve to resist the drugs we use to combat them. This process could erase a century of medical advances, say government doctors in a special editorial in The Lancet health journal.

- From this plague, Our Lord, deliver us. We ask that You would give the medical community wisdom in how to deal with this new menace, and that these "superbugs" would be restrained by You from causing widespread harm. Forgive us for taking for granted the progress in the practice of medicine and not properly thanking You as the Giver of life and health.

-"There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh they dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways."
(Psalms 91:10-11)


4. Obama Urges ENDA Vote in the House - The Hill

"President Obama urged House Republicans to bring the Employment Non-Discrimination Act to a vote Thursday, shortly after the Senate passed the gay rights legislation in a 64-32 vote.

"One party in one house of Congress should not stand in the way of millions of Americans who want to go to work each day and simply be judged by the job they do," Obama said in a statement. "Now is the time to end this kind of discrimination in the workplace, not enable it." (Read more)

- Pray that the House will stand strong against the passage of ENDA, which needs to end. Amen.

- "The wicked flee though no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion." (Proverbs 28:1)


5. Congress and Courts Weigh Restraints on N.S.A. Spying - NY Times

Congressional critics of the National Security Agency program that collects the telephone records of millions of Americans stepped up their efforts as the Supreme Court on Monday turned away an unusual challenge to the scope of the surveillance.

- We trust that this issue is not over, and that more challenges to the scope of NSA surveillance will come before the Supreme Court. Our intercession is indeed the restraining force against this evil; please continue to pray and to place a hedge around this activity by the NSA.

- "And all things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive." (Matthew 21:22)


6. Obama pleads for time on Iran - The Hill

President Obama pleaded with senators to give more time for diplomacy with Iran during a two-hour White House meeting on Tuesday.

The president asked the senators to ignore the aggressive lobbying campaign by Israel and hold off on new sanctions against Iran that are popular with members of both parties. (Read more)

- Only God can change the heart of a king. Ask Him to do so regarding our policy with these sanctions against Iran. Diplomacy with avowed terrorists is useless; it only buys them time to complete their own wicked agendas. Pray!

- "The king's heart is like channels of water in the hand of the Lord; He turns it wherever He wishes." (Proverbs 21:1)


7. Report: Valerie Jarrett Led Secret Negotiations with Iran for Past Year - Breitbart

The Times Of Israel is reporting that a team of negotiators led by White House adviser Valerie Jarrett has been conducting secret talks with Iran about its nuclear weapons program for the past year.

The report states the deal submitted in Geneva earlier this month was a direct result of these secret year-long negotiations between teams headed by Jarrett and Iran's Ali Akbar Salehi.

That deal was ultimately rejected when France and Israel raised strong objections, and talks are expected to resume this Wednesday. The White House was very quick to issue a categorical denial of the report. According to White House spokesperson Bernadette Meehan, "Those rumors are absolutely, 100 percent false." (Read more)

- Offer praise that hidden things are now being revealed about "secret schemes" of this administration towards Iran. Press in, in prayer, that these schemes WILL FAIL, for they will greatly increase the hand of the enemy of Israel. Pray that the president will study the life and times of Neville Chamberlain regarding Adolph Hitler, for it never helps to befriend your enemy. Pray!

- "Devise a plan, but it will be thwarted; State a proposal, but it will not stand, For God is with us." (Isaiah 8:10)


8. Prayer Shield Protects the Philippines - Five Doves

Reports coming in from missionaries and 24/7 Houses of Prayer attest to the power of intercessory prayer when danger threatens. An amazing photo taken by a NOAA satellite of Typhoon Haiyan clearly shows that the cities where 24/7 prayer was raised up were not even touched by this monster storm; while others were completely obliterated. (Scroll down to the bottom of this report to view this photo.)

- Thank our Lord that He is faithful to hear the prayers of His saints. Pray that many more will now come to faith in the nation of the Philippines, even as thousands are now being evacuated from the area that was devastated. Thank you.

- "But You, O Lord, are a shield about me, My glory, and the One who lifts my head." (Psalm 3:3)


9. Louisiana 25-acre sinkhole brings mini-earthquakes, explosion fears - Fox News

Scientists are now saying they will need to monitor for decades an enormous -- and growing -- Louisiana sinkhole that has forced hundreds to evacuate and has been registering increased seismic activity, including mini-earthquakes. (Read more)

- Pray that the monitoring of this ever-increasing sinkhole will be effective, so that lives and property can be spared in the future.

- "The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." (James 5:16)


The Middle East in Focus

The Middle East in Focus

This week, for all the headlines cited below, please join us in proclaiming THIS DECREE:

"The name of the Lord is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe." (Proverbs 18:10)


1. Ex-IDF intel chief: Regional war unlikely if Israel strikes Iran - Times of Israel

A regional war, coupled with a closure of the Strait of Hormuz and a series of terror attacks -- the horror scenario commonly depicted by Western powers if Israel were to launch a limited strike against Iran -- is highly unlikely, a former head of military intelligence wrote this week in advance of a third round of nuclear talks between Iran and the six world powers. He also said talk of such a scenario was harmful to global diplomacy and, ironically, increased the likelihood of Israeli military action.


2. Israel said to be working with Saudi Arabia on Iran strike plan
- Times of Israel

Israel is working on coordinating plans for a possible military strike with Saudi Arabia, with Riyadh prepared to provide tactical support to Jerusalem, a British newspaper reported early Sunday.


3. Amid rising tensions, Kerry postpones visit to Israel - Times of Israel

US Secretary of State John Kerry has postponed a visit to Israel reportedly scheduled for this week, saying it would take place "after Thanksgiving," the State Department confirmed Monday.


4. Palestinians commit to 9 months of peace talks - AP

Though furious over Israeli settlement expansions, the Palestinian president said negotiators will attend at least nine months of peace talks with Israel.


5. Netanyahu to Hollande: Israel will not be bound by 'bad' agreement on Iran - Jerusalem Post

Israel will not be bound by a "bad agreement" with Iran, and when it says "never again," it means it, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said on Sunday night at a press conference with French President Francois Hollande.


The Persecuted Church

Today's Focus: The Persecuted Church

Then He said to them all, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me." (Luke 9:23)

Syria's Christians Flee Kidnappings, Rape, Executions - The Daily Beast

Traumatized by what they have endured inside Syria and fearful for their future, Christians fleeing the 32-month-long civil war say the persecution of Christians is worsening in rebel-held territories in the country's north-and that the kidnapping, rape and executions of Christians aren't just being carried out by jihadist groups, but also by other Sunni Muslim rebels, including those affiliated with the Western-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA).

Christian refugees who have recently arrived in southeast Turkey-many of whom are retreading the steps of their forebears, who fled persecution in southern Turkey during the last century-say Christians are being seen as fair game by an assortment of jihadists and Islamist rebels, including FSA-affiliated fighters and others with the Army of Islam. Most of the targeting of Syrian Christians has been blamed on al Qaeda affiliates Jabhat al-Nusra and the Islamic State of Syria and Sham (ISIS), but refugees like 45-year-old school director Rahel say the picture inside is more confused.

She says jihadists weren't in her predominantly Christian hamlet of al-Yakubiye in Syria's northwest province of Idlib. FSA fighters from neighboring Sunni Muslim villages were the problem.

Back in February, the news agency AFP wrote about al-Yakubiye, noting that although one of the three churches had been looted, relations between Syrian Sunni Muslims and local Christians were cordial. But in the intervening months, nearly all Christians have fled after half a dozen were executed with their heads chopped off and about 20 more were kidnapped. The evacuation of al-Yakubiye has added to a Christian exodus which is prompting fears that the civil war could spell the doom of Syrian Christianity.


For more news about the Persecuted Church, and how you can be more involved in intercession for these precious saints, go here.


The Madison Report

The Madison Report

www.MadisonProject.com

THE MADISONIAN

The Week of November 18 - 22


Executive/Judicial Nominees

Last week, Republicans in the Senate finally found the backbone to block some of President Obama's radical nominees. All Republicans except for Richard Burr (R-NC) and Rob Portman (R-OH) voted against cloture on the nomination of Congressman Melvin Watt (D-NC) to be the next Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). During his career serving on the House Financial services Committee, Watt has been a consistent advocate for expanding the role of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into the private housing market. It would be a disaster for him to serve as the top regulator of those failed agencies as director of FHFA. Conservatives must continue to block his nomination until Democrats agree to wholesale reforms of the GSEs.
Republicans also blocked the nomination of Patricia Ann Milett for the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. This is the second most important court in the country, as it has original jurisdiction over a lot of the constitutional issues with legislative and executive laws. The court is currently split between Republican and Democrat appointees. Unlike other courts, this one actually has a very light caseload burden. There is no reason to stack the panel with another Obama radical.
UPDATE #1:

Senate GOP blocks third court nominee
Senate Republicans on Monday blocked a third nominee of President Obama's to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals.

In a 53-38 vote, the Senate failed to get the 60 votes necessary to break a Republican filibuster and move to a final confirmation vote on nominee Robert Leon Wilkins.

Sens. Susan Collins (Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) were the only Republicans to vote to end the filibuster. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) also switched his vote to "no" to preserve his ability to bring the nomination to the floor again.

The GOP argues confirming Wilkins to the court would tilt its balance. Republicans also argue the court doesn't need 11 seats because the eight judges currently serving have low caseloads. This is the same argument Republicans have made in blocking two other nominees to the court, which has three vacancies.

"It's the least busy court right now in the country," Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said on Monday.

(The Hill) Read more.


UPDATE #2:

Senate Republicans Block Pro-Abortion, Obama Court Nominee

Senate Republicans on Tuesday (Nov. 12) blocked the nomination of a pro-abortion law professor in line for one of three vacancies at a federal appeals court; Senate Democrats did not have the 60 votes necessary to stop the filibuster.

Many people were uncomfortable with Nina Pillard's nomination, in part because the court to which she was nominated doesn't have a heavy caseload. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, in fact, has the lowest case load of any federal circuit in the country.

"What this is really all about is the president being upset with the D.C. Circuit for overturning a lot of his initiatives - and so he's trying to pack the court," said Bruce Hausknecht, judicial analyst for Focus on the Family. "But this really isn't needed. And the Democrats, in 2006, blocked a Republican nominee to this court, with the same argument - saying that there's no caseload justification for his nomination." (CitizenLink) Read more.


Mugged By Reality

Mugged By Reality


In late October, President Obama held a Rose Garden event surrounded by happy Obamacare supporters. He read out loud, with great satisfaction, a letter received from Jessica Sanford, a 48 year-old single mom from Washington. Ms. Sanford wrote that Obamacare was a life changing event for her. She could not afford insurance for the last fifteen years, and she wept when she signed up for Obamacare and discovered the huge subsidies she would receive enabled her to get coverage.

CNN is now reporting that Ms. Sanford has been mugged by reality. Days after being cited by Obama, she received a notice from the Washington state healthcare exchange informing her that her $50,000 salary actually disqualifies her for subsidies from her fellow Americans. Sanford told CNN, "It was a huge disappointment, and especially since I had, you know, my story had been shared by the president, I felt like, you know, I just felt really embarrassed."

I understand why Ms. Sanford feels crushed. Relying on Obama's rhetoric, she had come to believe that even though she earns $50,000 a year, Obama would give her free healthcare with money he would take from other Americans. She and millions of others, particularly single women, voted for him based on that belief. But now it's "the morning after." (Gary Bauer)

Mugged By Reality (Part Two)


For over a decade, Brandeis University in Massachusetts has had a formal partnership with Al-Quds University in Jerusalem, which is a school for Palestinian Arabs. The partnership, founded in part by the Ford Foundation, included exchanges of students, administrators and faculty with the goal of promoting peace and understanding.

That partnership has now been canceled after a pro-suicide bomber rally was held at Al-Quds, which included demonstrators dressed in black military gear, armed with fake automatic weapons and doing the Nazi salute as they marched. When videos of the disgusting event became public, Brandeis came under heavy fire for failing to condemn it. Now, two weeks later the school has suspended the partnership.

Brandeis's liberals desperately wanted to believe that the leadership and students at Al-Quds wanted the same thing they wanted - reconciliation and peace. This is the same delusion that leads Obama and Kerry to think that they can trust Iran. Instead, Brandeis had to confront the reality that Hitler's spirit is alive and well among the jihadists of the Middle East. (Gary Bauer)

Fallout: Obama's Position on Iran

Obama's Soft Stance on Iran Might Force Israel to Strike

by Yaakov Lappin
Special to IPT News
November 19, 2013


The international community and Iran meet again in Geneva this week for a fateful round of talks.

The discussions are meant to ensure that Iran ceases activities designed to produce the first Shi'ite nuclear bomb - the first of many bombs, if Iran's program isn't stopped.

The negotiations aim for a modest initial agreement in hopes of turning that into a final arrangement. But they already sparked a fierce public rift between the government of Israel and the Obama administration, the likes of which have not been seen in U.S.-Israeli relations in many years.

Fueling the disagreement are deep concerns in Jerusalem - and other capitals in the Middle East, as well as in Paris - that the Obama administration is willing to settle for a shortsighted, poor interim deal that will cause existing, crippling sanctions to crumble. That would enable Iran to stay on the brink of nuclear weapons production, and enable President Obama to defer the crisis to the next administration.

During talks earlier this month in Geneva, Israeli officials were stunned to learn of the deal to which the Obama administration apparently agreed, a deal that was not signed due to France's rejection of the terms.

It called for a cessation of 20 percent enriched uranium production, but allowed for the continued production of 3.5 percent uranium, and most disturbingly to Israel, left every one of Iran's centrifuges in place.

. . . A bad deal will leave Iran with most of its nuclear program intact and cause the sanctions regime to crumble. Alternatively, the sides may fail to agree altogether.

Iran is already a major threat to regional and global security. Its nuclear program multiplies the dangers. As the world's top state-sponsor of terrorism, Iran destabilizes the Middle East with a transnational network of heavily armed, terrorist-guerilla proxies. It facilitates the massacre of tens of thousands of civilians in Syria, subverts pro-Western Arab states, and remains ideologically committed to Israel's destruction.

. . . This is why Israel's government has decided that, if forced to choose between accepting an Iranian bomb or bombing Iran, the latter option is preferable. This calculation holds true if the P5+1 states ends up striking a poor deal. It is reasonable to assume that a bad arrangement, which visibly fails to put the brakes on Iranian steps towards nuclear weapons, will leave sufficient international legitimacy for an attack.

But even if Israel does face international isolation and wrath after a strike, this outcome would be preferable to dealing with an existential danger to its security, and navigating a region that would become intolerably dangerous.

Hope in Jerusalem remains that negotiators in Geneva will not be manipulated by Iran into signing an agreement that will force Israel into the unenviable situation of having to act alone.


Yaakov Lappin is the Jerusalem Post's military and national security affairs correspondent, and author of The Virtual Caliphate (Potomac Books), which proposes that jihadis on the internet have established a virtual Islamist state.

(Source: Investigative Project on Terrorism)
> > > Please note: the article above is an excerpt only. We encourage all of our readers to go to this link to find and to read this excellent analysis in its entirety. Thank you.

150 Years Ago Today

150 Years Ago Today:

Abraham Lincoln Delivered the Gettysburg Address


NOVEMBER 19, 1863, Abraham Lincoln delivered his Gettysburg Address where 50,000 soldiers were killed or wounded in a 3 day battle:

"Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth upon this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure.

We are met on a great battlefield of that war.

We have come to dedicate a portion of that field as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live.

[The American Minute]
(Read Lincoln's entire address here.)

The Good News Corner

The Good News Corner:

China to Change its Decades-old 1-Child Policy, Abolish Labor Camps


"I think everybody in China should have the right to have any number of kids. I feel so good to raise two children. Nowadays in China, the welfare of old people is not good." -Luo Dongling, Chinese citizen.


(Beijing, China)-According to reports, China's officials are planning to institute the first major changes to its harsh "one-child policy" in almost 30 years, following demographics statistics that show a very unbalanced population.

The Communist country's current policy, which was introduced in 1979, limits urban couples to one child, and two for rural families if their first-born is a girl, according to the USA Today report. China's strict rule has cost more preborn babies' lives through abortion than any other nation.

And, the effect after decades of this policy is that the elderly population-which relies upon their children for assistance-is quickly growing, outnumbering the younger generations who could help provide that care. In addition there is a "long-term gender imbalance," due to the "abortions and the infanticide of baby girls by parents who cling to a traditional preference for a son."

However, the USA Today report stated, last year, a government think tank urged China's leaders to start phasing out the policy and allow two children for every family by 2015, saying the country had paid a "huge political and social cost."

Following a recent 4-day meeting in Beijing with party leaders, it was decided that changes would be made to the one-child policy and, in addition, the labor (or re-education through labor) camps will be abolished, in an apparent effort to improve human rights. (Breaking Christian News)


Worship With Us Today!

Worship With Us Today

All to Jesus I Surrender

All to Jesus I surrender;
All to Him I freely give;
I will ever love and trust Him,
In His presence daily live.


Pray for the Harvest!

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!