Capitol Hill Prayer Partners
"A National Prayer Alliance"
P.O. Box 5152
Herndon, VA 20172-1970
chpp1994@gmail.com
The Daily Brief:
"Praying for All in Authority"
Tuesday, April 12, 2016
"Worthy are You Our Lord and God to receive glory and honor and power, for You created all things, and by Your will they existed and were created." (Revelation 4:11)
Today's Worship
Kari Jobe - You are My Healer
Worship Him together . . . here . . .
" . . . may the whole earth be filled with his glory." (Psalm 72:19)
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The Middle East in Focus
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"Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed," says the LORD, who has compassion on you." (Isaiah 54:10)
1. Abbas establishes constitutional court in effort to keep power - Israel National News
Palestinian Authority (PA) chairman Mahmoud Abbas has quietly established a constitutional court in attempt to maintain power and allow him to sideline Hamas in the event of a succession struggle, Reuters reported on Monday.
The nine-member body, which will have supremacy over all lower courts, was created without fanfare by presidential decree on April 3 and was inaugurated on Monday, officials told the news agency. (Read more)
2. From Israeli jail, 'nonviolent' bid to 'free Palestine' takes shape - Times of Israel
A group of people close to leading Fatah activist Marwan Barghouti, jailed in Israel for murder, have reached an understanding with the Hamas and Islamic Jihad leaderships overseas on a comprehensive plan to jointly campaign against the Israeli occupation until it is brought to an end, Palestinian sources told The Times of Israel.
The plan includes unprecedented steps within the framework of what is dubbed "nonviolent resistance" which, the sources predicted, could prove immensely problematic for Israel. The goal is to force Israel out of all areas beyond the pre-1967 lines via a nonviolent intifada coordinated by a unified Palestinian leadership under Barghouti, who has been jailed by Israel since 2002 after being sentenced to five life sentences for involvement in murder. (Read more)
3. Palestinians hope for Obama change of heart with UN vote - JERUSALEM - With President Barack Obama in his last months in office, the Palestinians are hoping he will follow up his historic breakthroughs with Iran and Cuba with a push for their cause as well.
The first step is reintroducing a United Nations Security Council resolution the United States vetoed back in 2011 seeking "accountability" for Israeli West Bank settlement building.
In an interview, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki said the hope is that Obama, freed of re-election concerns, will break with American protocol and refrain from vetoing it this time around. (Read more)
4. IDF said to be eyeing purchase of 'suicide drones' - Israel Hayom
The Rotem ("Juniper") drone will "change the face of battle at the battalion commander level," says official * The drone carries two grenades that explode when the drone hits its target * Soldiers can carry up to two Rotem drones on their backs.
The Israel Defense Forces is interested in purchasing "suicide drones," an Israel Aerospace Industries official said on Sunday.
IAI has developed a drone called Rotem ("Juniper") that is capable of carrying grenades or cameras and can be used by infantry soldiers at the tactical level. (Read more)
5. 'Saudi-Egypt threaten long-term Israeli interests' - Jerusalem Post
Recently signed agreements between Saudi Arabia and Egypt that transfer sovereignty over two small islands in the Red Sea to Saudi Arabia could create longterm problems for Israel, an Israeli expert and former IDF officer told The Jerusalem Post on Monday.
The agreement, which was signed during a visit by Saudi King Salman in Cairo, would also allow for a bridge connection between the two countries.
There are two main issues in the agreements that affect Israel, said Col. (res.) Dr. Shaul Shay, director of research at the Institute for Policy and Strategy at the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya. (Read more)
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The Daily Brief
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1. IRS sued for refusing to release secret 'church investigations' procedures - Washington Times
Government watchdog groups have filed a motion in federal court to compel the IRS to reveal how it determines when to initiate "church investigations" after accusing the tax-collecting agency of "stonewalling" efforts to bring to light its procedures.
The motion, filed jointly Friday by the Alliance Defending Freedom and Judicial Watch, came in response to a legal settlement struck in 2014 with an atheist organization, which said the IRS had "resolved the signature authority issue necessary to initiate church examinations." (Read more)
- Almighty God, we pray for order to come to this institution, the Internal Revenue Service. We pray for the un-redacted release of requested documents and for brave men and women to step forward and reveal disparate treatment and harassment towards institutions of faith. We pray for justice, in the Name of the Judge of All, Jesus, Amen.
- "When justice is done, it brings joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers." (Proverbs 21:15)
2.Team Obama is setting us up for another housing-market collapse -
New York Post
The Obama administration is doing its best to give the nation another mortgage meltdown. As Paul Sperry recently . . . Team Obama has pushed mortgage lenders to offer home loans to folks with shaky credit, setting up conditions for another housing-market collapse . . . Credit scores of approved borrowers, for example, have been trending down, even as their debt levels have grown.
The Federal Housing Administration and government-sponsored "independent" lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been demanding lower credit standards - just as the feds did starting under President Bill Clinton, in pursuit of the same "affordable housing" goal. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency recently warned that mortgage underwriting standards have slipped and now reflect "broad trends similar to those experienced from 2005 through 2007, before the most recent financial crisis." (Read more)
- Heavenly Father, we pray even if the lenders are available, the people of this nation would choose restraint in borrowing. Lead us to live within our means and avoid the trap of the enemy, in Jesus Name, Amen.
- "The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender."
(Proverbs 22:7)
3. Full-Blown Panic Mode At The Fed? - Zerohedge.com
Someone seems to have hit the emergency button at the Fed, as even though the central bank said that everything was just fine with the American economy just a few weeks and months ago, the situation has currently escalated into a full-blown panic mode. On Thursday, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve has called an 'emergency' meeting for Monday, April 11. (Read more)
- Father God, You are our provider and only You know the future. Give us wisdom as we prepare and pray for this coming season, in Jesus Name, Amen.
- "I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want." (Philippians 4:12)
4. Planned Parenthood Sues Indiana: Law Banning Abortion Based on Disability Diagnosis 'Unconstitutional' - CNSNews.com
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Indiana filed a lawsuit Thursday in U.S. District Court on behalf of Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky (PPINK) to stop a new Indiana law, signed in March, that bans abortion if the sole reason for the abortion is the unborn child's "race, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, or diagnosis of a statutorily defined 'disability' or 'potential diagnosis' of a 'disability.'"
The suit alleges that the law's "prohibition on abortions solely because of one of the reasons set out in Indiana Code § 16-34-4 (effective July 1, 2016) creates an undue burden on the right to obtain an abortion in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution." Planned Parenthood also says the law is unconstitutional to the extent that it "requires as part of the 'informed consent' process that women seeking abortions be informed that they are unable to obtain an abortion if their sole reason for doing so is because of the fetus's race, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, or diagnosis or potential diagnosis of the fetus having a disability."
The reasons for abortion that are banned by the new law in addition to the race or sex of the unborn child include a diagnosis or potential diagnosis of Down Syndrome and other disabilities such as Dwarfism, Albinism, and "any disease, defect, or disorder that is genetically inherited." (Read more)
- Father God, we pray the U.S. District Court would uphold the law represented by the will of the people in Indiana Code § 16-34-4 (effective July 1, 2016). Furthermore, we pray the Indiana State Department of Health, the Medical Licensing Board of Indiana, and the prosecutors in Marion, Lake, Monroe and Tippecanoe counties would enforce this law, defending innocent life. The root of the opposition is eugenics, human-directed reproduction rather than God-directed. We pray for parents to receive the little ones You sovereignly give and for You to lay an ax to the root of eugenics in the precious name of Jesus of Nazareth, Amen.
- "The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire." (Matthew 3:10)
5. Hundreds of 'Democracy Spring' protesters arrested at Capitol Hill sit-in - CNN
More than 400 protesters staging a sit-in against the influence of money in politics and congressional inaction to reverse it were arrested on the steps of the U.S. Capitol Monday, the first day of what is expected to be a week-long series of demonstrations.
"More than 400 individuals have been arrested for unlawful demonstration activity, and are being processed using mass arrest procedures," the U.S. Capitol Police said in a statement early Monday evening. Those taken into custody will be charged with "crowding, obstructing and incommoding."
Beginning on April 2 in Philadelphia, participants in the "Democracy Spring" campaign marched nearly 150 miles south to Washington, where the Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC) said on Monday that rallies and events have been scheduled through the weekend in an effort to "draw attention to our corrupt campaign finance system and rigged voting laws."
On its website and in press releases, "Democracy Spring" said "hundreds" have been arrested so far, and reports that 3,500 people from 33 different states have pledged to join the protests this week. They are pushing for a series of legislative actions, including the passage of four bills aimed at reducing "the influence of money in politics" while seeking to "expand and protect voting rights." (Read more)
- Father God, those of us who live here in Washington, D.C. have been warned that this group is coming, and that "Democracy Spring" is actually based upon the "Arab Spring" model that, in the end, led to the overthrow of several Middle Eastern governments.
Father God, we thank You that we see, in advance, the true and the sinister agenda of this group, which is funded by George Soros. We ask You to forgive each one, dry up their funds, and arise to dispell this movement of anger and anarchy, in Your Name, amen.
- "Let God arise, let His enemies be scattered, And let those who hate Him flee before Him." (Psalm 68:1)
6. 'Count me out': Ryan rules out 2016 White House bid - Fox News
House Speaker Paul Ryan tried Tuesday to put an end "once and for all" to the rampant speculation about his 2016 ambitions, ruling out a late-stage bid for the Republican presidential nomination and definitively declaring: "Count me out."
The Wisconsin lawmaker and 2012 Republican vice presidential nominee made the announcement on Capitol Hill upon returning from the Middle East, where he said the speculation had followed him. "I want to put that to rest once and for all," Ryan said. "Let me be clear. I do not want, nor will I accept, the nomination for our party. . . Count me out."
He also made clear that as speaker his role is to preside as chairman over the Republican convention in July, at which the GOP presidential nominee will be decided. "My job is to ensure that there's integrity in the process, that the rules are followed by the book," Ryan said at the Republican National Committee headquarters. (Read more)
- Lord God, we thank You for this clear statement released today by House Speaker Paul Ryan. His words will serve to erase any confusion about his possible nomination for the presidency, in this already confusing election year. Lord God, if You yet have a "ram in the bush" -- one who has yet to be revealed as a possible candidate in this election, we ask that his or her name be revealed soon. We repent of any of our own words spoken in haste or in anger, and we wait upon You to show us the steps ahead in this election year. In Jesus' name, amen.
- "All you need to say is simply 'Yes' or 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one." (Matthew 5:37)
7. Obama calls new women's rights memorial 'a centerpiece for the struggle for equality' - Washington Post
President Obama paid homage Tuesday to those who had fought for women's equality, designating a historic house on Capitol Hill a national monument, and hinting that his successor could represent yet another victory for women's rights.
Speaking at the Sewall-Belmont House and Museum, which has housed the National Woman's Party since 1929 and will now be called the Belmont-Paul Women's Equality National Monument, the president called the site "a hotbed of activism, a centerpiece for the struggle for equality, a monument to a fight not just for women's equality but, ultimately, for equality for everybody."
"I have faith because what this house shows us is that the story of America is a story of progress," Obama said before a crowd of women's activists that included tennis legend Billie Jean King and Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.). (Read more)
- Father God, the president's words are correct: this site has been the center of the feminist activist movement since the time of the Civil War. While we are grateful that this house became the headquarters of the suffragette movement, which gave women the right to vote, we nevertheless repent for the work of Alice Paul who wrote and then promoted the Equal Rights Amendment.
We speak Your peace over this property, and ask that its activities be used to promote unity and healing in our land. We ask this today in Your name, amen and amen.
- "If you ask anything in My name, I will do it." (John 14:14)
8. Bible makes list of books most challenged at libraries, public schools - Fox News
On the latest list of books most objected to at public schools and libraries, one title has been targeted nationwide, at times for the sex and violence it contains, but mostly for the legal issues it raises.
The Bible.
"You have people who feel that if a school library buys a copy of the Bible, it's a violation of church and state," says James LaRue, who directs the Office for Intellectual Freedom for the American Library Association, which released its annual 10 top snapshot of "challenged" books on Monday, part of the association's "State of Libraries Report" for 2016.
"And sometimes there's a retaliatory action, where a religious group has objected to a book and a parent might respond by objecting to the Bible." (Read more)
[For more commentary on this report, please see The Daily Jot, below.]
- Lord God, the darkness that now covers the earth seems to be increasing daily, but we are comforted knowing that this reality is prophesied in Your Word. We thank You, too, that Your Word does not lie, and that, in the end, You promise that better times are coming. We ask, dear Lord, for the grace not lose heart, but to continue to stand tall and true in these latter days. We ask this in Your Name, amen and amen.
- "For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, And deep darkness the people; But the Lord will arise over you, And His glory will be seen upon you. The Gentiles shall come to your light, And kings to the brightness of your rising." (Isaiah 60:2,3)
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The Daily Jot
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Tuesday, April 12, 2016
The coming Bible Ban
The American Library Association has released its list of the top 10 "challenged" books in America. ALA provides the list to inform the public about censorship efforts that affect libraries and schools. The list is compiled from libraries, schools, and the media reports on attempts to ban books in communities across the country. ALA says the top three reasons cited for challenging books are that the material is considered sexually explicit, contains offensive language, and the material is unsuited to any age group. There is, however, another reason that has propelled this particular book to the top ten list of those challenged to be banned from libraries and schools across America. Religious content. The results are shocking.
Among books that are sexually explicit, promote sex outside of marriage, those about transgendered teens, promote homosexuality and violence, is The Holy Bible. It is the sixth most challenged book in America. This is the first time since ALA began keeping statistics in 1990 that the Bible has made the list, debuting at 6. In context, the ALA has compiled the lists of top 100 challenged books in the decades of 1990-1999 and 2000-2010. The Bible was not on those lists. In fact, the Bible was not on the ALA challenged book list from 2011-2014. This needs to sink in. This is the first time the Bible has ever been on this list and it made it to number six. This is not only an indicator of society, but of a dangerous road ahead.
ALA says that 85% of book challenges receive no media attention and remain unreported. According to this statistic, there is a possibility that the Bible could be far and away number one on the list if all incidents were reported. The only measure to make the list is the number of "documented requests to remove materials from schools or libraries." The largest groups of those who challenge books in general are two-fold: parents and administrators in public schools. Individual statistics on who challenged the Bible were not made public. An ALA spokesman said that there are complaints about the Koran, but not nearly as many as the Bible. In fact, the Koran doesn't even make the list.
This is a grave reflection on the recent direction of society. The Bible is not "challenged" substantially for decades, probably since the establishment of public schools and libraries in America, and it debuts as the sixth most challenged book in American libraries and public schools. While the "church" should be outraged, it also should be ashamed at the job it is doing. The self-indulgent, extra-biblical doctrines being taught over the past generation are having more impact than even the devil could have imagined. Our nation is turning dark. Parents are seeking to ban the Word of God. Psalm 119:105 says, "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." How dark are we to become?
Have a Blessed and Powerful Day!
Bill Wilson
www.dailyjot.com
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The Persecuted Church
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Islamist Vigilantes Seal off Indonesian Church in Front of Police Commander
An Islamist group in Indonesia has, in front of a local police commander, sealed off a brand new church, torn down its sign and demanded that the local mayor cancel its permit. The Santa Clara Church in Bekasi, a heavily-populated commuter city to the east of the capital, Jakarta, only opened on 7 March.
The Islamic Forum Community (FUI) and other Islamist organisations have been protesting since the church obtained its permit in July 2015, claiming its leaders had used false identity cards to get it.
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has started an appeal on the church's behalf, and asked for supporters to send letters to ten top Indonesian leaders, including the President. The AHRC added that it will write a separate letter to the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief.
Read more
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Classic Hymns
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Songs Our Grandmothers Sang:
OLD-TIME RELIGION
"Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for." (Hebrews 11:1-2)
Lyrics
Refrain
'Tis the old time religion,
[or Give me that old time religion]
'Tis the old time religion,
'Tis the old time religion,
And it's good enough for me.
It was good for our mothers. It was good for our mothers. It was good for our mothers. And it's good enough for me.
Refrain
Makes me love everybody. Makes me love everybody. Makes me love everybody. And it's good enough for me.
Refrain
It has saved our fathers. It has saved our fathers. It has saved our fathers. And it's good enough for me.
Refrain
It will do when I am dying. It will do when I am dying. It will do when I am dying. And it's good enough for me.
Refrain
It will take us all to heaven. It will take us all to heaven. It will take us all to heaven. And it's good enough for me.
Refrain
Melody
Please go here.
About the Author:
Words & Music: Adapted from an African-American spiritual by Charles D. Tillman, who first heard it at an 1889 camp meeting in Lexington, South Carolina.
During the 1800s and early 1900s "Old Time Religion" was popular at the brush arbor meetings which would draw Christians from an entire region for a week's worth of sermons and gospel songs like "Old Time Religion."
The brush arbor meetings where particularly predominant in Appalachia and Southern States.
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Signs and Wonders
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"There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars" (Luke 21:25a)
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Supermassive black hole catches astronomers completely off guard
One of the biggest black holes ever found sits in a cosmic backwater, like a towering skyscraper in a small town.
Astronomers have spotted a supermassive black hole containing 17 billion times the mass of the sun - only slightly smaller than the heftiest known black hole, which weighs in at a maximum of 21 billion solar masses - at the center of the galaxy NGC 1600.
That's a surprise, because NGC 1600, which lies 200 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Eridanus, belongs to an average-size galaxy group, and the monster black holes discovered to date tend to be found in dense clusters of galaxies. So researchers may have to rethink their ideas about where gigantic black holes reside, and how many of them might populate the universe, study team members said.
"The black hole is much bigger than we expected for the size of the galaxy or where this galaxy lives, the environment," said study co-author Chung-Pei Ma, an astronomer at the University of California, Berkeley.
"That's the puzzling part - or the intriguing part - of the result," she told Space.com. "There may be more NGC 1600s out there lurking at more ordinary sites, like small towns in the U.S. rather than Manhattan."Ma is head of the MASSIVE Survey, a multitelescope effort that began in 2014 to identify and catalogue the most massive nearby galaxies and black holes. NGC 1600 first showed up in the survey with data from the McDonald Observatory in Texas. (Read more)
Source: Christian Science Monitor
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The Good News Corner
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Why This Believer is Paying for "In God We Trust" Decals for All City Vehicles in His Hometown
(Forney, TX)-A Christian small business owner in Texas has announced he will pay for the labor and materials to place "In God We Trust" decals on city vehicles, believing the project is a chance to not only share the Gospel, but unite the local community.
According to a report from ABC News, the city council of Forney, Texas voted unanimously Tuesday night in favor of a resolution that will add the famous motto to all city-owned vehicles. Jay Stinson, owner of Big Jay's Signs and Shirtworks, quickly volunteered to design and apply the decals free of charge.
Read more
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Election 2016: Prayer Resources - Updated
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Election 2016: Prayer Resources
"Choose some wise, understanding and respected men from each of your tribes, and I will set them over you." (Deuteronomy 1:13)
> > > Please find below the Election Prayer Resources that have been recently added to our list. To view the archive section, go here.
To view our most recently archived articles, go here.
1. A Free Resource to Help You Pray for Elections
By now many believers are frustrated and disgusted with the tone of our election process. Many are concerned with the candidates we have to choose from. What can we do?
Pray!
Prayer can change history. And it can certainly influence our election cycle. But how should you pray? America's National Prayer Committee (a group of which our ministry is a part) has just released a timely issue of its magazine, Prayer Connect.
It has the theme, "There's Still Hope: A Call for United Prayer for Our Elections." Because this issue is so important this issue of Prayer Connect is open to the public online. You can read the entire issue, free, by going here.
We highly recommend that you read the articles that are there--and share them with your friends. They will inspire, challenge and equip you to pray with hope for these elections!
Dave Butts, Chairman, National Prayer Committee
2. Election Articles Featured on IFA Website
The website for Intercessors for America (www.ifapray.org) is currently featuring a wealth of resources for effective intercession for this year's election. A few of the featured articles include titles such as: "How can a Christian vote in this Election?", "Does God Care about Government?", and "Voting as an Act of Intercession."
To view these and other article, please visit their website by going here.
3. PrayForElections.Com: A Weekly Nationwide Election Conference Prayer Call
Calls to continue throughout this year
Join ministry leaders and Christian organizations from across the nation who will host one Tuesday Night Election Prayer Call every Tuesday evening until the General Election on November 8th, 2016. We pray for the Presidential candidates and other offices in the House and Senate. We pray for the election process, integrity in counting ballots, eliminating fraudulent ballots, and for those with our Christian values to win by landslides throughout the country.
PrayForElections.com is hosted by The Salt & Light Council (SLC). SLC trains and equips churches nationwide to preserve our culture through Biblical Citizenship. Affiliate Church Leaders appointed by their pastors learn to mobilize congregations to take action as responsible Christian citizens through the PETER formula (Pray. Educate. Take action. Elections. Restoration)
Conference Number: 712-432-1699
Code 338083#
8pm ET / 7pm CT/ 6pm MT / 5pm PT
(30 minutes each week)
http://prayforelections.com/
4. CHPP Sponsors Weekly Prayer Meetings: The Kingdom Prayer Watch
All are welcome to join us at a site near Capitol Hill for a weekly time of intercession, praying for God's will to be done in these congressional and presidential elections. We meet on Friday afternoon from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
If you are visiting Washington and would like to join us, please send Sara Ballenger an email at chpp1994@gmail.com. Include your name and phone number, and we'll get back to you with further details. Welcome!
the Lord is our lawgiver,
the Lord is our king;
it is he who will save us." (Isaiah 33:22)
