North Korea has been hit by flooding again with a lot of devastation and hardship. The South Korean Red Cross has been providing some relief along with other organizations, but it is still very difficult. To make things more complicated, there are major changes occurring in the economy from wages replacing food distribution in some places to distribution centers selling food. There is also serious inflation in relation to Chinese currency and the price of rice. At the same time, the North Korean central bank has been trying very hard to gather foreign currency, even to selling rice for hard currency.
While we do see economic reforms under way, it is a very difficult time. We can probably expect to see more changes as the new leadership continues to establish itself and look for ways to improve the situation. Keep North Korea in your prayers as it goes through all these changes.
Law Professor John Inazu writes in the USA Today (http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/forum/story/2012-08-20/HHS-mandate-contraception-evangelicals/57168668/1) that when it comes to the Obama contraception mandate, “The legal challenges implicate an interest that all of us – Catholics and evangelicals, religious and non-religious – should value and safeguard: the right of private groups to dissent from the prevailing state orthodoxy.”
His wonderfully descriptive phrase – “prevailing state orthodoxy” – Is saddening. In a republic where personal virtue is the foundation of our political order and which rests, in Michael Novak’s wonderful phrase, “on two wings” – biblical revelation and natural law, law that is self-evident and accessible to everyone – the idea of there being a “state orthodoxy” is jarring. Yet such orthodoxy exists, which is why the Obama Administration is insisting that Evangelicals and Catholics cast away their consciences (we won’t, by the way).
When the federal government steps in to mandate that persons with reasonable, historic, and deeply held moral convictions must violate them in order to comply with a state dictate, Christians must echo the words of Peter in Acts 5:29: “We must obey God rather than men.”
Prof. Inazu concludes, “the right to differ protects moral choices that lack government approval.” Amen. But, as he would agree, that right is not just one that exists within the mind. For it to be a fully realized right, it must be allowed to affect the choices we make in civic and political life. In other words, adherence to a belief while complying with a legal limitation on the capacity to act on it is the moral equivalent of junk food: it brings us temporary respite from hunger, but no enduring benefit.
It is not enough that, in its great wisdom and compassion, the federal state does not interfere with the function of our minds as long as this function remains limited to the space between our ears. True conviction – what one believes is of value in time and eternity – means concrete and visible action in the public square. It’s government’s job to protect this right, not diminish or squelch it. As Prof. Inazu notes, “Evangelicals and Catholics need not shudder at the prospect of being politically marginalized. After all, Jesus did not. But political marginalization does not require political passivity. And one means of resistance is asking courts to protect the ability of private groups to dissent from state orthodoxy.”
So, we will ask, fight, and stand. But, by God’s grace, we will not give in.
FRCBLOG.com (Family Research Council)
Another good resource for Praying for the USA and its leadership: http://www.presidentialprayerteam.com
Vision:
Global connection at the same time of many Christians (and others) in a common prayer for humankind and its urgent needs every day from 3.00 – 3.05 p.m. Greenwich time – to form a wide channel between God and humanity in order to increase the love and power from God on our planet and thereby unitedly support the manifestation of His will for us and the transformation of our world.
Strategy:
1. You who want to join the SEPTIME to pray for humankind on a Biblical foundation seek at the time given a quiet place wherever you are – in the kitchen, bedroom, fields, etc.
2. Pray for one to fine minutes (or more) for the urgent needs of mankind – whether globally, for your region, city and/or friends and family and what else is on your heart. The targets of prayers you can get from the news of the last week for the respective field of prayer and/or find your own prayer targets.
3. The time for prayer is chosen because of the facts that most people in the world have holiday on Sundays and most people are awake at the suggested time of the day, except for the Pacific Area (around 7 a.m. in the western North and South America, 11 p.m. in eastern Asia).
4. It is recommended that your prayer starts with the Lord’s prayer, then followed by the specific prayers in the Name of Jesus.
5. No network for further directions should be needed. The message of the SEPTIME prayer could be spread through congregations, Christian media, social media and other ways that the Lord shows us.
About SEPTIME:
In the Sweden-prayer, we have some good experience of prayer in distance when we meet “in the Spirit” and many of us then recognize a “wind of prayer”. Last year, I understood that the Lord told me that this form of prayer could be used worldwide, and I got inspiration to write the concept of SEPTIME. I think it might work for people to have a short regular prayer time where to join brothers and sisters in Christ in prayers for mankind, for the nation, for the city/village or what else God puts on our minds. I have a picture of an electrical very thick wire, consisting of many, many little threads transporting the power. Maybe a global prayer will work in a similar way.
The Arab Spring takeover of Egypt by the Muslim Brotherhood has run amok, with reports from several different media agencies that the radical Muslims have begun crucifying opponents of newly installed President Mohammed Morsi.
Middle East media confirm that during a recent rampage, Muslim Brotherhood operatives “crucified those opposing Egyptian President Muhammad Morsi naked on trees in front of the presidential palace while abusing others.”
Raymond Ibrahim, a fellow with the Middle East Forum and the Investigative Project on Terrorism, said the crucifixions are the product of who the Middle Eastern media call “partisans.”
“Arabic media call them ‘supporters,’ ‘followers’ and ‘partisans’ of the Muslim Brotherhood,” Ibrahim said. Ibrahim also says the victims can be anyone, including Egyptian Christians.
“It’s anyone who is resisting the new government,” Ibrahim said. “In this particular case, the people attacked and crucified were secular protesters upset because of Morsi’s hostile campaign against the media, especially of Tawfik Okasha, who was constantly exposing him on his station, until Morsi shut him down.”
Ibrahim said extra brutality is reserved for Christians, but the crucifixions are because of Islamic doctrine and are required by the Quran. The time and other details about the crucifixions were not readily available.
Center for Security Policy Senior Fellow Clare Lopez cited chapter and verse from the Quran to explain that crucifixions are not simply normal for Islam, they’re demanded.
“Crucifixion is a hadd punishment, stipulated in the Quran, Sura 5:33, and therefore an obligatory part of Shariah,” Lopez said. “It’s been a traditional punishment within Islam since the beginning, even though it’s not exclusively Islamic. The Romans used it too.
“So, the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood haven’t the option to not include crucifixion within their legal code. It’s obligatory to comply with Shariah. And yes, it’s for shock value also to be sure,” Lopez said…
Author Pamela Geller of Atlas Shrugs, an analyst of the Middle East and Islam, fully agrees and also cites the Quran. “The Christians are in serious trouble because the Quran in Sura 9:29 commands Muslims to wage war against them and subjugate them, and they’re also identified with the hated West and the U.S.,” Geller said…
Reign of Terror
“I suspect that Morsi’s action was timed in part to forestall any further military action against the jihadis,” Geller said, adding that the results will make Egypt’s government more monolithic than it already was.
“Morsi is instituting a reign of terror to consolidate his power,” Geller said.
American Enterprise Institute Middle East analyst Michael Rubin agreed: Morsi is after the power.
“Morsi certainly wants absolute control. The Egyptian army have never been saints, but Morsi will broker no checks to his power as the Muslim Brotherhood writes a constitution and imposes its dream of an Islamic state on Egypt,” Rubin said.
Lopez says this all means that Morsi is shedding his “moderate” veneer.
“The point I would make is that Morsi is not bothering to play ‘moderate’ anymore. He’s moving very aggressively to consolidate power for the Muslim Brotherhood,” Lopez said.
She added that Morsi is now free to act without any concern for public opinion.
“He doesn’t seem to care who thinks what anymore. He knows he’s got the USG and president in his corner no matter what he does. He doesn’t have to pretend, no need for ‘plausible deniability.’ He also knows he’s got the majority of the Egyptian people behind him,” Lopez said.
Rubin believes, however, that Morsi will still try to play the “moderate” to continue to gain U.S. support.
Playing the Moderate?
“Morsi is going to play the moderate and the mediator for the world media, all the while complaining that he can’t take more forceful action against the extremists because the radical fringe won’t allow him to do more,” Rubin said.
“It’s nonsense, of course, but still an explanation that will satisfy American diplomats, safe behind the walls of their compound,” Rubin said.
Lopez added to Rubin’s explanation, but points to the White House as the main cheerleader for Morsi and the Brotherhood.
“This is exactly what many of us expected him to do (consolidate power) and I think the White House knew, too, and not only expected but wanted Morsi and the Brotherhood to take over Egypt,” Lopez said.
“As far as I know, the White House invitation for Morsi in September still stands – nor have I heard the slightest hint of criticism from any top U.S. government leadership figure about Morsi’s coup. He knows he’s on solid ground with this administration,” Lopez said.
http://www.wnd.com/2012/08/arab-spring-run-amok-brotherhood-starts-crucifixions/print/
Let’s pray for Egypt that the intentions of the wicked will somehow be foiled and that human rights and freedoms called for during the “Arab Spring” will be protected from Islamic radicalism.
This excellent video tells the story of a nation in civil war that has experienced a good deal of transformation in recent years. The president, a former rebel leader who came to Christ through reading the Bible in his jungle encampment, is now a prayer and worship leader in addition to his national development efforts. Click on the attached Youtube link to see the video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0LhUPOOj5w&feature=youtu.be
August 21, 2012: The rainy season has begun in the Sudans. The result is less fighting, though small-scale actions continue in Sudan’s Blue Nile and South Kordofan states and in the Darfur region, and tribal violence continues to plague South Sudan. The various factions in both Sudans are always talking about peace, or at least talking about talking about peace, but the impact of the new oil production and transport agreement, reached on August 3, on the various armed conflicts has yet to be determined. Sudan and South Sudan remain locked in a frozen war.
“Is Iran Inviting Israel to Attack? With its extreme rhetoric in recent days, Iran seems to be daring Israel to attack, either because Iran's leaders do not believe Israel is in fact prepared to attack and are calling its bluff or because they think an Israeli attack would fail to do significant damage to its nuclear facilities. Iran’s new threats come at a sensitive time when senior Israeli officials may be on the brink of deciding whether to attack. They will certainly influence Israel's decision, as will a forthcoming UN report that is expected to show that Iran's nuclear program is accelerating.”
From : LIGNET (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)
Please keep the Iran-Israeli stand-off in your prayers. This is especially dangerous and could lead to a wider regional or even world war of great destruction. Let’s watch over this situation with vigilance.
“Is Iran Inviting Israel to Attack? With its extreme rhetoric in recent days, Iran seems to be daring Israel to attack, either because Iran's leaders do not believe Israel is in fact prepared to attack and are calling its bluff or because they think an Israeli attack would fail to do significant damage to its nuclear facilities. Iran’s new threats come at a sensitive time when senior Israeli officials may be on the brink of deciding whether to attack. They will certainly influence Israel's decision, as will a forthcoming UN report that is expected to show that Iran's nuclear program is accelerating.”
From : LIGNET (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)
Please keep the Iran-Israeli stand-off in your prayers. This is especially dangerous and could lead to a wider regional or even world war of great destruction. Let’s watch over this situation with vigilance.