Topic: Joy in Sorrow [Thursday October 19, 2017] In the day when I cried, [you] answered me, and strengthened me … — Psalm 138:3
At some time in life all of us feel the loneliness of sorrow. Mary and Martha were saddened by the death of their brother, Lazarus, and Martha said to Jesus, “If you had been here, my brother would not have died.” Theirs was a loneliness of sorrow. The shortest verse in the Bible tells us that at the tomb of Lazarus “Jesus wept.” He enters into our sorrows. When we come to Jesus Christ, He does not promise to exempt us from trouble or sorrow. Tears will come, but deep inside there will be a joy that is difficult to explain to you. It is a joy from God—produced by the Holy Spirit. In the midst of trials and agony and tears which come to us all, a supernatural power is given out, producing joy. Prayer for the day:Your comfort in times of sorrow, loving Lord Jesus, enfolds me, giving light and hope in my darkness.
Written by Billy Graham, Founder of Billy Graham Evangelistic Association(BGEA). BGEA exists to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ by every effective means and to equip the church and others to do the same.
Topic: Our Comfort Is In Eternity – Thursday October 19, 2017.
John 14:2“In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.”
Text: John 14:2
This is Jesus’ last teaching to His disciples before His crucifixion. Jesus’ disciples were about to go through the greatest test of their faith that they had ever encountered. Jesus said that He was saying these things so His disciples would not be offended. Jesus was preparing them for what was to come. Why then speak of preparing them a mansion in heaven? The reason for this was to comfort the disciples and help them put things in perspective. In 1 Thessalonians 4:18, Paul tells us to comfort one another with words about being gathered unto the Lord in the air. Paul said again, “I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Rom. 8:18). Someday, all of our trials will seem like nothing and this can be a great comfort to us now. Also, when we think about being with the Lord through all eternity, it helps us to put things in proper perspective. It is easy to get fearful about our problems and think all is lost. However, for those of us who are born again, if worse comes to worse, we still have the promise of Jesus wiping all the tears from our eyes and preparing a habitation for us where all our former sorrows will have passed away. This keeps us from despairing and makes us much stronger in our faith.
In heaven, there are many dwelling places and Jesus is preparing one for us.
The thing that is going to make heaven “heaven” is the fact that we will be with Jesus. No doubt, there will be things to see and do that will be wonderful, but nothing will compare to being with the one who loved us and died for us. A preoccupation with the details of what things will be like in heaven is missing the point.
This message was written by The Association of Related Ministries International (ARMI) is an extension of Andrew Wommack Ministries (AWM). ARMI is a unique partnership committed to providing resources to help like-minded ministers succeed in a spirit of excellence and to draw from the experience and expertise of both the AWM and Charis Bible College staff. (www.awmi.net).
Topic — World Vigil Day: Evil Eyes Must Go Blind Tonight! [Thursday, October 19, 2017] Basic Scripture: 1 Samuel 18: 1-15
Vs. 9 of today’s Scripture says: “And Saul eyed David from that day and forward.” Saul eyed David, your spiritual grandfather, and there is also a Saul eyeing you today!
Mt 26: 16 says: “And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him.” Judas was looking for an opportunity to betray Jesus! Receive this prophetic word now: Evil opportunity finders shall die! Those looking for your own fall shall weep! Those looking for your star shall end in darkness! Mk. 12:13 says also: “And they sent unto him certain of the Pharisees and of the Herodians, to catch him in his words.” Ps. 35;8 says: “Let destruction come upon him at unawares; and let his net that he hath hid catch himself: into that very destruction let him fall.”Those planning to catch you shall fall into their own evil net as 2017 ends! Join all ODM users tonight and pray from 12 midnight – 1am . Angels will be in action for you! Those eyeing you shall suffer! It’s a day and night of vengeance against evil eyes! Pray the prayers below NOW and 12 midnight – 1am tonight!
Prayer Points: Take any song of power and authority.
1. Read Psa. 35:8 and pray: Every evil net set against my feet, catch them that set it in Jesus name.
2. I command by a decree: Every evil pit which my enemies have dug for my feet, they shall fall into it in Jesus name.
3. Saul eyed David! I command by a decree: Every evil eye peeping into my future and my star, go blind by fire in Jesus name!
4. Saul eyed David! I command by a decree: Every eye peeping into my progress to cause my demotion or death, go blind by fire in Jesus name. Owners of evil pit, fall into them in Jesus name.
5. Saul eyed David! I command by a decree: Every eye peeping into my life, family, career and ministry, you must end up in shame by fire in Jesus name.
6. Saul eyed David! I command by a decree: Every eye peeping into my throne and decoration season, to cause demotion or death, go blind by fire in Jesus name.
7. Every evil eye, monitoring my career; die in Jesus name.
8. Saul eyed David! I command by a decree: Every evil eye peeping into my children and helpers, to cause their demotion or death, go blind by fire in Jesus name (Mention their names now).
9. I command the headquarters of manufacturers of reproach ; scatter by fire in Jesus name.
10. I command by a Holy Ghost decree: Every evil eyes waiting to catch me at my words you shall see my glory hour and die in Jesus name. Evil traps return to sender in Jesus name!
11. I command by a Holy Ghost decree: Every evil opportunity finder waiting to betray my life, family and ministry, die in your search by fire in Jesus name! Amen!
By Bishop (Dr) Chris E. Kwakpovwe (Cek) Publisher/Writer Of ODM And Rev (Mrs) Flora E. Kwakpovwe (Fek) Co-Publisher/Writer Of ODM.
Topic: We’ve Got the Power! — Thursday October 19, 2017.
Read: Romans 7:14–25, Bible in a Year: Isaiah 56–58; 2 Thessalonians 2 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Galatians 5:25
The loud crackling noise startled me. Recognizing the sound, I raced to the kitchen. I’d accidently tapped the start button on the empty coffee maker. Unplugging the appliance, I grabbed the handle of the carafe. Then I touched the bottom of the container to ensure it wasn’t too hot to place on the tile counter. The smooth surface burned my fingertips, blistering my tender skin. As my husband nursed my wound, I shook my head. I knew the glass would be hot. “I honestly do not know why I touched it,” I said.
My response after making such a mistake reminded me of Paul’s reaction to a more serious issue in Scripture—the nature of sin.
The apostle admits to not knowing why he does things he knows he shouldn’t do and doesn’t want to do (Rom. 7:15). Affirming that Scripture determines right and wrong (v. 7), he acknowledges the real, complex war constantly waging between the flesh and the spirit in the struggle against sin (vv. 15–23). Confessing his own weaknesses, he offers hope for victory now and forever (vv. 24–25).
When we surrender our lives to Christ, He gives us His Holy Spirit who empowers us to choose to do right (8:8–10). As He enables us to obey God’s Word, we can avoid the searing sin that separates us from the abundant life God promises those who love Him.
Prayer: Lord, thanks for breaking the chains that used to bind us to a life controlled by our sinful nature.
The Holy Spirit transforms us through His love and by His grace. Insight:
In Romans 7 the apostle Paul laments that sinful tendencies within us sometimes win out over righteous impulses. In what ways can we yield to the Holy Spirit’s power to experience more righteous living?
This message was written By Xochitl Dixon [Our Daily Bread Ministries.]
Topic: Our God Is A Many-Sided God — Thursday October 19, 2017.
“And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty,but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them.” Exodus 6:3
The bible is not careful to tell us God’s origin. It is a case of take it or leave it. In the beginning God! God is the beginning that began the beginning. He doesn’t have to tell you where he is from. In the beginning God, you either accept it or nothing. He spoke things into existence. That is why you can’t study him. You know him by revelation. The more you make him the subject of your pursuit, the more of himself he will reveal to you. In the scriptures, he is revealed as Saviour. But while you are still grappling with the fact that he is the Saviour, he shows another side of himself. He reveals that he is not just the Saviour, but the healer. While you are still grappling with that, he reveals himself as the Great Provider. Beloved, you become what you behold of Him. That is why you must keep on serving him. You cannot discover who God is just by one shot at it. You must keep on following him. There is no retirement and there are no holidays. It is a continuous process. And that is what keeps you at the cutting edge because he keeps revealing different facets of himself to you.
This God is our deliverer. He is our peace. He is the most high God, El Elyon. He’s the mighty God, El Gibor. He’s El Olam, the Everlasting God. He keeps on revealing different parts of himself as you keep on pursuing. So you cannot know him just because of one encounter. You meditate and meditate on his word until you become the word, and the word is made flesh and you behold his glory. You cannot behold his glory until the word becomes flesh in your life. Further reading: John 1:1-14, Exodus 3:13-16
Written by Dr. Mike Okonkwo; Is the Presiding Bishop of The Redeemed Evangelical Mission (TREM); a versatile man of God with over 30 years of dedicated service unto the Lord.
Key Verse: “Thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year” (Deuteronomy 14:22).
“If you want only net blessings, pay on the net. If you want gross blessings, by all means, pay on the gross,” Seve Steward wrote in his article: Yes, God’s Word Is Clear. “When we consider giving a tenth of our net [income] versus our gross [income], we are really asking, ‘How much can I give without giving too much? This kind of nonverbal response is rooted in selfish nature that resists God’s request that we help build his kingdom by giving to our local church.” Our text reveals one of the Old Testament concepts that was sustained by the new covenant in Christ. And so, the misconceptions surrounding its veracity are totally unnecessary. Tithing required that the Israelites give 10 percent of the crops they grew and the livestock they raised, to the temple. The law also required multiple tithes which included one each for the Levites, the use of the temple and the feasts, and the poor of the land. Our text also points to a set of categories which must needs be affected by our piety: the Levites (full or part-time ministers in the house of the Lord); the strangers (within and without the Church); as well as the destitute.
These all make up the family of God, and should be treated as such. The destination of our tithe, it must be noted, is clearly elucidated in our text to be where “…the Lord thy God shall choose to set His name there”. In our dispensation, the local Church where we receive spiritual nourishment should be deemed appropriate to receive the tithe.
Tithes and offerings should be given with pure motives and reverent attitude of worship to the Lord for His innumerable mercies. You must make up your mind to obey God always. Do not give reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves and cherishes a cheerful giver. As you do so, you relive Christ’s sacrificial life here on earth till He comes.
Thought for the day: Gross Kingdom investments never yield net dividends.
Bible Reading in one Year: 2 Kings 16-17
DCLM Daily Manna was written by Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi; is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Life Bible Church situated at KM 42 on the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Nigeria.
Join us on the new C-Pop podcast where Taylor and Jessilyn discuss, debate and sometimes deride pop culture with a strong sense of humor and a focus on Christ. Listen at charismapodcastnetwork.com.
World famous supermodel Ashley Graham says her pastor follows her on Instagram, where she posts revealing photos of herself in swimsuits and lingerie.
“When I’m shooting lingerie or Sports Illustrated, I’m aware that my pastor follows me on Instagram. You should be the same person from the moment you wake up to when you go to bed,” Graham told Elle UK.
Graham, who was the first plus-size model to grace the cover of Sports Illustrated: Swimsuit Edition, revealed in a recent interview that she grew up in a Christian background.
“When I moved to New York, I got away from God. Then I realized that living here, you need something to keep you grounded or you’ll go crazy,” Graham says in the interview.
“I think that faith is definitely something that got me through the hard times in fashion. It got me through the hard times with body confidence, and the terrible decisions that I had made. My faith is something that brought me back to finding truth and value in who I am,” she says in another interview.
Graham and her husband, Justin Ervin, met at church in 2009, and they chose to abstain from sex until they were married.
In an excerpt from her book posted to Glamour, Graham writes:
Eventually I joined a church. I didn’t go there to find a boyfriend; I truly wasn’t looking for anyone other than the person I wanted to be. One Sunday my volunteer position was to stand in the elevator welcoming people, passing out candy and pushing the button to the eighth floor. When two tall men walked in, I didn’t bat an eye. One nudged the other and said, “If you don’t talk to her, I will.” His friend left the elevator, but he stayed on.
I shrugged. This guy wasn’t my type. With his short hair, ill-fitting, baggy Old Navy jeans, white Hanes T-shirt, and Converse sneakers, he exuded a major nerd factor. But there was something sweet about Justin, and I was at church, so I had to be polite. He rode up and down with me a few times, and he seemed to be looking into my soul when we talked. He was smart and funny and had traveled the world. So I agreed to go out for coffee. …
My romance with Justin was innocent and sweet. He cooked for me. We went rollerblading and biking; we did karaoke, went to the movies, took an improv class together. Because we weren’t sleeping together—for Justin, abstinence was a firm commitment to his faith—we never tempted ourselves by going over to each other’s apartments late at night. But we’d go to late movies or take walks through the city together. We had a spot on 14th Street and Seventh Avenue where we loved to sit and chat.
Jessilyn Justice is the director of online news for Charisma. Born and raised in a pastor’s family in Alabama, she attended Lee University and the Washington Journalism Center. She’s passionate about sharing God’s goodness through storytelling. Tell her what you think of this story on Twitter @jessilynjustice.
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REUTERS/Denis BalibouseLeaves are pictured on a warm autumn morning in Bursins, Switzerland, October 27, 2016.
Fall has definitely started at the Shenandoah National Park, coloring the foliage with a burst of red, orange and yellow.
According to the Shenandoah’s website, autumn hues are starting to pop up in different areas of the park, from Front Royal to Rockfish Gap. The maple tree in the Meadow Spring Parking at mile 33.5, for example, showcases a happy swirl of cherry, orange, and lime. Some of the sumacs have also started changing colors, while others have remained a deep green. Those found at the Spitler Knoll Overlook are especially dramatic, with an explosion of hues resembling the Mardi Gras feather boas.
Some of the maples located at the Swift Run Gap are also reportedly transitioning from lime to golden to scarlet, while the leaves of the hickories and birches at the Park’s South District are turning orange. The trees that are putting up a show this week, however, are sassafras. The ones near Calf Mountain Overlook, about seven miles from Skyline Drive’s southern, are reportedly glowing a luminous light red.
“The scene-stealer this week, though, is sassafras. Sassafras trees, like sumacs, are the mood rings of the Appalachian woods. In the Park this week you can see the whole gamut of sassafras shades – single trees glittering jewel-tones of both crimson and green, startling as mangoes in every stage of ripeness, or dressing themselves in classic monotones like auburn, paprika, and Velveeta orange,” the website describes.
This year’s fall is noticeably different from the usual, according to the Washington Post. The temperature is too warm and there is hardly any rain. These anomalies are said to be the reasons why the autumn colors are slow to arrive.
In Pennsylvania, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources has already warned the citizens that the usual burst of fall hues might not be as brilliant this year. Still, reports indicate that the foliage at the farther north of the state has reached peak colors, while other areas are bound to change soon.
The graffiti was daubed across Waverley Baptist Church in Melbourne. (Coalition for marriage Australia/Christian Institute)
Join us on our podcast each weekday for an interesting story, well told, from Charisma News. Listen at charismapodcastnetwork.com.
Christians who hold a biblical view of marriage are “bigots” and should be “crucified,” according to same-sex marriage supporters who vandalized churches in Australia.
Last week, two churches in Melbourne were daubed with graffiti, including a Nazi swastika.
It is the latest in a string of reports of abuse suffered by marriage supporters in the country. In recent weeks, a mother received death threats and a Christian lost her job simply for expressing opposition to the redefinition of marriage.
‘Disturbing and Concerning’
Pastor Drew Mellor of Glen Waverley Anglican Church said the graffiti left older parishioners fearing for their safety.
Following the incident, the church released a lengthy statement outlining its belief in a biblical view on marriage—that it is the union of one man and one woman.
And David O’ Brien, Senior Pastor of Waverley Baptist Church (the other church that was vandalized), said the incident was “disturbing and concerning.”
Intolerance
Coalition for Marriage (Australia) said both incidents exposed the intolerant attitude of same-sex marriage supporters.
Speaking for the group, Monica Doumit said: “One thing that this process has revealed is that, despite the rhetoric, ‘Yes’ campaigners do not actually believe in a tolerant society, where people are allowed to ‘live and let live.’
“Rather, they will target those who disagree for abuse, for boycott, or for some other type of punishment.”
Abuse
Mother Cella White received “relentless” abuse online after appearing in an Australian TV advert encouraging people to vote against redefining marriage.
“I knew it was a touchy subject so I was well aware of the backlash to likely come my way by taking part in the ad, but it’s hostile out there.”
But despite the abuse, the mother of four said it has not stopped her from voicing her opinion on the issue.
‘It’s OK to Vote No’
And an 18-year-old was dismissed from her job for publicly sharing her opposition to same-sex marriage on Facebook, after she changed her profile picture to say “It’s OK to vote no.”
Madeline, who is a Christian, was working as a contractor for Capital Kids’ Parties in Canberra.
Her employer, Madlin Sims, said this was “homophobic” and could not be tolerated.
The country is currently holding a postal vote answering the question: “Should the law be changed to allow same-sex couples to marry?”
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Muslim children (WikiImages/Pixabay/Public Domain)
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Massachusetts high school students pretended to be Muslims in the “Islamic” city of Jerusalem as part of a class assignment used in Newton Public Schools to teach about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, a new report revealed.
One father was particularly upset when he discovered his daughter had been assigned what he described as an inflammatory pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel article, according to the report. The man was allegedly told by the school’s principal that lessons the next year would be even more upsetting to him.
The class assignment, “Cities: Connecting the Islamic Word,” was published in an excerpt from a book by CAMERA, the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting.
“As our concluding project on the Islamic world, you will work in groups to simulate a historical hajj (pilgrimage) to Mecca in class,” a teacher wrote in the assignment description. “Each of you will be part of a group of Muslim pilgrims from one of the following eight Islamic cities or regions, around a rough time period.”
One of the eight “Islamic” cities is Jerusalem, and students are instructed to set up a “tent,” which will display newspaper articles about “their” cities and cultural artifacts to represent their Islamic “hometowns.”
“Citizens of Newton have been waging a minor war with school officials for years now, trying to get them to use balanced curriculum in their teaching materials on the subject of Islam and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” Judicial Watch Senior Investigator Bill Marshall told Fox News.
Marshall detailed his investigation, alongside chairman of Citizens for National Security Dr. Bill Saxton, in an op-ed for the American Thinker. The results of the research compiled by Saxton and Marshall were used in the CAMERA report.
Newton parents and residents contacted Saxton, who heads CFNS, a Florida-based research organization that vets textbooks for factual accuracy to get them corrected or removed. Saxton spearheaded the two-year effort with Marshall at Judicial Watch to get the release of nearly 600 pages of teaching material from the Newton Public Schools.
Saxton told Fox News the Newton school board and superintendent were “very uncooperative” and “non-transparent” regarding what was in their textbooks.
“I’m not sure we got everything,” Saxton said. “[But] we got so much damning material to go ahead with it.”
He added: “Parents and grandparents have absolutely no idea what their children and grandchildren are reading and hearing in school about history and geography. How many of them have read or looked at their textbooks, for example?”
Marshall said the teaching materials “use as little, if any material on the violent history of Islam.” In one lesson plan on the “Spread of Islam,” the teacher’s notes indicate Muslim conquerors acted “decently” to their subjects.
“When you hear so much caterwauling from the left about religion being mixed in the school, it’s a little troubling when kids are being asked to go on an imaginary hajj,” Marshall said.
Saxton called it an example of a “purposeful attempt to indoctrinate our impressionable high-schoolers with the ‘virtues’ of Islam at the expense of Christianity, Judaism and other religions.”
Newton Public Schools did not respond to a request for comment.
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