I felt in my spirit so grieved to feel how it seemed to signify such a deep fatal crack in the true liberty and freedom of our nation. (National Park Service Photo/Public Domain)
Recently I was revisited with a vision I had of our nation in 1996. Out of nowhere came a vision of the Liberty Bell. My attention was naturally drawn to the crack in the bell. I felt in my spirit so grieved to feel how it seemed to signify such a deep fatal crack in the true liberty and freedom of our nation. Could that breach ever be repaired?
Why wasn’t at least the physical defect of the bell ever filled in with more metal? Would the bell’s scar be prophetic, representing our nation’s fatal epitaph—unchangeable like the Grand Canyon engraved into Arizona’s landscape? If only the crack were not there. I felt mesmerized by it. For the longest time my eyes could not move, nor could my eyelids even blink.
Suddenly, Like a Dam Bursting
Then suddenly, as in a twinkling of an eye, the brightest light pierced through that crack like a dam bursting. My head immediately turned away from the brightness emanating out of that crack. Instantly I had a knowing that this was the very shekinah glory of God.
From the Intercessions of God’s People
Looking away from its brightness, I saw a large rope that was attached to the bell. This rope was intertwined and braided. It seemed to be made out of the prayers and intercessions of God’s people. The hand of the Lord began to reach down toward this rope to get a hold of it.
The Lord then spoke, “This Liberty Bell is going to ring again.”
I then remembered the words inscribed on that Bell: “Proclaim LIBERTY throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants thereof.” It was now a rhema word from God.
In the Spirit, I had a knowing that the Liberty Bell would be heard again spiritually throughout Philadelphia and across the nation. And with the sound of liberty, the shekinah glory of God would begin to rise up out of obscurity and be seen even in the gross dark places of our nation. Concerning this vision, the Lord spoke, “Have My people forgotten that all things are possible?”
Tradition holds that the Bell cracked while it was being rung during a funeral service in memory of a sheriff. Prophetically, it will ring again for the life and the glory of a King who still lives in our land.
Can you hear the bell ringing?
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Civilians evacuate from the scene of an explosion in KM4 street in the Hodan district of Mogadishu, Somalia Oct. 14, 2017. (Reuters/Feisal Omar)
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Editor’s Note: Somalia authorities and hospital sources have since confirmed that the death toll has risen to 189 since the writing of this story.
The death toll from twin bomb blasts that struck busy junctions in the heart of Somalia’s capital Mogadishu has jumped to 85, making it one of the deadliest attacks since an Islamist insurgency began in 2007.
President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo declared three days of national mourning and called for donations of blood and funds to victims of Saturday’s attack. At least 100 others were wounded.
Police said a truck bomb exploded outside a hotel in the K5 intersection that is lined with government offices, restaurants and kiosks, flattening several buildings and setting dozens of vehicles on fire.
Two hours later, another blast struck the capital’s Medina district.
“The number of dead has risen to 85. We know some 100 who were injured,” Mohamed Hussein, a police official, told Reuters, giving combined figures of casualties. He said the toll was likely to rise. Police previously said 22 people had died.
On Sunday, police and emergency workers searched the rubble of destroyed buildings. They also recovered dozens of corpses the night before, most of which were charred beyond recognition.
Hundreds of people came to the junction in search of missing family members and police cordoned off the area for security reasons.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility, although the Islamist militant group al Shabaab, which is allied to al Qaeda, stages regular attacks in the capital and other parts of the country.
The group is waging an insurgency against the U.N.-backed government and its African Union allies in a bid to topple the weak administration and impose its own strict interpretation of Islam.
The militants controlled Mogadishu between 2007 and 2011 but withdrew as fighting raged. African Union peacekeepers also drove them out of most other territory they controlled.
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Nigel Williams from Southampton said he would be prepared to do work for Joanne Lockwood, but refused to do work for her business, SEE Change Happen.
According to the business’s website, it specialises on “equality, diversity and inclusion advice and services to organisations and business” with its primary focus is on LGBT+ support.
The Christian Institute, which is supporting Williams, said he and Joanne Lockwood met for the first time at a weekly business event on 5th September, in which Williams spoke to attendees about his Christian faith.
The charity said the two met for the second time at the same business event on 26th September and later that day, Williams received an email from Lockwood enquiring about a possible order for a “business venture promoting a particular model of diversity”.
Williams declined her request via email because he did not want to promote a cause which he believes may marginalise Christians.
According to The Times, Lockwood has been living as a trans woman since January and was “gobsmacked” at his reply.
She told the paper: “I was not expecting a lecture. I disbelieved this could happen in 2017. I have been distraught and cried and my wife consoled me.”
A spokesman for the Christian Institute said: “For years we’ve warned of growing hostility towards people with mainstream Christian views. The terms ‘equality’, ‘diversity’ and ‘tolerance’ have been twisted out of all recognition in an attempt to marginalise, shame and punish Christian people.
“Nigel Williams made it crystal clear that he would be prepared to do work for Jo Lockwood. Indeed, his email said: ‘I am very happy to print for you’. However, he was not prepared to do work for a business that actively promoted a cause which might impact negatively on those with a Christian faith’ ”.
The Christian Institute has called this situation “chilling” and “unnecessary”.
The charity pointed out that the dispute is similar to that of Christian-owned Ashers Baking Co., which went to court after declining to decorate a cake with a pro same-sex marriage campaign slogan.
Aidan O’Neill, leading barrister for the case, said such disputes open “the floodgates” for more, citing a Christian baker refusing to take an order to make a cake celebrating Satanism, and a printing company run by Roman Catholics declining an order to produce adverts calling for abortion on demand to be legalised.
He said: “It is a fundamental tenet of free speech and freedom of belief that people should not be forced to help promote causes flatly contrary to their own deeply-held views.”
Premier has asked SEE Change Happen for a comment.
Do you feel like you’re walking through the valley of the shadow of death? (Pixabay/DanielReche)
Do you feel like you’re walking through the valley of the shadow of death? It can feel like the loneliest and scariest place. I know that valley well. I’ve walked through it in different seasons of life, and I’ve learned that it’s something we’re supposed to do just that in—walk. We’re supposed to walk until we’re out of it.
I learned this the hard way in a season right after Kathy and I got married. I made the mistake of camping out in the valley for three years, not because I wanted to, but because I had been taught that Christians could not be demonized. This teaching set me up to war against my flesh instead of the spirits that were attacking me every day. The truth is that the spiritual realm is real, and angels and demons are very active on the earth, whether we see them or not.
My Story of Hell on Earth
While Kathy was fighting her way through her pregnancy, I was carrying tons of responsibility at the shop. I worked 12 hours a day, six days a week and rarely stopped to eat lunch. Consequently, my diet consisted mostly of candy bars, Coke and potato chips. One night, exhausted from a long, hard week of work, I got in the bathtub to relax my tired body while Kathy lay sick on the sofa. As I started to get out of the tub to dry off an intense thought hit me: I am going to die.
Like everyone else in the world, bad thoughts were not foreign to me, but this was different. This thought was so strong that it caused panic to rush through my whole being like stampeding cattle! My entire body began to tremble as my heart pounded out of my chest and my pulse raced uncontrollably. All my strength drained from my limbs, and I struggled to get out of the tub. I fell back into the water, shouting desperately for Kathy to help me. Eight months pregnant, she strained to help me out of the bathtub and onto the couch. Then she ran into the kitchen to call our family doctor. He relayed a few questions to me through Kathy and concluded that I was having a panic attack, not a heart attack. Little did I know that this was the beginning of a three-and-a-half-year journey through hell.
Touring Hell and Calling for Heaven
The panic attacks continued, turning into endless, tormenting nightmares. Horrible images filled my mind as I imagined terrible things happening to me or envisioned myself doing dreadful acts. Although I knew in my heart that these images and thoughts were illusions, they still felt so real. I often wondered if I was losing my mind.
Finally, Kathy and I decided to quit our jobs and move up into the mountains to find a slower pace of life. We relocated to Lewiston, California, a town of about 900 people way up in the Trinity Alps. As time passed, the fear intensified, affecting every aspect of our lives.
Spiritual Attacks and a Prison Break
Two more years passed with no relief. Then, just when I thought it could not get any worse, I began to experience demonic visitations. Demons would literally come into our room at night and torment me. Lights went on and off, and pictures spontaneously fell off the wall. The phone rang every few minutes with people saying crazy things on the other end of the line. I am aware that many people do not believe in spirits, demons and angels, so this paragraph may be a little hard to swallow. But if you are reading this article and have had or are having these experiences, I hope you believe in them now.
By the third year of this terrible storm, Kathy had given birth to our second beautiful daughter, Shannon, but my life was becoming unbearable. Then, early one cold winter morning, something startling happened. I got up about 3:00 a.m., turned the stereo on low and lay down next to the speaker so I would not wake my family. We did not get very good radio reception in the mountains, but I thought I would try to find a late-night talk show to help get my mind off my condition. Finally, I tuned in to a preacher. The static was so bad that I could only make out about every third or fourth word of his message. Yet in the midst of the noise, I heard him say something that would forever change my life. He quoted Paul’s exhortation to Timothy: “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Tim. 1:7, NKJV). Then he went on to explain, “Fear is a spirit! Some of you are thinking you are going insane, but you are just listening to the spirit of insanity. Not all your thoughts are your own. Evil spirits talk to you by giving you their thoughts.”
I was stunned. I had been taught that Christians could be mentally ill but could not be demonized. What I did not realize until that night was that I had been educated right out of my solution.
I turned off the radio and asked Jesus what I should do. Immediately I heard a voice inside my spirit say, “You have been listening to the spirit of insanity and the spirit of fear. Tell them to leave you right now!” Lying on my back on the living room floor, I said in a quiet but confident voice, “You, spirit of fear, and you, spirit of insanity, get off me right now in Jesus’ name!”
I could not see anything, but suddenly, I felt something get up off my body. It physically felt like a lead blanket, the kind dentists use during X-rays, and it was being lifted off me. My shaking completely stopped, peace filled my soul, and my mind was clear again. Joy overwhelmed my heart, and I laughed out loud for the first time in more than three years. A miracle had happened in my life, and I was eager to tell Kathy and the world about it.
Learning to Stay Free
I knew I had experienced something incredible that night, yet I did not fully understand that I had received a real deliverance. What I experienced that night was not some kind of spiritual hype or psychosomatic occurrence. I was set free! I enjoyed complete freedom for more than a week. After three years of hell, it was amazing to be filled with peace. My joy returned, my appetite came back and all my physical symptoms disappeared. The demonic visitations left, and for the first time in years, I slept through the night.
But soon I encountered the harsh reality that getting free and staying free were two very different things. One dark, cold night, I was driving home from work in my jeep, winding through the forest on a narrow, unlit road that followed a wide creek. I was so excited about my newfound freedom that I shouted out loud; “I’m going to tell everyone about this—I’m going to help thousands of people get free!”
Just then, a voice in my mind shouted back, “If you tell anyone about this, I will kill you!”
Suddenly, all my symptoms returned. I had such a bad panic attack that I could not even drive. I pulled over into the ditch alongside the road. My heart was racing, and I was hyperventilating.
Then a quiet, yet powerful voice asked me a question: “Does the devil hate you?”
I knew instinctively it was the Holy Spirit speaking to me. “Yes!” I responded in my mind.
“Then why didn’t he kill you when you got saved?” the voice pressed.
“I don’t know,” I replied, still trying to gain my composure.
“Because he can’t! He has no power over you unless you give it to him,” the voice insisted.
Peace began to seep back into my soul, and the anxiety slowly lifted over the next few minutes.
I began to shout again, “I’m free! I’m free!”
That scene repeated itself many times over the next several years as I learned little by little how to stay free and keep my peace.
Who’s the Enemy?
It’s so important that we understand we are not warring against our old man, but against principalities. The war is finally won when you recognize that these thoughts are not your own and you resist them. Ephesians 6:10-13 says:
Finally, my brothers, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For our fight is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, and against spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
When we understand that our old man is dead, we don’t try to fight with him anymore.
Because these thoughts are manifestations of evil spirits and not just bad ideas, when you decide to resist them, it becomes a struggle—an intense battle for land in the spirit realm. Most people retreat or digress to try and find peace or solace instead of press in and defeat the enemy.
Spiritual Conflict
Spiritual conflicts most often occur when we advance into new territory that is inhabited by evil spirits. Much like Joshua’s promised land experience or Nehemiah’s rebuilding of the walls, the enemy defends his territory when we are pushing forward into the new land. Most Christians are completely unaware that these are real spirit wars, so they retreat at the first sign of conflict, failing to recognize the true source of the battle. It is important to understand that evil spirits attack by giving you compelling thoughts. In other words, they make you feel like you want to do them, even though they are the opposite of your history and nature. Then those same spirits accuse you for having these thoughts and feelings. If you believe these accusations, you lose confidence in yourself and God’s ability to keep you. This starts a spiral down into depression, anxiety and self-hatred.
Practical Warfare
A few things that are important to remember in these times are that these evil spirits have no power over you (even though it feels as though they do). Rather, you have power over them. Second, these battles come in waves, and they will not last forever. Remember: if it’s not good, it’s not the end. And finally, you probably did nothing wrong to cause this battle. As a matter of fact, you are most likely experiencing this battle because you are doing something right. Here are a few more things to hold onto while you walk through the valley:
Don’t be afraid, but instead remember the Lord. “After I looked around, I stood up and said to the nobles, the rulers, and the rest of the people, ‘Stop being terrified because of them! Remember instead that the Lord is great and awesome. So fight for each other—and for your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses'” (Neh. 4:14).
Remember the testimonies in your life. They are weapons of warfare. Fill yourself with faith by holding onto testimonies from other people’s lives too. Revelation 19:10c says, “The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” This means if God’s done it before, He can and will do it again.
Remember the work you are doing is noble. Nehemiah 6:3 says, “So I sent messengers to them, saying, ‘I am doing a great work, so I am not able to come down. Why should the work cease while I leave it and come down to you?'”
Remember who you are! The enemy will try and convince you that you are defeated, but the truth is that you are a victor! He’ll try and convince you that you’re the worst person in the world, but the truth is that you’re the apple of God’s eye, destined to change the world. Speak the truth about who you are over yourself with every assault that comes your way.
Trust Jesus to keep you. Jude 24 says, “Now to Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you blameless before the presence of His glory with rejoicing.”
Release the peace within you through singing and proclaiming Jesus. Remember the freedom within you will become the freedom around you. Acts 16:25-26 says, “At midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s shackles were loosened.”
No matter what, nothing can separate you from God’s love—not even the valley! “For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, neither angels nor principalities nor powers, neither things present nor things to come,neither height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 8:38-39).
Remember that God never leaves you, and He’s walking through the valley with you: “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me” (Ps. 23:4).
Keep Walking Today
This too shall pass. Even though we may feel crazy in the valley, we have been given a sound mind. Here again, we have to remind ourselves that how we feel isn’t always how we are. I want to encourage you with this verse: 2 Timothy 1:7 (NKJV) says, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” Hold onto this as you walk through the valley, and remember the goal is to keep walking. Don’t set up camp, and don’t give up.
I am praying today that you would have peace in this season, that God would protect you at night and that His voice would be the loudest one over you. I pray that irrational thoughts would be dissolved in Jesus’ name and that Holy Spirit would make clear the illusion and lie of the enemy. I pray that angels would surround you, and that the right people would come around you in this season.
If you’re struggling in the valley, I encourage you to listen to a message I recently preached at Bethel by clicking here. You can watch it free with your Bethel TV account. I have so much compassion for everyone who may be working through this, and I have so much hope that you can and will be free.
What are some things you do to make it through the valley? Let me know in the comments!
Kris Vallottonis the senior associate leader of Bethel Church in Redding, California and cofounder of Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry (BSSM). Kris travels internationally, training and equipping people to successfully fulfill their divine purpose. He’s a best-selling author, having written more than a dozen books and training manuals to help prepare believers for life in the kingdom. He has a diverse background in business, counseling, consulting, pastoring and teaching, which gives him unique leadership insights and perspectives. Kris has a passion to use his experience and his prophetic gift to assist world leaders in achieving their goals and accomplishing their mission.
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(Photo: Reuters/John Gress)A parishioner cries as he signs a song of worship in the 7,000-seat Willow Creek Community church during a Sunday service in South Barrington, Illinois, November 20, 2005.
Bill Hybels, the founder and Senior Pastor of Willow Creek Community Church, announced the names of two leaders who will take on new roles to replace the role of senior pastor as he transitions out of the church leadership next year.
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(Photo: Willow Creek Association)Bill Hybels speaks during the Willow Creek Association’s 2013 Global Leadership Summit.
Heather Larson, currently executive pastor, will step into the role of Lead Pastor over all Willow Creek locations, and Pastor Steve Carter, currently teaching pastor, will become Lead Teaching Pastor.
Senior Pastor Hybels, who founded the church in 1975, will continue coaching and developing the two until he steps down from his role as senior pastor in October 2018, when Willow Creek celebrates its 43rd anniversary. He will then assume the title Founding Pastor.
“We’re welcoming two tested, respected leaders who embrace our values to assume roles that fit their unique gifts and talents,” Hybels said. “The staff and congregation have been enthusiastic about their leadership, and I have every confidence that this new model — with these specific people at the helm — will help Willow continue to thrive as we move forward.”
Larson joined Willow’s staff about 20 years ago, and has taken on various leadership roles, mostly in the church’s compassion efforts, locally and internationally. Five years ago, Hybels asked her to step into the executive pastor role.
“Heather has flourished in every leadership role I’ve given her,” Hybels said. “Her impeccable character and significant leadership abilities make her one of the best church leaders I’ve ever known. In this new role as Lead Pastor over all Willow Creek locations, I have no doubt she will continue to lead our church into a fantastic future, following where God wants us to go.”
Carter joined Willow’s teaching team five years ago, after a 15-year mentoring relationship with Hybels. He has earlier worked with Rock Harbor Fullerton in California and two churches in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
“The greatest attributes Steve brings to this new role at Willow are his pure, genuine teaching gift and his deep love for people,” Hybels said. “He’s one of the most gifted communicators I’ve ever worked with, and he gets our church’s values.”
Hybels said he plans to “invest myself more fully into training and coaching church leaders around the world” through a Willow Creek Association, an international Christian ministry. He also wants to take The Global Leadership Summit, a movement of 400,000 leaders in 130 countries, to “some of the most under-resourced, oppressed countries in the world, where pastors and leaders are hungry to be developed.”
Hybels launched The Global Leadership Summit in 1995.
“My wife, Lynne, and I plan to remain part of the Willow Creek congregation,” he said. “I plan to use my gifts to serve the God I love, just as I’ve challenged each person in our church to use their gifts. I look forward to spending even more time with Lynne, our kids, and our grandkids — and I see a few sailing adventures on the horizon as well. It’s my deepest desire to live every day of my one and only life for the glory of God.”
Archbishop John visited five secondary schools where he met with religion, ethics and philosophy students, gave speeches, and participated in Q&A sessions.
He told Premier: “The young people were really unafraid to ask very serious and difficult questions, to ask who they are, where they come from, what about creation, what about science what about evolution.
He added: “It gives you a tremendous opportunity to talk about Jesus. One young person asked me what is it that attracted you to Jesus, so really it gives you a chance to talk about the Gospel. “
Archbishop John also spoke about healing at All Saints Church, Hunmanby and met with members of the fishing community.
It was part of three days of activities available in the area geared at inviting people to learn more about Jesus. It included a trip to Scarborough Fair at the Flower of May Holiday Park.
Rt Revd Alison White, Bishop of Hull along with members of the Parish offered to pray for shoppers and passers-by.
Rev Nigel Chapman of Filey said, “As Christians, prayer forms an important part of our life. Many people wander into church, Christians and non-Christians alike, asking us to pray for them. So we are simply going out onto the streets, offering to pray for people and in some small way show that we care”.
Listen to Archbishop of York, Dr. John Sentamu speaking with Premier’s Tola Mbakwe here:
Fast Facts: Gateway Church of Marysville began in 1954 as First Baptist Church of Marysville, and in the spring of 2015 the name was changed to Gateway Church of Marysville. Pastor Dallas Berry and Gateway Church have a passion to see all people come to faith in Christ by conversion and to become Christlike in conviction, character, conduct, commitment, and conversation.
The church is working toward the launch of the Gateway Initiative which includes Gateway House, a shelter for battered woman in domestic violence situations; Gateway DayCare; Gateway Latchkey; and Gateway Pre-school. Currently, MOPS (Mothers of pre-schoolers) has been a big outreach for the church. The program is in its second year with MOPS and is reaching more than 20 unchurched moms and families. Please pray that the moms at Gateway will be effective at reaching the moms who come to MOPS with the gospel. Also, please pray for their annual Harvest of Praise Sunday coming up on November 5th featuring pianist Jim Hendricks from Chicago.
Finally, Gateway Church has been through some tough times over the past couple of years. Please pray as they now move in the direction the Holy Spirit is leading them so that they will be effective in evangelizing the Blue Water Area through missional discipleship.
“Pray for . . .” is the Sunday blog series at ThomRainer.com. We encourage you to pray for these churches noted every Sunday. Please feel free to comment that you are praying as well.
Thirty of the saints proclaimed on Sunday are martyrs, including priests and lay people, who suffered anti-Catholic persecution in 1645 at the hands of Dutch Calvinists in Brazil.
Three more were children in 16th-century Mexico who were martyred for embracing the Catholic faith and refusing to return to their ancient conditions.
The remaining two saints were a priest in Spain in the last century and an Italian priest who died in 1739.
Francis, who became pontiff in 2013, has repeatedly paid tribute to Christians suffering or dying for their faith in current times, especially in the Middle East.
Topic: Practical Christianity — Monday 16, October 2017.
Memorise:For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings. – Hosea 6:6
Read: Psalm 51:12-18 (KJV)
12 Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.
13 Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee. 14 Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness.
15 O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise.
16 For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering.
17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.
18 Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion: build thou the walls of Jerusalem. Bible in One Year: Galatians 1-3, Daniel 8:1-14, Hymn: Sing Hymn 14 – Take My Life MESSAGE:
Going to church is not same as knowing God. There are many people in church today whose lifestyles do not reflect having any experiential knowledge of who God is. Furthermore, being involved in church activities is not the same as loving God. If you love God, it will show in the way you conduct the affairs of your life. God is a merciful God who desires the prosperity of His children, and He is in search of hearts that are longing for Him. God is calling us into an intimate knowledge of His son and His attributes. If you know God, the evidence will be seen in the way you relate with people around you. This includes your colleagues in the office as well as your neighbours at home. If your lifestyle does not match with God’s word, no matter how much you give to Him or the activities you engage in to impress Him, you will not find favour in His sight. The words of 1 Samuel 15:22 are very clear:
“…Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.”
Coming up next: Open Heavens 17 October 2017: Tuesday daily devotional by Pastor Adeboye – Enjoying The Services Of Angels
Some time ago, at a gathering of God’s people at the Redemption Camp, I had to tell everyone there that if you know you are not genuinely saved by the blood of the Lamb, there is no need to give any offering to God. God will not accept the offerings of sinners. It is an abomination before Him (Proverbs 15:8). Our lives must count for God first, before other things can follow suit.
God wants us to obey His voice and follow His word for our lives. He wants His children to all be true people who impact the lives of others positively. Living a godly life is all that God desires from us. When we live according to His standards, He will be pleased with all that we have to offer. Morality and rituals cannot grant us access to the mercy of God. Before the prodigal son could receive mercy, he had to come to his senses and amend his ways by going back to his father. God is longing for those who will praise Him in spirit and in truth. He is desperate for those who will magnify Him not for what they can get from Him but for who He is. Do you know that you can come before God with big offerings and yet stir up His anger? This will not be your lot in Jesus’ Name. No amount of sacrifice from us can equal His sacrifice for us. The scope of this sacrifice can be seen in these words of Romans 8:32:
“He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?”
Key Point: Obedience is better than sacrifice
Open Heavens Daily Devotional guide was written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, one of the largest evangelical church in the world and also the President of Christ the Redeemer’s Ministries.
iOpenHeavens is the electronic version of the Hard Copy. The Open Heavens devotional application is available across all mobile platforms and operating systems: iOS, Android, Blackberry, Nokia, Windows Mobile and PC.
Nigel Williams from Southampton said he would be prepared to do work for Joanne Lockwood, but refused to do work for her business, SEE Change Happen.
According to the business’s website, it specialises on “equality, diversity and inclusion advice and services to organisations and business” with its primary focus is on LGBT+ support.
The Christian Institute, which is supporting Williams, said he and Joanne Lockwood met for the first time at a weekly business event on 5th September, in which Williams spoke to attendees about his Christian faith.
The charity said the two met for the second time at the same business event on 26th September and later that day, Williams received an email from Lockwood enquiring about a possible order for a “business venture promoting a particular model of diversity”.
Williams declined her request via email because he did not want to promote a cause which he believes may marginalise Christians.
According to The Times, Lockwood has been living as a trans woman since January and was “gobsmacked” at his reply.
She told the paper: “I was not expecting a lecture. I disbelieved this could happen in 2017. I have been distraught and cried and my wife consoled me.”
A spokesman for the Christian Institute said: “For years we’ve warned of growing hostility towards people with mainstream Christian views. The terms ‘equality’, ‘diversity’ and ‘tolerance’ have been twisted out of all recognition in an attempt to marginalise, shame and punish Christian people.
“Nigel Williams made it crystal clear that he would be prepared to do work for Jo Lockwood. Indeed, his email said: ‘I am very happy to print for you’. However, he was not prepared to do work for a business that actively promoted a cause which might impact negatively on those with a Christian faith’ ”.
The Christian Institute has called this situation “chilling” and “unnecessary”.
The charity pointed out that the dispute is similar to that of Christian-owned Ashers Baking Co., which went to court after declining to decorate a cake with a pro same-sex marriage campaign slogan.
Aidan O’Neill, leading barrister for the case, said such disputes open “the floodgates” for more, citing a Christian baker refusing to take an order to make a cake celebrating Satanism, and a printing company run by Roman Catholics declining an order to produce adverts calling for abortion on demand to be legalised.
He said: “It is a fundamental tenet of free speech and freedom of belief that people should not be forced to help promote causes flatly contrary to their own deeply-held views.”
Premier has asked SEE Change Happen for a comment.
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