PODCAST: Whyte House Daily Devotional Bible Reading Episode #85: Leviticus 26, Psalm 52, and Acts 11 (with Daniel Whyte III)

This is Daniel Whyte III, president of Gospel Light Society International with the Whyte House Daily Devotional Bible Reading Episode #85. Where I read three chapters of the Holy Bible in the King James Version a day with my family as a part of our family devotions, to encourage you to read the Holy Bible in a year’s time. We are using a modified version of the Five Day Bible Reading Plan. It is modified because we read the Bible everyday and not just five days a week. The benefit of using the Five Day Bible Reading Plan is: you can read the entire Bible in a chronological reading plan that helps the Bible make sense. Today we are reading Leviticus 26, Psalm 52 and Acts 11.

John Quincy Adams said, “I speak as a man of the world to men of the world; and I say to you, Search the Scriptures! The Bible is the book of all others, to be read at all ages, and in all conditions of human life; not to be read once or twice or thrice through, and then laid aside, but to be read in small portions of one or two chapters every day, and never to be intermitted, unless by some overruling necessity.”

Someone said, “Reading the Bible without meditating on it is like trying to eat without swallowing.”

Leviticus 26
1 Ye shall make you no idols nor graven image, neither rear you up a standing image, neither shall ye set up any image of stone in your land, to bow down unto it: for I am the Lord your God.

2 Ye shall keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the Lord.

3 If ye walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them;

4 Then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit.

5 And your threshing shall reach unto the vintage, and the vintage shall reach unto the sowing time: and ye shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely.

6 And I will give peace in the land, and ye shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid: and I will rid evil beasts out of the land, neither shall the sword go through your land.

7 And ye shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword.

8 And five of you shall chase an hundred, and an hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight: and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.

9 For I will have respect unto you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you, and establish my covenant with you.

10 And ye shall eat old store, and bring forth the old because of the new.

11 And I set my tabernacle among you: and my soul shall not abhor you.

12 And I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people.

13 I am the Lord your God, which brought you forth out of the land of E’-gypt, that ye should not be their bondmen; and I have broken the bands of your yoke, and made you go upright.

14 But if ye will not hearken unto me, and will not do all these commandments;

15 And if ye shall despise my statutes, or if your soul abhor my judgments, so that ye will not do all my commandments, but that ye break my covenant:

16 I also will do this unto you; I will even appoint over you terror, consumption, and the burning ague, that shall consume the eyes, and cause sorrow of heart: and ye shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it.

17 And I will set my face against you, and ye shall be slain before your enemies: they that hate you shall reign over you; and ye shall flee when none pursueth you.

18 And if ye will not yet for all this hearken unto me, then I will punish you seven times more for your sins.

19 And I will break the pride of your power; and I will make your heaven as iron, and your earth as brass:

20 And your strength shall be spent in vain: for your land shall not yield her increase, neither shall the trees of the land yield their fruits.

21 And if ye walk contrary unto me, and will not hearken unto me; I will bring seven times more plagues upon you according to your sins.

22 I will also send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children, and destroy your cattle, and make you few in number; and your high ways shall be desolate.

23 And if ye will not be reformed by me by these things, but will walk contrary unto me;

24 Then will I also walk contrary unto you, and will punish you yet seven times for your sins.

25 And I will bring a sword upon you, that shall avenge the quarrel of my covenant: and when ye are gathered together within your cities, I will send the pestilence among you; and ye shall be delivered into the hand of the enemy.

26 And when I have broken the staff of your bread, ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and they shall deliver you your bread again by weight: and ye shall eat, and not be satisfied.

27 And if ye will not for all this hearken unto me, but walk contrary unto me;

28 Then I will walk contrary unto you also in fury; and I, even I, will chastise you seven times for your sins.

29 And ye shall eat the flesh of your sons, and the flesh of your daughters shall ye eat.

30 And I will destroy your high places, and cut down your images, and cast your carcases upon the carcases of your idols, and my soul shall abhor you.

31 And I will make your cities waste, and bring your sanctuaries unto desolation, and I will not smell the savour of your sweet odours.

32 And I will bring the land into desolation: and your enemies which dwell therein shall be astonished at it.

33 And I will scatter you among the heathen, and will draw out a sword after you: and your land shall be desolate, and your cities waste.

34 Then shall the land enjoy her sabbaths, as long as it lieth desolate, and ye be in your enemies’ land; even then shall the land rest, and enjoy her sabbaths.

35 As long as it lieth desolate it shall rest; because it did not rest in your sabbaths, when ye dwelt upon it.

36 And upon them that are left alive of you I will send a faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies; and the sound of a shaken leaf shall chase them; and they shall flee, as fleeing from a sword; and they shall fall when none pursueth.

37 And they shall fall one upon another, as it were before a sword, when none pursueth: and ye shall have no power to stand before your enemies.

38 And ye shall perish among the heathen, and the land of your enemies shall eat you up.

39 And they that are left of you shall pine away in their iniquity in your enemies’ lands; and also in the iniquities of their fathers shall they pine away with them.

40 If they shall confess their iniquity, and the iniquity of their fathers, with their trespass which they trespassed against me, and that also they have walked contrary unto me;

41 And that I also have walked contrary unto them, and have brought them into the land of their enemies; if then their uncircumcised hearts be humbled, and they then accept of the punishment of their iniquity:

42 Then will I remember my covenant with Ja’-cob, and also my covenant with I’-saac, and also my covenant with A’-bra-ham will I remember; and I will remember the land.

43 The land also shall be left of them, and shall enjoy her sabbaths, while she lieth desolate without them: and they shall accept of the punishment of their iniquity: because, even because they despised my judgments, and because their soul abhorred my statutes.

44 And yet for all that, when they be in the land of their enemies, I will not cast them away, neither will I abhor them, to destroy them utterly, and to break my covenant with them: for I am the Lord their God.

45 But I will for their sakes remember the covenant of their ancestors, whom I brought forth out of the land of E’-gypt in the sight of the heathen, that I might be their God: I am the Lord.

46 These are the statutes and judgments and laws, which the Lord made between him and the children of Is’-ra-el in mount Si’-nai by the hand of Mo’-ses.

Psalm 52
To the chief Musician, Mas’-chil, A Psalm of Da’-vid, when Do’-eg the E’-dom-ite came and told Saul, and said unto him, Da’-vid is come to the house of A-him’-e-lech.
1 Why boastest thou thyself in mischief, O mighty man? the goodness of God endureth continually.

2 The tongue deviseth mischiefs; like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.

3 Thou lovest evil more than good; and lying rather than to speak righteousness. Se’-lah.

4 Thou lovest all devouring words, O thou deceitful tongue.

5 God shall likewise destroy thee for ever, he shall take thee away, and pluck thee out of thy dwelling place, and root thee out of the land of the living. Se’-lah.

6 The righteous also shall see, and fear, and shall laugh at him:

7 Lo, this is the man that made not God his strength; but trusted in the abundance of his riches, and strengthened himself in his wickedness.

8 But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God: I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever.

9 I will praise thee for ever, because thou hast done it: and I will wait on thy name; for it is good before thy saints.

Acts 11
1 And the apostles and brethren that were in Ju-dae’-a heard that the Gen’-tiles had also received the word of God.

2 And when Pe’-ter was come up to Je-ru’-sa-lem, they that were of the circumcision contended with him,

3 Saying, Thou wentest in to men uncircumcised, and didst eat with them.

4 But Pe’-ter rehearsed the matter from the beginning, and expounded it by order unto them, saying,

5 I was in the city of Jop’-pa praying: and in a trance I saw a vision, A certain vessel descend, as it had been a great sheet, let down from heaven by four corners; and it came even to me:

6 Upon the which when I had fastened mine eyes, I considered, and saw fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air.

7 And I heard a voice saying unto me, Arise, Pe’-ter; slay and eat.

8 But I said, Not so, Lord: for nothing common or unclean hath at any time entered into my mouth.

9 But the voice answered me again from heaven, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.

10 And this was done three times: and all were drawn up again into heaven.

11 And, behold, immediately there were three men already come unto the house where I was, sent from Cae-sa-re’-a unto me.

12 And the Spirit bade me go with them, nothing doubting. Moreover these six brethren accompanied me, and we entered into the man’s house:

13 And he shewed us how he had seen an angel in his house, which stood and said unto him, Send men to Jop’-pa, and call for Si’-mon, whose surname is Pe’-ter;

14 Who shall tell thee words, whereby thou and all thy house shall be saved.

15 And as I began to speak, the Holy Ghost fell on them, as on us at the beginning.

16 Then remembered I the word of the Lord, how that he said, John indeed baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost.

17 Forasmuch then as God gave them the like gift as he did unto us, who believed on the Lord Je’-sus Christ; what was I, that I could withstand God?

18 When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, Then hath God also to the Gen’-tiles granted repentance unto life.

19 Now they which were scattered abroad upon the persecution that arose about Ste’-phen travelled as far as Phe-ni’-ce, and Cy’-prus, and An’-ti-och, preaching the word to none but unto the Jews only.

20 And some of them were men of Cy’-prus and Cy-re’-ne, which, when they were come to An’-ti-och, spake unto the Gre’-cians, preaching the Lord Je’-sus.

21 And the hand of the Lord was with them: and a great number believed, and turned unto the Lord.

22 Then tidings of these things came unto the ears of the church which was in Je-ru’-sa-lem: and they sent forth Bar’-na-bas, that he should go as far as An’-ti-och.

23 Who, when he came, and had seen the grace of God, was glad, and exhorted them all, that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord.

24 For he was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost and of faith: and much people was added unto the Lord.

25 Then departed Bar’-na-bas to Tar’-sus, for to seek Saul:

26 And when he had found him, he brought him unto An’-ti-och. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Chris’-tians first in An’-ti-och.

27 And in these days came prophets from Je-ru’-sa-lem unto An’-ti-och.

28 And there stood up one of them named Ag’-a-bus, and signified by the Spirit that there should be great dearth throughout all the world: which came to pass in the days of Clau’-di-us Cae’-sar.

29 Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren which dwelt in Ju-dae’-a:

30 Which also they did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Bar’-na-bas and Saul.

________

PRAY
________

When I was a teenager I wanted to get wisdom and knowledge, so I set out the read the big family Bible that many families had in those days. But I couldn’t get past Genesis 2 before I got bored with reading the Bible. I found out later in life that you have to believe on Christ and get saved before you can understand the Bible. So here is how I became a Christian and how you can too:

First, accept the fact that you are a sinner, and that you have broken God’s law. The Bible says in Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”

Second, accept the fact that there is a penalty for sin. The Bible states in Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death…”

Third, accept the fact that you are on the road to hell. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 18:8: “Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire.” Also, the Bible states in Revelation 21:8: “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”

Now that is bad news, but here’s the good news. Jesus Christ said in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Just believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead by the power of God for you so that you can live eternally with Him. Pray and ask Him to come into your heart today, and He will.

Romans 10:9 & 13 says, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved… For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

If you believe that Jesus Christ died on the Cross for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead, and you want to trust Him for your Salvation today, please pray with me this simple prayer: Holy Father God, I realize that I am a sinner and that I have done some bad things in my life. I am sorry for my sins, and today I choose to turn from my sins. For Jesus Christ sake, please forgive me of my sins. I believe with all of my heart that Jesus Christ died for me, was buried, and rose again. I trust Jesus Christ as my Savior and I choose to follow Him as Lord from this day forward. Lord Jesus, please come into my heart and save my soul and change my life today. Amen.

If you believed in your heart that Jesus Christ died on the Cross, was buried, and rose again, allow me to say, congratulations on doing the most important thing in life and that is accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour! For more information to help you grow in your newfound faith in Christ, go to Gospel Light Society.com and read “What To Do After You Enter Through the Door”. Jesus Christ said in John 10:9, “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.”

If you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior today, please email me at [email protected] and let us know. There is some free material that we want to send you. If you have a prayer request, please e-mail that to us as well, and we will pray for you until you tell us to stop.

God loves you. We love you. And may God bless you.

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Famine Looms as Exodus Like Plague of Locusts Wreaks Havoc across East Africa

Famine Looms as Exodus Like Plague of Locusts Wreaks Havoc across East Africa


Vast plagues of locusts have continued to spread across East Africa, causing many to fear that the infestation could usher in a large-scale famine.

The pests have been destroying everything in their path as they swarm across countries such as Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, and now South Sudan. Experts believe it is the largest plague to hit Kenya since the 1950s, with the locusts lingering and breeding as a result of an increase in rains and flooding last year. The swarms are so great, many are even comparing them to the plague of locusts dropped upon Egypt in the biblical book of Exodus.

Now, Christian charity World Vision – which partners with many countries across the region – has talked of the profound and devastating impact the swarms are having on local communities.

“[From what] I understand their appetite is quite huge,” World Vision’s regional director for humanitarian and emergency affairs in East Africa, Joseph Kamara, told The Christian Post. “A swarm eats more than elephants in terms of quantity. And that’s just one swarm. So if each locust lays about 900 eggs, you can imagine what that means.”

The United Nations has said that each swarm – made up of 150 million of the insects – can consume as much vegetation as 35,000 humans.

The most effective way of controlling the spread is to spray pesticide. Unfortunately, many of the affected countries do not have…

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Click here to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – Christian Headlines.

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China Appoints Hardliner Known for Crackdown Against Churches to Oversight Role in Hong Kong

Xia Baolong, a former deputy and ally of President Xi Jinping, has been appointed by the Chinese government as the new director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office. It’s a move seen by some political analysts that Beijing intends to tighten its control over the city.

The Guardian reports Xia’s reputation comes from his 2014 campaign to tear down thousands of Christian crosses and many underground churches in the Zhejiang province. Xia, 67, later took command of the province, serving as party secretary until 2017. 

Hong Kong saw months of anti-government protests drawing thousands of people over an extradition bill that would have required suspects to be sent to the mainland for trial. The city later withdrew the bill that sparked the protests – the most flagrant challenge to Beijing’s authority since the United Kingdom turned over its former colony to mainland rule in 1997. 

Willy Lam, an adjunct professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, told The Guardian Xia’s appointment is “bad news for Hong Kong”. 

“It signals that China will bring Hong Kong under closer scrutiny and tighten control over all aspects of the city,” he said.

Professor Ying Fuk Tsang, the director of the divinity school at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said the appointment of a close ally of Xi might also attempt to intensify ideological control in Hong Kong.

“He has a track record as a hardliner. If the central authorities want a crackdown, he would not spare any efforts,” he said. “This would definitely have an impact on Hong Kong’s civil society.”

After a key Chinese Communist Party meeting known as the Fourth Plenum last November, the party released a statement saying “National interest should take priority over the “two systems” policy that has allowed Hong Kong extensive autonomy since the handover from British colonial rule, and warned that it would not tolerate “any actions that split the country.”

As CBN News reported in November, Hong Kong’s pro-democracy opposition won a landslide victory in the district council elections, winning the majority of the vote for 452 district council seats. It was seen as a clear rebuke to city leader Carrie Lam over her handling of recent violent protests in the city.

Speculation has also swirled that Beijing may be preparing to replace Lam when matters settle down.

Meanwhile, oppression in the communist country continues on many levels. On Wednesday, China said it had revoked the press credentials of three The Wall Street Journal reporters over a headline for an opinion column deemed racist by the government.

The expulsions come after the Trump administration on Tuesday designated five state-run Chinese news outlets that operate in the United States as “foreign missions,” requiring them to register their properties and employees in the US. China said it reserves the right to respond to what it called a mistaken policy.

The headline on the Journal’s opinion column referred to the current virus outbreak in China and called the country the “Real Sick Man of Asia.”

Like most foreign media companies, The Journal is unavailable within China and its website and stories are blocked by online censors.

China has in recent years refused to issue or renew credentials for foreign journalists, but this is the first time in decades that it has actually revoked their documents, effectively expelling them from the country.

Source CBN

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SBC Removes Church with Convicted Sex Offender Pastor from National Body

SBC Removes Church with Convicted Sex Offender Pastor from National Body


The Southern Baptist Convention has ousted a Texas church from the denomination after it was revealed that the church’s long-time pastor was convicted of sexually assaulting pre-teen girls in the past.

According to the Houston Chronicle, Ranchland Heights Baptist Church pastor Phillip Rutledge was convicted of sexually assaulting two girls, ages 11 and 12, in 2003. Despite many church leaders and congregants being aware of Rutledge’s conviction, the church allowed him to preach at the church.

On Tuesday, however, under the SBC’s new sex abuse reform, Ranchland Heights Baptist Church officially became the first church to be removed from the SBC.

Ranchland Heights Baptist Church’s ousting comes just one year after the Houston Chronicle and the San Antonio Express-News published an investigative piece outlining rampant sex abuse and coverup efforts within the denomination.

As Christian Headlines reported last February, the Chronicle found that 380 SBC leaders had been accused of sexually abusing 700 people over the span of 20 years.

Of the 380 SBC leaders accused, 220 have been convicted, nearly 100 are still in prison and more than 100 are now registered sex offenders. While some leaders did serve jail time, the Chronicle reported that others of them – some registered sex offenders – are still working in SBC churches today.

The Chronicle also found that “at least 35 church…

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Director: I Still Believe Is a ‘Huge Opportunity’ to Reach the Unchurched

Director: I Still Believe Is a ‘Huge Opportunity’ to Reach the Unchurched


The director of the upcoming faith-based film I Still Believe says the movie’s all-star cast could attract an unchurched audience who typically wouldn’t be open to a Christian message. 

Andrew Erwin, who co-directed the film with his brother and also co-directed the 2018 hit movie I Can Only Imagine, told Christian Headlines that the film’s cast – including K.J. Apa and Britt Robertson – could appeal to non-Christians.  

Apa has 17 million Instagram followers. Robertson has appeared in several movies popular among young adults and teens.  

A romantic drama, I Still Believe (PG) tells the true story of Christian singer Jeremy Camp’s marriage to his first wife, Melissa, who died of ovarian cancer. Camp wrote his popular song I Still Believe after her death.

I Still Believe releases in theaters March 13.

The goal is always to have “crossover appeal,” Erwin said.

“We’re not going to be one of these that sells out to reach an audience,” Erwin told Christian Headlines. “But what we’re trying to do is broaden our audience to where we can kind of gain new fans – new people that typically would not engage with something like this.

“We tested it with audiences, and it tested on such great scores with the general public that Lionsgate doubled our theater count from I Can Only Imagine,” Erwin said. “And they also are giving us an IMAX release – and there’s…

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Mike Bloomberg joins the Democratic presidential debate: Net worth and eternal worth

Last night’s ninth Democratic Party presidential debate was the first to include former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg. Commentators this morning disagree on who won and who lost (a Fox writer considers Elizabeth Warren the only winner, while a CNN columnist thinks everyone won but Bloomberg and Amy Klobuchar).

As I watched the debate, I thought that the participation of these six people in a campaign to be president of the United States says something important about the United States. 

How the candidates started and their net worth today 

Mike Bloomberg was born to a dairy company bookkeeper and his wife; his father never earned more than $6,000 a year. He worked his way through Johns Hopkins University and Harvard Business School. In 1981, he and a team built a machine that provides real-time market data and other financial analytics to Wall Street firms. His company earned $10 billion in 2018; his net worth is now estimated at $61.8 billion. 

Bernie Sanders was born in Brooklyn to a paint salesman and his wife. After serving as mayor of Burlington, Vermont, and a US congressman and then senator, his net worth is estimated at $2 million, much of his earnings coming from books. He and his wife own three homes. 

Elizabeth Warren was born to a US Army flight instructor who became a salesman and then a maintenance man for an apartment building. She started waiting tables at the age of thirteen. According to Forbes, she and her husband now have a net worth of $12 million resulting from their legal work, publishing, and real estate holdings. 

Joe Biden’s father suffered financial setbacks before he was born; for several years, their family lived with his maternal grandparents. His father eventually became a successful used car salesman. Joe graduated from college and then attended law school with financial assistance. He became an attorney and then senator before being elected vice president in 2008. Forbes estimates that…

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President Trump, Like President Obama, Slaps Bible-believing Christians in the Face by Nominating Openly Homosexual Man Richard Grenell to Head Prestigious Position in American Government Only to Offset the Enthusiasm on the Democratic Side With Pete Buttigieg and to Curry Favor With Homosexuals – Franklin Graham and Jack Graham Ought to Walk Away Just Like the Attorney General is About to Do

Donald Trump named one of his closest loyalists, ambassador to Germany Rick Grenell, as acting director of national intelligence Wednesday.

‘I am pleased to announce that our highly respected Ambassador to Germany, @RichardGrenell, will become the Acting Director of National Intelligence. Rick has represented our Country exceedingly well and I look forward to working with him,’ Trump tweeted just before he started a rally in Phoenix, Arizona.

The appointment will make history with Grenell, 53, becoming the first openly gay cabinet secretary.

It puts a hawkish pro-Trump figure in charge of the intelligence community but may not be a permanent move – Grenell replaces an acting director, Joseph Maguire, and there was no clarity on whether the ambassador would be formally nominated for the role.

Maguire had until March 12 to remain as acting DNI, a role he took when Dan Coats quit as the last permanent leader of the intelligence community.

Trump tweeted that Maguire could have another role in the administration; he had previously been director of the National Counterterrorism Center after a career in the Navy as a SEAL and chief of special operations.

Maguire and the wider intelligence community was thrust to the center of the news agenda by the whistleblower letter which accused Trump of wrongdoing in his relations with Ukraine.

Grenell is eligible to become acting director because he is already on a Senate-confirmed role, having been voted through 56-42, and was sworn in by Mike Pence with his partner Matt Lashey at his side, becoming the highest-ranking gay official in a Republican administration.

Grenell has not worked in the intelligence community before but was also floated as a possible director of national security at the White House, a job which went to Robert O’Brien after the sudden departure of John Bolton.

He has already been outspoken on one intelligence issue, saying there is a need to prevent Huawei having access to 5G cell phone networks in the West.

He used Twitter to issue a direct warning to the UK this week that it faces losing access to U.S. intelligence – which he will now control – after prime minister Boris Johnson allowed Huawei to be part of building the country’s 5G network

The move will add a seasoned foreign policy veteran with sharp elbows to Trump´s inner circle.

While Grenell has a reputation for sometimes being abrasive, he has been adamantly loyal to Trump at a time when the president remains skeptical about the intelligence community.

Trump had a strained relationship with Coats, who had endorsed the U.S. intelligence community’s assessment that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election with the objective of promoting Trump over his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton.

Trump also has objected to U.S. intelligence community analyses of major issues – from Iran’s nuclear program to North Korea – that have clashed with his own assessments, tweeting to intelligence chiefs in January 2019 that they should ‘go back to school’ and were ‘naive’ for underestimating the danger from Iran.

Source: Daily Mail

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S Korea Reports 1st Virus Death as 2.5M Urged to Stay Home

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – Yonhap news agency says South Korea has reported its first death from a new coronavirus.
  
The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention did not immediately provide details.
  
The report came as South Korea is struggling to cope with the outbreak and its economic fallout.
  
Earlier Thursday, South Korea said it has confirmed a total of 82 cases of the virus.
  
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below
  
The mayor of the South Korean city of Daegu urged its 2.5 million people on Thursday to refrain from going outside as cases of a new virus, linked to a church congregation, spiked and he pleaded for help from the central government.
  
Mayor Kwon Young-jin made the appeal in a nationally televised news conference after the southeastern city and its nearby towns reported 35 additional cases of infection with the new coronavirus on Thursday. 
  
Kwon also asked Daegu citizens to wear masks even indoors if possible. He expressed fears that the rising infections in the region will soon overwhelm the city’s health infrastructure and called for urgent help from the central government in Seoul.
  
“National quarantine efforts that are currently focused on blocking the inflow of the virus (from China) and stemming its spread are inadequate for preventing the illness from circulating in local communities,” Kwon said.
  
The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said 28 of those 35 new patients went to church services attended by a previously confirmed virus patient or contacted her at other places inside a Daegu church. That patient is a South Korean woman in her early 60s who has no recent record of overseas travel, according to center officials. She tested positive for the virus on Tuesday, becoming the 31st case in South Korea. 
  
On Wednesday morning, Daegu confirmed 13 cases and 11 of them either went to the same church with the woman patient or contacted her at a hospital, according to the disease control center. 
  
The Shincheonji Church of Jesus, which claims it has about 200,000 followers in the country, said it has closed all of its 74 churches around the nation and told followers to instead watch its online worship services on YouTube. It said in a statement that health officials were disinfecting its church in Daegu, which the woman patient went to, while tracing her contacts. That Daegu church has about 8,000 followers. 
  
According to the church statement, church officials had been advising followers since late January to stay at home if they had recently traveled overseas or were experiencing even mild cold-like symptoms. But the 31st patient assumed she was having a common cold and kept coming to her Daegu church because she didn’t travel overseas, church officials said.
  
“We think it’s deeply regrettable … for causing concerns to the local community,” the statement said.
  
The explosion of infections in Daegu and the neighboring southeast region, as well as some new cases in the Seoul metropolitan area where the sources of infections were unclear, have raised concern that health authorities are losing track of the virus as it spreads more broadly in the country. 
  
Kwon spoke shortly before South Korea’s government for the first time acknowledged that the country was beginning to see a “community transmission” of the illness, albeit at a “limited range.” 
  
“We are seeing infections in some areas like Seoul and Daegu where it’s difficult to confirm the cause or routes of the infections,” Kim Gang-lip, South Korea’s vice health minister, said in a briefing.
  
“Our judgment is that (COVID-19) which has been introduced from abroad is beginning to spread through community transmissions in limited ranges,” he said, adding that the government would need to change its quarantine strategy that has been focused on tracing contacts.
  
South Korea has reported a total of 82 cases of COVID-19, a disease first detected in Wuhan, China, in December. 
  
In a telephone conversation with Kwon later Thursday, President Moon Jae-in said the central government will make all available assistance to help Daegu fight against the virus’ further spread, according to the presidential Blue House.

(Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.)

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When Is It Time to Walk Away from a Revitalization Effort?

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PODCAST: The Power of the Throne of Grace in Prayer (Praying Through the Bible #393 with Daniel Whyte III)

TEXT: Hebrews 4:14-16

14 Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.

15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.

16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

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J.C. Ryle said, “Fear not because your prayer is stammering, your words feeble, and your language poor. Jesus can understand you.”

Douglas Moo said, “The faith exercised in prayer is faith in the God who sovereignly accomplishes His will. When we pray, our faith recognizes, explicitly or implicitly, the overruling providential purposes of God.”

Warren Wiersbe said, “Something else makes Him great: He is ministering mercy and grace to those who come for help. Mercy means that God does not give us what we do deserve; grace means that He gives us what we do not deserve. No Old Testament high priest could minister mercy and grace in quite the same way. When an Israelite was tempted, he could not easily run to the high priest for help; and he certainly could not enter the holy of holies for God’s help. But as believers in Jesus Christ, we can run to our High Priest at any time, in any circumstance, and find the help that we need. Now because of the superiority of Jesus Christ, the Great High Priest, over Aaron, two important conclusions can be drawn. First, there is no need in giving up our profession just because we are going through testing and trial. The word translated “profession” means “confession.” These Hebrew Christians were tempted to give up their confession of faith in Christ and their confidence in Him. It was not a matter of giving up their salvation, since salvation through Christ is eternal. It was a matter of their public confession of faith. By returning to the Old Testament system, they would be telling everyone that they had no faith in Christ. This kind of unbelief would only bring reproach to Christ’s name. After all, the great purpose of salvation is the glory of God. It was the glory of God that so concerned Moses when Israel broke God’s Law and made the golden calf. God offered to destroy the nation and to begin a new one from Moses, but Moses refused the offer. Instead Moses interceded for Israel on the basis of God’s glory and God’s promise; and God spared the people, even though He disciplined them for their sin. The second conclusion is this: there is no need to go back because we can come boldly into the presence of God and get the help we need. No trial is too great, no temptation is too strong, but that Jesus Christ can give us the mercy and grace that we need, when we need it. “But He is so far away!” we may argue. “And He is the perfect Son of God! What can He know about the problems of weak sinners like us?” But that is a part of His greatness! When He was ministering on earth in a human body, He experienced all that we experience, and even more. After all, a sinless person would feel temptations and trials in a much greater way than you and I could ever feel them. Christ was tempted, yet He did not sin; and He is able to help us when we are tempted. If we fail to hold fast our confession, we are not proving that Jesus Christ has failed. We are only telling the world that we failed to draw on His grace and mercy when it was freely available to us.

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Now, if you are with us today, and you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour, your first prayer needs to be what we call the Sinner’s Prayer. First, please understand that you are a sinner, just as I am, and that you have broken God’s laws. The Bible says in Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”

Second, accept the fact that there is a penalty for sin. The Bible states in Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death…”

Third, accept the fact that you are on the road to hell. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 10:28: “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” Also, the Bible states in Revelation 21:8: “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”

Now this is bad news, but here’s the good news. Jesus Christ said in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

Just believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead by the power of God for you so that you can live eternally with Him. Pray and ask Him to come into your heart today, and He will.

Romans 10:9 & 13 says, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved… For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

If you believe that Jesus Christ died on the Cross for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead, and you want to trust Him for your Salvation today, please pray with me this simple prayer: Holy Father God, I realize that I am a sinner and that I have done some bad things in my life. For Jesus Christ sake, please forgive me of my sins. I now believe with all of my heart that Jesus Christ died for me, was buried, and rose again. Lord Jesus, please come into my heart and save my soul and change my life today. Amen.

If you just trusted Jesus Christ as your Saviour, and you prayed that prayer and meant it from your heart, I declare to you that based upon the Word of God, you are now saved from Hell and you are on your way to Heaven. Welcome to the family of God! Congratulations on trusting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour. You have done the most important thing in life. For more information to help you grow in your newfound faith in Christ, go to Gospel Light Society.com and read “What To Do After You Enter Through the Door”. Jesus Christ said in John 10:9, “I am the door, by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.”

God loves you. We love you. And may God bless you.

Daniel Whyte III has spoken in meetings across the United States and in over twenty-five foreign countries. He is the author of over forty books including the Essence Magazine, Dallas Morning News, and Amazon.com national bestseller, Letters to Young Black Men. He is also the president of Gospel Light Society International, a worldwide evangelistic ministry that reaches thousands with the Gospel each week, as well as president of Torch Ministries International, a Christian literature ministry.

He is heard by thousands each week on his radio broadcasts/podcasts, which include: The Prayer Motivator Devotional, The Prayer Motivator Minute, as well as Gospel Light Minute X, the Gospel Light Minute, the Sunday Evening Evangelistic Message, the Prophet Daniel’s Report, the Second Coming Watch Update and the Soul-Winning Motivator, among others.

He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Theology from Bethany Divinity College, a Bachelor’s degree in Religion from Texas Wesleyan University, a Master’s degree in Religion, a Master of Divinity degree, and a Master of Theology degree from Liberty University’s Rawlings School of Divinity (formerly Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary). He is currently a candidate for the Doctor of Ministry degree.

He has been married to the former Meriqua Althea Dixon, of Christiana, Jamaica since 1987. God has blessed their union with seven children.

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