Saying the “focus is now on healing” America, Vice President Mike Pence took part in a listening session Friday with faith and community leaders at a Maryland church that highlighted strategies to bring the country together following the death of George Floyd. 

“My prayer is that we as a nation have ears to hear — to listen to one another, and open hearts,” Pence told the leaders. “I’m really here to listen.”

Most of the leaders in the room were black.

Bishop Harry Jackson Jr., who is black and serves as the pastor of host Hope Christian Church in Beltsville, Md., said Floyd’s death was “representative of an almost 400-year history and challenges that we’ve had.” Jackson’s father, he said, was “threatened at gunpoint” by a Florida state trooper more than 60 years ago. The gun discharged, sending a round over the father’s head that temporarily deafened him. Jackson’s family moved out of the South because of the incident.

“So, this administration did not create this problem with this backdrop, but it has the opportunity to heal it,” Jackson said.

Pence referenced the Trump administration’s signing of the criminal reform bill and its champion of expanding educational opportunities – policy positions he said assists the black community.

“This was all in an effort to address what have been the historic inequalities in our African…

Editor’s note: A previous headline incorrectly indicated that the lawsuit had been won. This has been updated as there is no clear indication whether the suit is still pending now that a result has been achieved in favor of the churches.

Two Oregon churches had filed a lawsuit May 26 against Governor Katherine Brown’s COVID-19 restrictions on churches. Nine days later, the governor has relaxed those restrictions, and churches are planning how to reopen safely for services.

The Alliance Defending Freedom, a nonprofit that represented Edgewater Christian Fellowship and the Roseburg Church of God of Prophecy in the case, said that the restrictions unfairly limited churches as opposed to other secular institutions, like restaurants and retail stores.

The ADF explained that under the restrictions, a group of 25 people could gather at a dine-in restaurant for a meal Sunday, but if those same people gathered in a church for worship, they would face penalties. Pastors of those churches could be jailed for up to 30 days and face a fine of $1,250.

“The problem is the governor is treating people in a secular setting one way, but if they happen to do the exact same act in a religious setting, then it becomes a problem,” said Ryan Tucker, senior council at the Alliance Defending Freedom.

According to an OBP report, the church leaders worried that “drive-in services and online…

Minnesota native Mike Lindell, who is the founder and CEO of MyPillow could very well be running for governor in 2022.

CBN News reports that Lindell told News Max his reason for running is due to the poor response that Minnesota’s leaders have had over the death of George Floyd and the riots that followed.

“If God has me do it, I will do it,” Lindell told the news site. “I just see things that are so poorly run, and they could be done a lot better. 

“It might come down to, ‘if you want something done right, do it yourself,'” he added.

The MyPillow founder noted the Minneapolis police officer behind George Floyd’s death should have been immediately arrested.

According to Minnesota law, a suspect can be detained for up to 48 hours prior to facing charges.

“There are bad people in all walks of life, including police,” Lindell said.

He also addressed the “very poor leadership” from Mayor Jacob Frey, state Attorney General Keith Ellison, and Gov. Tim Walz in preparing for the violent riots following George Floyd’s death.

“It’s sad because I think our leadership could have been a lot more prepared,” Lindell said.

“Prepare on a big scale, better to have too many (National Guardsmen) than too few,” he added.

Politico reports that Lindell’s run for Minnesota governor would have President Trump’s backing as he has encouraged the MyPillow founder to run.

Back in March, Lindell made an…

President Donald Trump signed an executive order this week that earmarks $50 million for religious freedom programs around the world.

CBN News reports that under the order, named Advancing International Religious Freedom, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will create action plans for countries to help eliminate religious persecution. The money will go to the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development.

“Religious freedom, America’s first freedom, is a moral and national security imperative,” the order states. “Religious freedom for all people worldwide is a foreign policy priority of the United States, and the United States will respect and vigorously promote this freedom.”

The order comes as religious persecution, including against Christians worldwide, continues to rise. According to Open Doors USA’s 2020 World Watch List, North Korea, Afghanistan and Somalia are the most dangerous countries for Christians.

USAID Acting Administrator John Barsa praised the executive order, saying the organization was “grateful for the President’s leadership in advancing religious freedom around the world.”

“Americans have always believed our first freedom is the freedom of religion, and it is a key component of our national security strategy,” Barsa wrote. “Whether in response to genocide committed against Christians and Yazidis in Northern Iraq, or the ethnic…

A pastor in Chicago led a peaceful protest earlier this week, calling for an end to police brutality and racism.

According to Religion News Service, Rev. Chris Harris, of Bright Star Church in Chicago, organized the peaceful demonstration in which other religious leaders also participated.

“We showed them we can do it peacefully in Chicago,” Harris said.

Across the nation, more religious leaders are stepping up to participate in protests. The demonstrations come after a black man in Minneapolis died after a white police officer pressed his knee into the man’s neck.

The march, led by Harris, traveled down Martin Luther King Jr. Drive in a neighborhood on Chicago’s south side. The neighborhood, Bronzeville, was a long-standing home for Africans Americans between 1915 and 1970. 

“We expected Chicago to show up. And it did: South Side, West Side, North Side, everybody came, peaceful, no drama,” Harris told Religion News Service afterward.

“That’s what the church should represent. That’s what the temple should represent. That’s what the synagogue should represent. That’s what the mosque represents. That’s what the Baha’i temple represents. Chicago represents that, and we did it in the black metropolis, the great migration. That’s pretty amazing.”

Rev. James Meeks, of Salem Baptist Church, also participated in the march.

“It’s so important that people of faith put their faith on…

Denzel Washington was in the news recently for helping a homeless man in danger. This Christian celebrity did his best to be a good Samaritan to a man in need.

It happened around West Hollywood when the 65-year-old actor was driving around town. He saw a homeless man that was dangerously close to oncoming traffic, so Denzel pulled his car over to help the man get out of the street.

When the cops were called to the situation, Denzel remained by his side for the whole time. He even put his hand on the homeless man’s shoulder to show his support while the police did their job. Later, Denzel gave the man a sandwich and a face mask to help protect him from the coronavirus.

In addition to this act of kindness, Denzel and his wife have become known around Hollywood for their generosity. In the past, they have donated to many charities, including Fisher House, an organization that helps military families. Back in the early 2000s, Fisher House said that Denzel and his wife gave them one of the most substantial donations that they had ever received.

Denzel has also given $1 Million to the Wiley College debate team, which was the inspiration for his 2007 drama called The Great Debaters.

It is wonderful to see Christian celebrities being the hands and feet of Jesus. May we all strive to love our neighbors well and step in to help those in need.

Photo credit: Mail Online video…

Mike Fisher and wife Carrie Underwood reveal in a new video how three miscarriages tested their faith and how God revealed to them they would have another son.

Fisher and Underwood married in 2010 and had their first child, Isaiah, in 2015. They wanted another baby, but two straight miscarriages had them questioning their next steps.

“I was frustrated,” Fisher, an 18-year veteran of the National Hockey League, says in the video released by I Am Second. “What’s the future look like? … I was just kind of wrestling [with God] and probably the most honest I’ve been with God ever in my life. And I heard – not audibly – but I just heard, I just sensed God told me that we’re gonna have a son and his name’s Jacob.”

Underwood remembers the conversation well.

“Mike came to me one day and said, ‘We’re gonna have another baby, and it’s gonna be a boy, and his name’s gonna be Jacob,’” she says through tears in the video.

But Underwood’s next pregnancy ended with another miscarriage, her third one. 

“I was just like, ‘Where is he? Where is he?’” Underwood says of the baby boy she expected.

When Underwood became pregnant again – her fifth pregnancy after three miscarriages – she sensed she was going to miscarry a fourth time. Not wanting to be alone as Mike wasn’t home at the time, he crawled into bed one weekend night with Isaiah and cried out to…