Living Hope Fellowship Church

God cares for orphans! James 1:27 says, “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.” God directs His people to “Defend the poor and fatherless. . . .” in Psalm 82:3.

Jim Daly, president of Focus on the Family, lived in foster homes most of his childhood. He says adopting a child takes an emotional toll, but “at some point, we have to put ourselves aside.” Daly says that at a recent adoption forum, state workers and experts said they would love to place more children in Christian homes.

There is now a Christian Alliance for Orphans, a coalition of more than 80 churches, ministries, and organizations. Did you know that 143 million children worldwide have lost one or both parents? More than 800,000 children pass through America’s foster care system each year. For more information contact: cryoftheorphan.org.

FAMILY DYSFUNCTION

by Sharon Cromwell, newsletter staff, Source: OneNewsNow.com

Dawn Stefanowicz, A Canadian Christian has written a book detailing her childhood trauma, the result of her homosexual dad’s behavior. According to Jim Brown’s article, Stefanowicz wrote it “after testifying before a Canadian Senate committee against hate crime legislation and expressing public opposition to sexual diversity curriculum in her country's schools.” She says her dad’s example created sexuality confusion for her, and “Children are impacted long-term in homosexual environments . . . throughout their adulthood.” She states that her faith in Jesus Christ gave her the ability to face her past and forgive her dad, who died of AIDS.

BASICS

By Rebecca Flores-Perez, Newsletter Staff

If you were to pick at random several members of major congregations in today’s American churches and ask the following questions, what kind of response do you think you’d get?

What does it mean to lay your life down for a friend?

What do you think Spiritual Warfare means?

Have you ever won a battle on your knees?

How long has it been since you prayed until the light showed through?

Are you filled with the Spirit?

What does Jesus mean when He says you can have life more abundantly?

Sometimes we try to finish the test without studying the simple stuff! This year this section will be devoted to foundational Biblical truth.

JANUARY 2008 NEWS

by Sharon Cromwell, newsletter staff

PRISON UPDATE Source: Prison Fellowship President, Mark Earley

The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals is upholding the InnerChange Freedom Initiative (IFI). This intensive and effective faith-based program for prisoners launched by Prison Fellowship 10 years ago had been sued in Iowa. They were ordered in June 2006 to shut the program down, and Prison Fellowship was supposed to repay Iowa $1.5 million. The ruling states that the IFI program may continue to operate as a privately funded faith-based program. IFI and Prison Fellowship do not have to repay the money, and the court ruled that Judge Pratt's allowing of so-called “expert testimony” disparaging evangelical Christians was “not only unnecessary but also offensive.”

IFI provides effective rehabilitation and re-entry. THANKS for praying, but Mark Earley urges us to keep on praying, because the battle is never over. Thanks be to God for answering our prayers!

HATE CRIMES UPDATE Source: OneNewsNow.com

The hate crimes legislation has been removed from the 2008 Defense Authorization bill, but some in congress may try to push it again in late January or early February. Those opposing the hate crimes bill and the homosexual jobs legislation known as ENDA (Employment Non-Discrimination Act) realize that it threatens free speech and is actually “thought crimes” legislation!

MIDWIFE IS FINED Source: OneNewsNow.com

Pennsylvania's Board of Medicine has interpreted a law to mean that it is illegal to be a lay midwife! Under the current interpretation of the Medical Practice Act in Pennsylvania, midwifery is illegal unless one is licensed as a doctor or a registered nurse. Alliance Defense Fund attorney Jeff Shafer says the implication of the decision suggests that anyone assisting childbirth could be “practicing medicine” under the law. He also says it amounts to punishing a safe tradition and should not be made criminal.

CALIFORNIA OneNewsNow.com & WorldNetDaily

Effective January 2008 in California, SB 777 requires all school instruction and activities to include positive promotion of homosexuality and cross-genders; and AB 394 enforces the positive attitudes through anti-harassment training for students, teachers, and parents. A two day school boycott is the parent’s response. School officials fear pursuit of increased home schooling.

LEGISLATOR TURNS DOWN QURAN OneNewsNow.com

An Oklahoma lawmaker refused to accept a Quran saying, “Most Oklahomans do not endorse the idea of killing innocent women and children in the name of ideology.” A Muslim from the Governor's Council sent emails to state legislators, saying they had sent them a Quran. OneNewsNow.com says, “The email claimed that the Quran ‘is the record of the exact words revealed by God through the Angel Gabriel to the Prophet Muhammad,’ and that the Islamic religious book ‘emphasizes inclusiveness and encourages involvement in the community.’” The article also states, “Duncan says he was merely trying to get across the point that in the 21st century, no one is using the Bible as an instruction manual to justify the killing of innocent women and children.” At least 16 other state lawmakers joined Duncan in his refusal of the book.

CAPTIVES Source: Breakpoint, by Chuck Colson

Addiction expert Gerald May calls addiction “the most powerful psychic enemy of humanity's desire for God.” Only God can free the captives of addiction. If you or someone you know is struggling with porn, a website called PureIntimacy.org, run by Focus on the Family, may help. Contact the BreakPoint website for ways you can help shut down illegal, hard-core porn in your town. Pastor Kevin Badgley will pray for you if you contact him at Living Hope Fellowship church (618) 634-2541.

BRAIN DEAD? Source: Streams of Revival, Charisma Online

Recently, Zack Dunlap, a 21-year-old from Oklahoma who had been declared brain dead, suddenly awakened and stretched out his arm, grabbing a nurse who was prepping his body for organ donation! Zack’s uncle said, “God came down and gave him a miracle.” Dunlap’s neighbor remarked, “I think it's the result of people praying in this town, and committing him to the Lord. God has a purpose for him.”

BIBLE STUDY Ban Broken Source: OneNewsNow.com

Liberty Counsel contacted a Housing Authority in Illinois, outlining the constitutional rights of an elderly woman to hold Bible studies in her public housing complex. They had denied her that right for seven years. Liberty Counsel founder Mat Staver says, “Seniors living in public housing facilities have just as much right to have Bible studies as you and I who live in private homes.” Now she can start Bible lessons in January! Praise the Lord.

FEBRUARY

THE BASICS

by Rebecca Flores-Perez, Newsletter Staff

The 10 Commandments

Mark 12:30 says, “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.”

How much of our hearts are we willing to let God touch? Do we let what our pastor preaches really sink in to the recesses of it?

How much do we as Christians really let our soul be cleansed from all malice and deceit?

How much do we meditate on our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ? Do we spend most of our time worrying about what tomorrow may bring instead of praying and building up ourselves on our most holy faith? (Jude 1:20)

Strength… what do we spend most of our energy on? We have bills, but are they worth our salvation? Be used for God.

THE FALLING AWAY

by Sharon Cromwell, newsletter staff

Source: olivetreeviews.org

2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 says, “. . . that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.” This speaks of the end time Anti-Christ.

It seems things are accelerating to the end. Jan Markell says, “America has been a gospel light to the world and that remains. But I see a nation pulling away from the one true God and giving a voice to those who hate God or who have a skewed view of Him.”

In July of 2007 a Hindu opened the U.S. Senate with a Hindu prayer. A Muslim imam prayed for the U.S. House of Representatives, when it is on record that he said, “Take my word--if 6-8 million Muslims unite in America, the country will come to us.”

Many church leaders have said that God and Allah are the same, when they know better! Markell says, “Our own president stated in late 2007 that all religions pray to the same god.” That’s confusion!

John 3:15 says, “That whosoever believeth in him [Jesus] should not perish, but have eternal life.”

Luke 18:8 says, “. . . when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?”

Luke 21:28 says, “And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.”

FEBRUARY 2008 NEWS

by Sharon Cromwell, newsletter staff

Mini Bible

Daily Alert/ AP/Washington Post

According to Ian Deitch, Israeli Scientists, “. . . have inscribed the entire Hebrew text of the Jewish Bible onto a space less than half the size of a grain of sugar.” This provides a means to store immense quantities of data in the future.

$1 Coin - OneNewsNow.com

A 2005 law moved “In God We Trust”, our national motto, to the edge of the $1 coin, making it practically unreadable. Americans objected! President Bush recently signed into law a bill that included returning “In God We Trust” to the face of the coin in 2009.

Persecution - OneNewsNow.com

According to Gospel for Asia (GFA) founder, K.P. Yohannan, persecution is increasing worldwide for Christians, and soon American Believers will be persecuted. Most people are not prepared, and he feels the greatest end time falling away from faith could be in America! For many, prosperity has become focal, while the gospel’s cross and suffering has become dim. More than 16,000 Christians are martyred in the world every year!

Canada - LifeSiteNews.com

If passed, proposed legislation in the Canadian city of Brampton, Ontario, will suppress religion and the right to gather in small religious groups. It proposes to regulate house churches by limiting attendance to 20 people or by forbidding them to meet in residential areas at all. It recommends taxing all non-worship space owned by religious organizations, reclassifying what amounts to a “place of worship”. It wants to keep churches from being used for community purposes and increase permit fees. Prayer is needed.

Gov. Controlled Homes? OneNewsNow.com

The California Energy Commission plans to let the government regulate household thermostats! All new thermostats will have such technology. Because of public outcry, mandatory compliance was changed to allow turn off of the device by individuals. The proposal was to be voted on in January 2008.

Homes and Small Churches AllianceDefenseFund.org & WorldNetDaily.com

In Miami, Florida, International Outreach Center rented and used the same property for religious meetings for over 10 years. In Miami also Worldwide Agape Ministries is a small, home-based religious ministry. Both ministries were told they could not continue their activities unless they purchased 2.5 acres of land. Officials stated that a regular assembly of two to three people was not even allowed.

“People can gather each week at someone’s home to watch football, but they can’t gather to read the Bible and pray without being forced to buy 2.5 acres of land. I think that would strike most people as ridiculous,” said Joel Oster, Senior Counsel for Alliance Defense Fund (ADF). ADF filed a lawsuit in 2007, but the suit was dropped after the officials changed their minds.

No Ticket Needed OneNewsNow.com

A disabled Texas man witnesses again after police told him he’d have to buy a ticket every day he witnessed at the public transit station. The Alliance Defense Fund sent a letter demanding that Christians not be treated as second-class citizens. Officials corrected their policy, but asked the man to notify officials before witnessing there.

Link Between Abortion and Pain-Relief Care Breakpoint, by PFM President Mark Earley

A 92 year old woman died in emotional agony over two abortions she had over 50 years ago. She feared that God could not forgive her, according to her palliative-care nurse, Jean Echlin. In “Perspectives 2007”, a publication of the De Veber Institute for Bioethics and Social Research, Echlin told of another woman named Lydia, who was dying of cancer. Even morphine did not decrease her pain. She told Echlin she was grieving over her child’s abortion more than 40 years ago.

The Institute calls this “an “unexpected correlation” between abortion and pain-relief care.” The guilt actually “. . . impedes the effectiveness of their pain medication,” Echlin says. When someone listens and convinces them that God will forgive them, the pain medication becomes effective and the women get peace. Women must be told the TRUTH. Abortion kills a human life. There are resources to help them through their pregnancy.

UK Gay Hate Crimes Bill LifeSiteNews.com

Protection for religious speech was defeated in a United Kingdom gay Hate Crimes Bill recently that would have given Christians and others legal protection from hate crime accusations by homosexuals. The hate crimes bill passed the House of Commons in January. The proposed law carries a maximum penalty of seven years in jail for anyone convicted of “inciting hatred” against homosexuals. Some believe it will become impossible to teach or preach Christian moral doctrine without punishment. The bill now moves on to the House of Lords.

Drought in Israel OneNewsNow.com

The Sea of Galilee is Israel's primary source of drinking water.

It is so low that citizens are conserving water in their homes.

MARCH

Quote by Pastor Kevin Badgley

As I am my brother’s keeper there will be wars, and it won’t be of my making, but I have to get the victory, because they can’t; they are helpless.

BASIC

by Rebecca Flores-Perez, Newsletter Staff

When God shows you something about yourself, be it through family members, enemies, or an innocent bystander, what is your reaction?

Do you swell up and hold in all hurt and malice? Do you immediately humble yourself before an Almighty God? Do you mistake what He’s trying to tell you about yourself and go tell your neighbor that you’ve received “a word from the Lord” about them? Do you honestly take it to the Word of God and search out the scriptures to back it up?

Psalms 19:8 says, “The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.” Please read the whole chapter of Psalm 19. It will reveal something to you, if you let it.

CONTEND FOR THE FAITH

by Sharon Cromwell, Newsletter Staff Source: olivetreeviews.org

Jude 1:3 says, “. . . ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.”

Those who oppose false doctrine are sometimes called divisive, because unity has become more important than truth to many.

2 Timothy 4:3-4 says, “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine . . . And they shall turn away their ears from the truth….”

Jan Markell, of Olive Tree Ministries says, “. . . you will likely be told that ‘tolerance” is a virtue and “contending” is a vice.” However, she declares that, “. . . God will always honor a love for the truth and your “contending”.”

She encourages Christians to contend for the truth of the faith in Christ Jesus, saying, “If you do nothing, you are helping the enemy.”

In 2 Timothy 4:7-8 Paul said, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.” ~

OUT OF SIGHT * OUT OF MIND

by Sharon Cromwell, Source: Breakpoint / Mark Earley

USA Today recently reported about a modern day “James Gang” comprised of three young men whose father revered the outlaw Jesse James. Each of those young men now serves a life prison sentence in Louisiana.

Mark Earley, President of Prison Fellowship, says, “. . . crime running in families is not unusual,” and “By some estimates, six percent of the population is responsible for more than 50 percent of all offenses.” Early says that most offenders share broken or dysfunctional families. He says, “Fatherlessness makes young men anywhere from two to four times more likely to be incarcerated.” One study showed, “. . . one family whose contacts with the local criminal justice system spanned five generations.”

However, transformed men and women can go from perpetuating this cycle of crime to breaking it! We know Jesus is the life changer. Please pray for prisoners and their families and support those who are ministering to them.

Mark Earley says, “. . . we cannot plead “out of sight, out of mind” when the Lord Himself asks us about it - and He will.” See Matthew 25:34-36.

MARCH 2008 NEWS

by Sharon Cromwell, Newsletter Staff

Community Service Update OneNewsNow.com

In December we reported that a California public school denied credit to a student for 80 hours of public service, because it was associated with a church. The district settled and awarded the student full credit for the hours, which were required for graduation. Their rewritten policy now allows students to complete mandatory community service hours at either secular or religious organizations. Praise God!

Following EU Courts? OneNewsNow.com

British barrister Paul Diamond says for American courts to incorporate European jurisprudence into U.S. case law is just, “. . . too stupid. . . .” Diamond specializes in religious liberty cases, and says the European Court of Human Rights is “truly appalling”!

Forced Diversity Quotas? Focus on the Family

Pray against bill AB 624 which will be considered by the Senate very soon. The research analyst for the California Family Council says, “Requiring foundations to collect and publicize the gender, ethnicity and sexual orientation of their directors and staffs, and the same data for communities and groups receiving their grants, is no doubt an incremental step toward forced diversity quotas.”

Persecution OpenHeaven.com

Top 10 Persecutors of Christians: North Korea first, then Saudi Arabia, Iran, Maldives, Bhutan, Yemen, Afghanistan, Laos, Uzbekistan and China.

Colorado Focus on the Family

A Colorado bill could force certain charities to hire homosexuals and remove their religious exemption if they receive any government funding. The judicial analyst for Focus on the Family Action, said, “There are constitutional issues involved here, as to whether a state can impose restrictions upon a religious entity, based on money that comes from the federal government.”

Florida Focus on the Family

Gender identity has become a protected class in Gainesville, Florida. Ed Brady, one of the opposing commissioners, says this about it. “It makes a claim on other people’s property that, because of this identity crisis, other people are having to accommodate them. No other protected class requires that.” Some worry predators will abuse women and children using women’s bathrooms.

California Focus on the Family

Senate Bill 777 amended the California state education code and prohibited “promoting a discriminatory bias” against gay, lesbian or bisexual students and eliminated the term “sex” as referring to male and female and replaced it with gender and sexual orientation. This is now law.

Virginia Focus on the Family

Virginia is trying to pass laws to require abortion clinics to perform an ultrasound for all women who want an abortion and give them a chance to examine it. These laws require doctors to provide information to them about the baby’s pain during an abortion.

Iowa OneNewsNow.com

In the 2008 opening session of the Iowa Legislature, an Islamic religious leader gave a prayer at the State House, even though in his speech he called for ‘victory over disbelievers’. Lawmaker Gary Worthan said, “The way the Jihadists interpret that phrase ‘victory over disbelievers’- there are only two ways to attain that, and that is either convert them to Islam or kill them. That’s the literal interpretation that the Jihadists use - and so that struck right at my heart.” He also said, “Tolerance has to be a two-way street.”

APRIL

APRIL BASICS

by Rebecca Flores-Perez, Newsletter Staff

Why is it so hard for adults to have childlike faith? 1 Corinthians 13:11 says, “. . . but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” That didn’t mean that we have to lay down our child-like faith.

Mark10:15 says, “. . . whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.” We cannot become a child again. However, we can go back to our first love (see Revelation 2:4).

Our little children are totally dependent on us to tell them the truth. They believe us without question. This is how we should approach the throne of God and how we should obey His Word. This is how we are able to overcome. We learn as a child until we become “sons” of God.

Philippians 2:15 says to be, “. . . blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;”

CODE OF CONDUCT?

Source: Battle Cry, Mar/Apr 2008

Mark 16:15 says, “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” Verse 16 says, “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.”

According to Jack Chick, author of Chick Publications, the Vatican is pushing for an international “code of conduct on conversions”. He said their goal was to “ease tensions with Muslims, Hindus and other religious groups who fear losing adherents and resort to punishments as extreme as imprisonment and even death for converts from their faith, as well as attacks on foreign missionaries.”

The World Council of Churches (WCC), the pope, and representatives of all the major world religions met in May, 2006 to try to lay out rules for “proselytizing”.

Some governments consider the evangelical Christianity worldwide as a threat to their nation’s culture and have passed anti-conversion laws. Many do not protect missionaries or converts when persecuted.

Jack Chick says, “Initial working papers affirmed the “fundamental, inviolable and non-negotiable right” of all religions to spread their faith. But they also declared that

religious people need to “heal themselves” of the “obsession of converting others.”

Gospel literature has come under custom duties and restrictions, and theft and sabotage of shipments of Chick Publications has increased. (See John 9:4).

In Matthew 24:14 He said, “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.”

KNOWLEDGE OF THE TRUTH

by Sharon Cromwell, Newsletter Staff Source: Crosswalk.com

Michael Youssef tells a story about a new pastor who asked the boy’s Sunday School class who knocked down the walls of Jericho. The boys replied that THEY DIDN’T DO IT! When he told the deacons, one elder suggested they just fix it and go on!

Knowledge of the Bible among Christians is disturbing! Satan dealt deceitfully with Eve as he promoted doubt about what God’s words meant. She listened to his lies, and it diminished what she knew to be truth.

Michael Youssef says that, “There is no way . . . two hours of church one day a week are going to neutralize the impact our postmodern culture has upon you.” We must read and study the Word of God! Proverbs 14:12 says, “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” We are impacted daily with lies and deceit, so how shall we know the truth?

To be saved, you have to believe God is God (see Romans 10:9-10), so continue your fellowship with the Father and His Son, because Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life (see John 14:6 and 1 John 1:3).

If you continue in Christ, you will obtain eternal life! (See Romans 2:7)

MAY

FIVE MOTHER’S DAY POINTS

by Sharon Cromwell, Newsletter Staff

“He maketh the barren woman to keep house, and to be a joyful mother of children. Praise ye the LORD,” Psalm 113:9

1. A godly mother loves God and her family. Titus 2:4 says, “That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children,”

2. Matthew 5:41 says, “And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.” You can apply this to your family too.

3. Love endures and expects nothing back. When loved ones act like enemies, love them anyway. (See Luke 6:35.) It is a mother’s godly duty to forgive first, love first, and be in humility and obedience to God first.

4. 2 Timothy 2:6 says, “The husbandman that laboureth must be first partaker of the fruits.”

You must show the fruit of the Spirit in your life before expecting your children to have it. (See Galatians 5:22-23.)

5. Christian moms must have faith in God when they pray. Matthew 21:22 says, “And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.” ~

BASICS

by Rebecca Flores-Perez, Newsletter Staff

The words “with all thy heart” are found in five separate verses in the Bible. Yet, they all speak of serving, loving and praising the LORD with all of our hearts.

Have we given to Jesus EVERYTHING? Have we surrendered all—in every aspect of life? Even those secret places that no one ever hears us talk about?

Once we get rid of the idea that we belong to our selves and that we are our own, we’ll do much more to further the Kingdom of God in this earth. 1 Corinthians 6:19 says, “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.”

Isn’t it about time we start living as the church of Christ?

MAY 2008 NEWS

by Sharon Cromwell, Newsletter Staff, sources listed

Religious Song Denied OneNewsNow.com

An Alabama student was not allowed to perform songs with a religious message for a school talent show until attorneys with the Alliance Defense Fund intervened. After receiving a letter outlining the constitutional issues involved, Senior Timothy McCarty was allowed to present two songs. One of those songs that he co-wrote and co-performed, won first place!

Remove Your Bible OneNewsNow.com

Administrators recently cited a violation of separation of church and state and ordered John Freshwater, an Ohio science teacher, to hide his personal Bible from students. After 20 years of teaching he was named “Teacher of the Year”. Many of those years his Bible has been on his desk. He has not yet removed his Bible, and so far no legal action has been taken against him. Students support him and held a “bring your Bible to class” day!

California Update Focus on the Family

The Second District Court of Appeals in Los Angeles banned homeschooling by any parent without a teaching license. It has now vacated its decision, but will hear the case again soon.

Rally for Sally Focus on the Family

One thousand plus people came to a “Rally for Sally” at the Oklahoma City state capitol to support state Rep. Sally Kern. Since March 7 she has been attacked for her comments about homosexuality. After the comments were posted on YouTube, she received over 30,000 emails, mostly “hate-mail — vile, vulgar and profane.” Death threats to her are being investigated! At the rally Kern stated: “Let me tell you why I will not and cannot apologize for my comments. First, I believe God's Word. When God calls something a sin, then that tells us it’s a sin.”

McDonald’s AFA Action Alert, contact@afa.net

According to Donald E. Wildmon, Founder and Chairman of the American Family Association, McDonald’s has joined the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC) and have a position on the NGLCC Board of Directors.

Spiritual Menu? Focus on the Family

Hotel Preston in Nashville, Tennessee is replacing Bibles with “spiritual menus” and allows guests to call room service to order from a book list including the Quran, The Book of Mormon, the Torah, books on Scientology, and the Bible.

Librarian Award Focus on the Family

In March 2008, Family Friendly Libraries gave Brenda Biesterfeld the Gold Star Award, after she was fired for reporting a library patron who was viewing child pornography to the police. ~

Germany openheaven.com

In March 2008, Berlin judges ruled that schools must provide ‘acceptable conditions for unhindered prayer’. To comply, all schools need their own prayer rooms. A Moslem student and some Christian prayer groups had been denied the use of rooms in schools for prayer meetings. The Minister for Education will wait until the final court decision is made. Many Christian student prayer groups already meet during breaks, so it is vague what this court ruling means for them.

Edit - Due to Hate openheaven.com

Hate crimes laws were defeated in Congress recently. Frank Wright of the National Religious Broadcasters Association warns that hate crimes laws create new legal responsibilities for Christians. Hate crimes laws in Canada affect U.S. Christian ministries broadcasting into that country. Focus on the Family states: “In particular, our content producers are careful not to make generalized statements nor comments that may be perceived as ascribing malicious intent to a ‘group’ of people and are always careful to treat even those who might disagree with us with respect.”

India The Voice of the Martyrs

In April 2008 Christians in Krishnapuram, Andhra Pradesh were attacked and beaten as they returned from an evangelistic outreach. In March school children from Toopran School in Telungana Village, Andhra Pradesh, were threatened and beaten by Hindu extremists while they were distributing Bible tracts in the school compound.

Just a Moment! illinoisfamily.org

Gov. Blagojevich vetoed it, but lawmakers overrode that veto and passed a bill supported by IFI requiring that schools observe a moment of silence each day! Our state now recognizes a citizen’s freedom OF religion, not freedom FROM religion! The First Amendment guarantees this right. The phrase “separation of church and state” is not found in the U.S. Constitution.

Israel Levitt Letter, levitt.com

This year Israel celebrates the 60th anniversary of its miraculous rebirth as a nation. Interesting: The military experts at West Point won’t study Israel’s wars, because the outcomes are too impossible!

United Nations Daily Alert, 04/02/08

A measure backed by Islamic countries added monitoring religious prejudice to the duties of the UN investigator on freedom of opinion and expression, responsible for reporting on repressive governments' restriction of free speech. “The resolution adopted attempts to legitimize the criminalization of expression,” said U.S. Ambassador Warren W. Tichenor. ~

JUNE

FAMINE

by Sharon Cromwell, Newsletter Staff Source: openheaven.com, ASSIST News Service

Some are now using the term “The Silent Tsunami” for the current international food shortage!

Chronic hunger contributes to slowly starving to death. Right now, one child dies from hunger every seven seconds. That's more than 14,000 children every day. Global food prices have soared by more than 60% in the last year.

An international food shortage is fast becoming a calamity. Wheat prices in Afghanistan's west have increased 100 percent in a year. Protestors riot in some of West Africa’s major cities over the higher prices of basic food staples. Many in Bangladesh are still recovering from a recent cyclone. Iraqi refugees suffer hunger in Amman. Residents in Illinois, United States feel the pinch of rising food prices.

The World Bank estimates the recent rise in food prices could push another 100 million people deeper into poverty. Ten percent of these will be children under five. However, Christians who do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits, according to Daniel 11:32.

Jesus said in John 14:12, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.” Jesus fed thousands with a few food items. He healed the sick and raised the dead. He wants to do it again and again through His people who will learn from His Word how to live holy and obtain the promises of God in this day and time.

How often we could be taken down by fear itself instead of real conditions.

Our faith in God is directly linked to our obedience to Him. Do you want plenty to eat? Love God. Obey God. Believe God. God cannot fail. In Matthew 24:7 Jesus was talking about the end of the world and He said, “. . . and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.”

Luke 12:30 tells us that God knows our needs. Verse 31-32 says, “But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you. Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” God loves us and He cannot fail!

FATHER’S DAY QUOTE

Source: The Vision Forum, Inc.

This is a quote from “A Father’s Resolutions” written over three hundred years ago by Cotton Mather, an American Puritan:

“Restless will I be till I may be able to say of my children, “Behold, they pray!”

JUNE 2008 NEWS

by Sharon Cromwell, Newsletter Staff, sources listed

Algeria OneNewsNow.com

A Muslim convert to Christianity in Algeria was detained five days for carrying a Bible and Bible study books and given a $460 fine with a one-year suspended prison sentence. He was charged with printing, storing and distributing illegal religious material.

New Jersey, United States openheaven.com

A federal appeals court has ruled a New Jersey high school football coach, who bowed his head while students on his team led prayer, broke the law. Borden usually bows his head or "takes a knee" while students lead prayer before games.

Military chaplains face religious hostility jsekulow@aclj.org

Our military chaplains are facing government-mandated speech. They are told to restrict their prayers. Very recently the army command of one of our military chaplains unjustly suppressed his worship service with an exhibition of religious hostility toward Christianity!

ENDA afa.com, May 2008

The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) has already passed the U.S. House and is headed for a vote in the U.S. Senate. ENDA grants special consideration on the basis of "sexual orientation". ENDA violates employers' and employees' Constitutional freedoms of religion, speech and association.

Australia - Foster Care SaltShakers.org.au

In Sidney, Australia, a church has been fined $10,000 and ordered to accept homosexuals as foster care givers. Some care givers claimed exceptions for religious bodies, but the judges said they were irrelevant.

British Foster Care dailymail.co.uk

In Britain, The Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) now makes it illegal for any business or organization providing a public service to discriminate against anyone because of their sexuality. Because they won’t tell children as young as ten that homosexuality is an acceptable lifestyle, Christians have had to stop their foster care. Stephen Green, director of Christian Voice said the fostering service will lose good workers, “all for the sake of worshipping at the altar of diversity.”

Anti-Conversion Law Implemented VOM, thevoice@persecution.com

In April 2008, an anti-conversion law passed in 2003, in Gujarat State, India, came into effect. Christians are concerned that it will encourage false accusations by Hindu extremists. The law dictates that any person who intends to convert must notify the government or they will be declared an offender and prosecuted under criminal laws. It says those convicted of "forcible conversion" could be jailed for up to three years. Anti-conversion laws are now enforced in five Indian states-Gujarat, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Himachal Pradesh-and have been passed, but are yet to be implemented in Arunachal Pradesh and Rajasthan.

Israel Daily Alert - May 6, 2008

Since May 14, 1948, three million immigrants have come to settle in Israel. May 14, 2008 marked the 60^th anniversary of modern Israel.

Day of Silence Resisted Focus on the Family, 4/18/08

Out of an enrollment of 1,410 kids at a Washington high school, 638 didn't go to school on the Day Of Silence, the day that was scheduled to promote homosexuality. Waivers allowed student athletes to skip school, but still participate in sporting events held that day.

JUNE BASICS

by Rebecca Flores-Perez, Newsletter Staff

A lie can be called an untruth, a falsehood, a fib, a story, a tall tale, propaganda, etc. but it is still a LIE! The Bible says lying is sin!

Colossians 3:9 says, “Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds;”

Ephesians 4:25 says, “Putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour.”

John 8:32 says, “. . . the truth shall make you fr

JULY

JULY NEWS by Sharon Cromwell, Newsletter Staff, sources listed

For Life OneNewsNow.com

K. B., a Minnesota 6th-grader (twelve years old), decided to wear a pro-life T-shirt to school every day in April. He was sent to the principal's office, threatened with suspension from school, and was told he had to turn his T-shirt inside-out. He has suffered attempts of intimidation and public humiliation. K. B.'s three shirts said only: "Abortion ... growing, growing, gone," "What part of abortion don't you understand?" and, "Never Known - Not Forgotten". This young man was saying abortion is wrong. A lawsuit against the school is in progress.

ACLU OneNewsNow.com

The American Civil Liberties Union asked the court to ban students in Wilson County, Tennessee, schools from five faith-related activities -- playing a song with a religious reference in honor of a three-year-old cancer victim; observing the "See You at the Pole" student prayer event; participating in the National Day of Prayer; and Thanksgiving or Christmas observances with religious references. They also wanted to ban a parents’ group from praying on site. Praise God, the order issued by the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, states that all these activities may continue and are constitutionally appropriate.

Clamp Down on Christians Compass Direct News

In Algiers, Algeria, North Africa, the government has closed over half of Algeria’s 50 Protestant churches in about seven months. A 2006 law has been criticized in the U.S. 2007 International Religious Freedom report for “vague wordings that render it susceptible to arbitrary interpretations and applications.” One Algiers leader said, “This is the good thing in hard times of persecution. The people you cannot rely on will step back, while the people who are very strong will remain.” One Kabylie pastor said, “The church is not the walls.”

No Privacy Chuck Colson

A new law in Montgomery County, Maryland, requires co-ed locker rooms and restrooms in all public accommodations.

Colorado has a law that opens all public accommodations, including public restrooms, to everyone. Transgenders are allowed to use the restroom they feel most comfortable using while the privacy of all other adults and children is violated. Forbidding them access to public restrooms in Colorado can get you prosecution under criminal laws and up to a year in jail.

Same sex 'marriage' OneNewsNow.com

Homosexuals can now legally "marry" in California, even if they are not citizens of that stateNorway has joined a list of European countries where homosexual marriage is now legal.

Capitol Prayer ChristianLaw.org

Capitol Prayer is a CLA-led initiative for 2009 to cover our nation with prayer, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. If you want to be involved, please write: Christian Law Association, P.O. Box 4010, Seminole, FL 33775, or call: (727) 399-8300.

Liberty Bell or Silence? OneNewsNow.com

Michael Marcavage, director of Repent America and a street preacher, has been convicted of two federal crimes for preaching the gospel on the public sidewalk outside Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia on October 6, 2007. His conviction will be appealed.

Gaza OneNewsNow.com

Many Christians cannot obtain visas to flee persecution. A Christian owned Internet café was bombed twice. A Christian school was attacked, and a Christian bookstore worker was assassinated. Pray.

Persecution in Eritrea VOM, persecution.com

In May, police arrested (24 men and 10 women) evangelical Christians in Keren, Eritrea who were praying in a private home. The children were left behind. Please pray for these families.

Prison News Ann Evans, LHF Bible Study / Prison Ministry

We continue to receive new names and are sending more Bible Studies and Gospel literature to inmates. Next month we send another certificate. Ann Evans, our LHF Bible Study/Prison Ministry Coordinator visited with a recently released inmate who received a Bible Study Certificate while incarcerated. He is doing great. Thanks to all who are praying for this ministry. Praise God for answering those prayers!

Restricting judges OneNewsNow.com

An Oklahoma judge is objecting to attempts by the state bar association to restrict his ability to associate with pro-family friends and organizations. They say judges should be prohibited from holding membership in groups that “discriminate based on . . . sexual orientation.” Jeff Johnson of One News Now says Judge Bill Graves, “argued that judges do not surrender their First Amendment rights to freedom of speech and freedom of association just because they put on a robe.”

JULY 2008 BASICS by Rebecca Flores-Perez, Newsletter Staff

            Hebrews, Chapter 2, explains how Jesus was made our sacrifice, and through Him we are made heirs of salvation. However, we cannot assume that we are heirs of the Kingdom of God if we don’t have a personal relationship with the one who became that propitiation for us. If we don’t know the King, how will He raise the scepter to let us in His courts?

            There has to be a blood line somewhere for you to get an inheritance. God has a standard. You must first be bought by the blood of His son to inherit everlasting life.

            Psalm 14:1 says, “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.” Therefore they do not think that they have to obey His commandments.

            Ecclesiastes 5:1 says, “Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil.”

            Pray with a clean heart!

SOLID GROUND

by Sharon Cromwell, Newsletter Staff Source: Oswald Chambers

     Everyone wants safety and security, something solid in life. GOD is our ROCK.

     Yesterday: Isaiah 52:12 tells us that God will be our rereward (rear guard) when we serve Him.

     Oswald Chambers has said, “Our present enjoyment of God’s grace tends to be lessened by the memory of yesterday's sins and blunders. But God is the God of our yesterdays, and He allows the memory of them to turn the past into a ministry of spiritual growth for our future.

     Today: Isaiah 52:12 tells us, “. . . the LORD will go before you. . . .”

     Oswald Chambers said, “He will keep watch so that we will not be tripped up again by the same failures....” And God’s hand reaches back to the past, settling all the claims against our conscience.

     Tomorrow: Isaiah 52:12 tells us, “For ye shall not go out with haste. . . .”

     Oswald Chambers said, “It is true that we have lost opportunities that will never return, but God can transform this destructive anxiety into a constructive thoughtfulness for the future. Leave the broken, irreversible past in His hands, and step out into the invincible future with Him.”

AUGUST

UNIVERSALISM

by Sharon Cromwell, Newsletter Staff Source: onenewsnow.com

            Universalism is the belief that all roads lead to God, and it is in complete disagreement with Christianity. A new survey says that many Americans don't think their religion is the only way to eternal life! However, true Christians are followers of Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God. Read the New Testament in the Bible, God’s Holy Word. In it God instructs us that eternal life is in His Son.

            1 John 5:11 says, “And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.” Verse 13 says, “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life. . . .”

            1 John 5:20 says, “And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.”    John 3:15 says, “That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.”

            Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” John 3:16, Romans 5:21, and many more scriptures prove Jesus is the way to God and eternal life.

            There is only ONE way to God and there is ONLY ONE TRUE GOD. John 14:6 says, “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

            According to Tim Wildmon, president of the American Family Association, “Getting theologically consistent answers from universalism is like nailing Jell-O to the wall.” About Christianity he says, “. . . there are intellectual building blocks upon which the faith is put together so that people can understand it.”

            Wildman goes on to say, “What is appealing about universalism to modern-day Americans is that it is intentionally ambiguous and doesn't require any measurable commitment by the individual.” “. . . you don't have to abide by any particular code of conduct, and there is no objective standard for defining right or wrong or good and evil. It is all up to the individual and how he or she feels.” However, that will NOT get you to eternal life.

            James 4:7 says, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”             Repentance and submission to God are required by God to obtain eternal life, and eternal life is worth it!

Tiny Troops

by Sharon Cromwell, newsletter staff

     Christian believers gather to worship God, to work, and for other reasons. Matthew 18:20 says, “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”

     A very small group can have a great effect, because the previous verse (19) says, “Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.”

     Leviticus 26:8 says, “And five of you shall chase an hundred, and an hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight. . . .”

     Psalm 133:1 says, “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!”

     Brother Sam, one of our associate pastors, said it was like that July 26 when more than 15 men worked on the church roof here at LHF! Praise God!

AUGUST 2008 BASICS

by Rebecca Flores-Perez, Newsletter Staff

     Why is it so hard for adults to have childlike faith? I Corinthians 13:11 says, “. . . but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” That doesn’t mean we have to lay down our child-like faith.

     Mark10:15 says,

“. . . whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.” We cannot become a child again, but we can go back to our first love as we are commanded to do in Revelation 2:4.

     Little children totally depend on us to tell them the truth. They believe us without question. This is how we should approach the throne of God, and this is how we should obey His Word. This is how we are able to overcome.

     Philippians 2:15 says, “That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world.”

SEPTEMBER

Albania Trip 2008

     In August, Pastor Kevin and Collette took a mission trip to Albania where Pastor preached at least 12 times. In Romans 15:19 Paul mentioned Illyricum and how he had fully preached the gospel of Christ there. The modern name for Illyricum is Albania! Macedonia of the Bible was in their view once during their journey. They visited one of the ghettos at the capitol city of Tirana, where people lived among the garbage and picked through it for something to make their living.

     One man from Australia who was visiting his ‘bride to be’ in Albania told God that he wanted to be in an English speaking service. English is not the native language of Albania. Miraculously, he came to the service where Pastor Badgley was preaching and rededicated his life to God!

     Also, two young Albania women made a final decision to serve Christ. For them, it can mean great persecution because of their religious background. Please pray for them. Thanks to all who supported this trip with prayer or finances. Please pray for Albania.

LHF NEWS

LHF IS ABOUT to go INTERNATIONAL!!!

from Pastor Kevin Badgley

            Yes, our newsletter has been doing this for some years, but we have received so many calls and emails for the past year that we must respond! Our web site has been up for about 10 years, but lately the requests for teaching materials, prayer, and “hands on” ministry has escalated to the point we can no longer remain still.

            Pastors from around the world are requesting that “Pastor Kevin” come to their nations and minister to their co-pastors and leadership. Over twenty years ago, God spoke to me that I was to eventually be a “Pastor of pastors”. After over two decades of ministry, we’re beginning to see doors open that weren’t available to us before. After much prayer and seeking God, I comprehend in my spirit that God will send me to other ministries outside my nation. I must be spiritually and financially prepared, and I covet everyone’s prayers for this work.

            I need teams of people who can help me to go where courageous pastors and their congregations are standing like the Rock in their land to bring Christ’s mighty gospel of deliverance to all who will have it.

            I cannot go unless others are moved by God to get behind this ministry in this work. I need the right timing and order in which to minister, and I need definite answers by the end of the year.

            Currently, we are working on information to coordinate these trips to other lands, i.e., weather conditions most favorable, government regulations, verifying legitimate ministries, strengthening our home base ministries, and so on. Please pray for us and with us! If you would like to join with us in this move of God, be a benefactor to a church that is proactive in missions, and be confident that every prayer and every cent goes for the glory of God and His people, then let us know!

            If you have a particular nation that God has placed on your heart, tell us. Recently, Kenya, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Liberia, Cote D’Ivoire, Ghana, India, the Philippines and Pakistan have all contacted us with requests for us to come. In Kenya alone, at least six pastors have emailed us and some have called us.

            In August we received an email from Africa that said, “About five women are in fasting and praying for seven days for you, Pastor Kevin and your ministry.” We were told in an email from India that the orphanage children pray by our picture every morning for us. This encourages us! Others have assured us they are seeking God for us and for our gospel journeys.

            Let us also seek the Lord, and let us go forth to all the world as Jesus commanded!

LHF Christian School

            We are thankful that God has allowed us to have another school year in the basement of our church. Students benefit greatly from the Word of God woven into their daily routine. Please pray for this ministry.

What is Prayer?   by Rebecca Flores-Perez, Newsletter Staff

            Isn’t it just words that come from your heart? Praying to the Lord for salvation or what some might call “The Sinner’s Prayer” isn’t a set of words that someone long ago has made law. It isn’t supposed to come from a book either.

            If the Spirit of the lord is drawing you to repentance, and you come before God with a contrite and broken heart, it doesn’t really matter what you say – God will hear it and honor it. If you want to know the proper way to ask for forgiveness, start by following Psalm, Chapter 51. David humbled himself before the Lord and prayed, repenting with all of his heart. See also 2 Chronicles 7:14.

THE REMEDY   by Sharon Cromwell, Newsletter Staff

            2 Corinthians 10:5 tells us that we must bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ!

            One thing can lead to another naturally, unless something changes the course of events. We must not be led by evil leaders!

            Envy and strife lead to confusion and every evil work (see James 3:16). Anger leads to strife, transgression, and a way that is not good (see Proverbs 15:18, Proverbs 29:22, Proverbs 16:29).

            Lies lead to the lake of fire (see Revelation 21:8). Lust leads to covetousness, adultery, greed, etc. (see James 1:15, Matthew 5:28). Pride and a haughty spirit lead to destruction and a fall (see Proverbs 16:18). Sin leads to death (see Romans 6:23).

            Isaiah 48:17 says, “. . . I am the LORD thy God which teacheth thee to profit, which leadeth thee by the way that thou shouldest go.”

     Matthew 7:13-14 says, “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.”

     There has to be a change in our natural practices. Romans 2:4 says that the goodness of God leads us to repentance!

     Repentance to God is the remedy for sin. 1 John 1:7 - “. . . the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

OCTOBER

OCTOBER NEWS by Sharon Cromwell, Newsletter Staff, sources listed

Desert Transforme - assistnews.net and Sentinel Group Report

            A small church in the coastal city of Joao Pessoa in Brazil cried out for a fresh move of God, and He answered. One woman had dreams about a place called Algodao de Jandaira. She had not heard of it, and it was not on a map.

            Someone told them it was in a desert, and they found the place exactly as the dream portrayed. The 2,200 inhabitants and the animals looked like they were starving, due to no rain in 24 years!

            Some felt the area’s trauma was due to the people’s idolatry and spiritism. After many trips, and because of intercessory prayer, God broke bondage. Things changed in Algodao de Jandaira! From the rock these prayer warriors had used as their prayer station, a waterfall was pouring!   A deluge of rain fell. Some of the young people had never seen rain or running water!

            A generous and potable water table is now under the town. The land and animals now produce enough and an abundance to sell. The church that prayed and worked so hard has a church and social center in the community, and a majority of the citizens follow Christ as their Lord and Savior, including the mayor. The mayor’s expression for this miracle is the “Flood of Blessings”!

Preacher Vindicated! - openheaven.com and CBN News

            On the public sidewalk outside Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, some Christians were arrested near a gay parade for their message, “Homosexuality is sin - Christ can set you free.” Marcavage, director of Repent America, said, “Well, it was absolutely astonishing. I had no idea that I would be one of the first victims in our nation to be charged under hate crimes legislation which I see as the criminalization of Christianity.” They have now been vindicated. According to CBN News, “The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ruled that a homosexual ‘hate crimes’ law used against Christian evangelists violates the state constitution.”

Home School - openheaven.com and onenewsnow.com

            An appeals court has ruled that California home school parents do not need state education credentials to teach their children at home.

            Several Pennsylvania home school families are fighting strict state regulations. The Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) is representing them. James Mason, HSLDA senior counsel, says, “For them to comply with this very restrictive compulsory attendance law regarding home schooling in Pennsylvania is tantamount to rendering unto Caesar that which belongs to God alone.” Mason wants the case to go to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Oregon - Denied Vote   onenewsnow.com

            According to One News Now, “After Oregon voters passed a marriage protection amendment declaring marriage to be only the union of one man and one woman, liberal lawmakers tried to sidestep the amendment by passing a "domestic partnership" law.” Austin R. Nimocks, attorney for the Alliance Defense Fund says, “In America, every citizen's vote should count. . . . The people didn't thwart this effort; government bureaucracy did.” Pray for the upcoming elections that God will give us godly leaders. Proverbs 29:2 says, “When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn.”

Teen Challenge   christianpost.com

            A federal jury found that government officials violated the U.S. Constitution and other legalities by denying Teen Challenge, a rehabilitation ministry for drug and alcohol addiction, the right to expand its Christian-based ministry on its own property in Tennessee. Damages were awarded to Teen Challenge.

Islamic Push at UN   Daily Alert

            "Combating Defamation of Religion," is sponsored by the 57 nation Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC). The Bush administration and certain European governments, plus religious rights groups are increasing efforts to defeat this resolution that demands respect for Islam. It also has been used to justify persecution of religious minorities and to shut down free speech.

India   Gospel Publishing Ministry of LHF

            Christians make up 2.5 percent of India's 1.1 billion people yet conversions to Christianity anger hard-line Hindu groups. We received an urgent prayer request from a pastor in India in August 2008 concerning the violence in Orissa and other parts of India. He says there is much opposition to spreading the Gospel there. He says in Orissa a pastor was killed and cut into pieces. Even in this pastor’s place (not in Orissa), anti-Christians tried to kill a ministry worker and his family by putting fire to his house! They escaped with minor injuries, but the church was burned.

            This pastor from India says, “By seeing all these things we know that the coming of our Lord is so nigh. So we should do more for the Lord and win souls for the expansion of His Kingdom. Satan is trying his level best to kill the ministers of God and bring persecutions on Christians to break their faith on Jesus. We know that we may loose things physically, but we will not leave Him nor loose our faith which we have on Him. We shall live a faithful life for Jesus Christ who saved our lives till our last breath. And we will not be afraid of the people who destroy our bodies but we know that they cannot touch our souls. Please up hold us in your valuable prayers. We need your prayerful support.”

NOVEMBER

More Precious Than Silver

by Sharon Cromwell, Newsletter Staff, Source: article by Eva Marie Everson / crosswalk.com

            Silver, gold, and diamonds will always have value and beauty, but their “worth” is not always the same.

            Do THINGS have power over you? WHO or WHAT comes FIRST in your life?

            Lynn DeShazo wrote a song titled, “More Precious than Silver”. Can you believe french fries had something to do with that song? Lynn was fasting one day while working at McDonald’s, but she submitted to the power of french fries!

            We realize that she is not the only one who has disappointed the Lord like this. When she went to the Lord about it, He gave her Colossians 2:3 which says, “In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” He added Proverbs 8:11, “For wisdom is better than rubies; and all the things that may be desired are not to be compared to it.”

            Lynn’s song tells how the Lord is more precious than silver, gold, and diamonds, and that nothing we desire compares with Him!

            By the resurrection of Jesus Christ, we have an inheritance in God that far outshines anything of this world. In Luke, Chapter 7, a sinful woman realized Jesus’ worth and poured expensive perfume on her Savior’s feet. Others did not understand, but because she had sinned greatly, she loved Jesus greatly for forgiving her.

            God knows our weaknesses, but He is always drawing us to repent and come back to His love and protection and LIFE. Knowing that He IS God and ALWAYS faithful, should move us to overcome every sin and weakness. Jesus is MOST precious! (See 1 Corinthians 10:13,

1 John 5:13, and 1 John 1:7-9.)

Louisiana Prisoners

by Sharon Cromwell, Newsletter Staff, Source: assistnews.net and openheaven.com

     Most inmates at the Louisiana State Penitentiary have an average sentence of 88 years. Once named the bloodiest prison in America, documented stories now tell of hope!

     Warden Burl Cain takes responsibility for the prisoners’ hearts. “After witnessing my first execution of a prisoner at Angola, I was extremely convicted and felt accountable not only for the lives, but also the afterlives of my inmates,” says Cain.

     No prisoners are executed without hearing about the redemption Jesus can give. Cain says, “Yes they are prisoners, but they are still humans and deserve and need more than most of us to have hope.”

     One news release commented that Cain has changed the prison. Jeremy Reynalds of Assist News Service says, “There is a statistical decrease in hostility and bloodshed and an obvious increase in the morality and integrity of prisoners.”

     Some have graduated from programs and become missionaries to other prisons.

NOVEMBER BASICS

by Rebecca Flores-Perez, Newsletter Staff

            Do you sin willingly, having the hope that says, “God will forgive me, because He loves me”? Do you sin when you’re angry because you know the Bible says, “. . . His mercy endureth forever. . . .” in 42 verses?

            Psalm 111:10 says, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.. . .”

            Do you want to be chosen by God?

            Exodus 18:21 says, “Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness . . . to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens:”

NOVEMBER NEWS

by Sharon Cromwell, Newsletter Staff, sources listed

Death Penalty Source: onenewsnow.com & Daily Alert

Iran voted 196 to 7 in favor of the new law for the death penalty for men who convert to any faith other than Islam. Females get life imprisonment. Enforcing the death penalty for changing religion violates one of the most fundamental of all human rights. The right to freedom of religion is given special protection in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and in the European Convention of Human Rights. It is even found in Article 23 of Iran’s constitution, which states that no one may be molested simply for his beliefs!

McDonald’s

AFA Action Alert, contact@afa.net

In May we told you that McDonald’s had joined the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce. The American Family Association (AFA) has alerted us that now McDonald’s remains neutral on same sex marriage or any ‘homosexual agenda’ as defined by AFA.

Christian School, YES!

Christian Law Association & christianlaw.org

A church was not allowed to start a Christian school, and according to Attorney David Gibbs, “This is an increasing problem nationwide.” Legal roadblocks such as zoning, noise levels, and traffic had to be considered, but the Christian Law Association won the case! Throughout the case, that ministry kept a godly testimony and plans to work with the city council as the school develops.

God In Iraq

openheaven.com & Assist News Service

     Iraqi Believers testify to what God is doing there!

     One girl from a strict Sunni Muslim family in Baghdad said her father was a prominent political member of Saddam Hussein’s dictatorship, who got saved by reading an Arabic New Testament. About a year later, the girl’s mother had a vision of a man in bright white during the night claiming he was God! The rest of the family accepted Christ. Due to severe persecution they moved, but they still witness about Christ!

     One young man decided all he’d been doing in the Islamic religion was useless, but he still wanted to know God. He secretly read an Arabic Bible, and now he is a Believer, and realizes along with his passion to reach his home city for God, that he will probably die for his faith, but he says he is ready.

     One pastor reports 20-30 new converts every week, many which have had dreams and visions of Jesus!

     However, a pastor in Baghdad has had a death threat, and in Mosul Christians are killed for not converting to Islam. Please pray!

DECEMBER

WATCH AND PRAY

by Sharon Cromwell, Newsletter Staff

            When the first church faced challenges, Paul told them in Ephesians 6:18, “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;”

            Brother Clendennen of School of Christ International says, “Note the strong expressions, “watching thereunto,” more literally, “being sleepless thereunto.”

            Recently I was up praying much off and on in the night. It wasn’t insomnia; I was pressed by the Holy Ghost to pray. About daybreak I said, “Lord, WHAT is THIS?” It was heavier than ever before in my life. I opened my Bible and immediately my eyes found the scripture in Luke 21:36 that says, “Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.” I was relieved that I had been obedient.

            Ephesians 6:12 tells us we wrestle against principalities, powers, darkness, and wickedness. What if some Christians don’t seem to be praying or working in the kingdom of God? Keep your eyes on Jesus and just pray for them. (See 2 Thessalonians 3:11– 13.)

            Galatians 6:9 says, “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” Prayer is still the answer!

December Basics

by Rebecca Flores-Perez, Newsletter Staff

            Which voice should I follow? Satan as well as God can speak softly. The devil is subtle and can come as an angel of light. (See 1 Corinthians 11:14.)

            In John 10:4, Jesus talks to us in a parable saying, “And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.”

            1 Samuel 15:22 says, “. . . as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice. . . .”

            I urge you to start listening to what comes in your ears. Do NOT act on any of the voices except the ONE that lines up with the Word of God. Any other is false, brought by a devil to deceive and destroy you. Rebuke it in the name of Jesus and it has to flee! (See James 4:7

DECEMBER NEWS

by Sharon Cromwell, Newsletter Staff, sources listed

Prayer: ASSIST News Service

God Uses Children

India openheaven.com

A three year old boy was healed of stammering. Later he accepted Jesus as his Savior. By age 12 he had preached 1600 sermons at home and abroad. One meeting had 35,000 attendees!

Africa Gospel Publishing Ministry, LHF

Pastor Obanda from Africa says, “We have witnessed children being filled with the Holy Spirit and operating in the gifts of the Holy Spirit. We believe that our God who is no respecter of persons is going to bless the children mightily in this end time revival. With this in mind, we have special sessions to train children and impart spiritual gifts.”

Other News

Suicide citizenlink.org

This November Washington became the second state to legalize physician-assisted suicide. In 1997Oregon passed the Death with Dignity Act, permitting terminally-ill patients to obtain fatal “medication” to kill themselves.

India CWMission.org.uk

Hindu groups in India have claimed that Christianity is a foreign religion, but India's Prime Minister has now stated to the general secretary of the World Council of Churches in New Delhi, “Christianity is part of our national heritage.” He noted that Christianity in India has a longer history than in many Western countries and made reference to the Indian constitution which states that India “guarantees freedom to practice and propagate one's faith.” He has promised to assist Christians who have suffered violence lately.

Will More Christians Die? European Center for Law and Justice

The European Center for Law and Justice (ECLJ) is fighting to protect religious freedom around the world. They say, “We argued that the goal of the Defamation of Religions resolution – which is to protect Islam from any form of criticism – is in direct violation of the most fundamental principles laid out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.” ECLJ says that resolution would “undermine the very reason the United Nations was formed - to defend human rights.” They say, “. . . allowing a state-sponsored religion to persecute those who choose to believe differently” would have dangerous consequences. If the resolution is put into international law, many Christians will die.

Abortion and the U.N. onenewsnow.com

Nicaragua and El Salvador are the only two nations in Latin America that refuse to legalize abortion. Sixteen others have changed their laws. Steven Mosher, president of Population Research Institute, believes citizens are being ignored, and the U.N. and associated organizations are manipulating them through courts, legal maneuvers, and by withholding financial aid, pressuring them to change.

“Marriage” Restored Focus on the Family

The people of California passed a constitutional amendment to restore traditional marriage. Florida and Arizona won marriage amendments also. Keeping the sanctity of marriage somewhat protects children from radical indoctrination of redefinition of marriage in classrooms. In Massachusetts Catholic Charities adoption agency refused to do gay adoptions and was shut down.