 | Wall
St. Journal: Focus on the Family Seeks 'Broader Tent'
Focus
on the Family, the evangelical radio ministry that grew into a powerhouse of the
religious right, enters a new era this month as founder James Dobson steps down,
ceding his microphone to a leader with a markedly different style and set of priorities.
Mr. Dobson, a 73-year-old child psychologist, will record the last of his daily
radio broadcasts for the Colorado Springs-based ministry this month. Taking over
from him will be Jim Daly, an M.B.A. who has been with the ministry for two decades
and became its president in 2005. On the radio since the late 1970s, Mr. Dobson
has built an audience estimated at 1.5 million daily listeners in the U.S. and
more than 200 million world-wide. He began his ministry advising parents, urging,
for instance, a firm hand in child discipline, including spankings with a paddle.
In the past two decades, Mr. Dobson pushed into politics by funding ad campaigns
and mobilizing his radio audience to bombard Congress with calls on hot-button
legislation. MORE |
Sarah
Palin: Obama's Agenda Will Be Short-Lived
Sarah
Palin is predicting a good year for conservative candidates for public office,
saying the policies of President Barack Obama and Democratic leaders in Congress
will be short-lived. The 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee told the National
Tea Party Convention in Saturday that a string of recent Republican victories
at the polls, including Scott Brown's longshot win in last month's special Senate
election in Massachusetts, bodes well for conservative candidates this year. She
told the convention in Tennessee that if ... MORE | Haitian
Lawyer for Jailed US Missionaries Fired
The
Haitian lawyer for 10 U.S. Baptists charged with child kidnapping tried to bribe
the missionaries' way out of jail and has been fired, the attorney who hired him
said Saturday night. The Haitian lawyer, Edwin Coq, denied the allegation. He
said the $60,000 he requested from the Americans' families was his fee. Jorge
Puello, the attorney in the neighboring Dominican Republic retained by relatives
of the 10 American missionaries after their arrest last week, told The Associated
Press that he fired Coq on Friday night. He had hired Coq to represent the detainees
at Haitian legal proceedings. Coq orchestrated "some kind of extortion with government
officials" that would have led to the release of nine of the 10 missionaries,
Puello charged. MORE |
| | | Monday-Tuesday
Edition | |  |
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| ///////////////// |
Be
advised that some of the viewpoints espoused on this page may not be held by the
editor. News For Christians is a news digest, pulling links from all over
the web. We do not endorse all sites linked or agree with the views of those
sites. | | ////// |
 For
more links, click
here. | |
Palin
Targets Obama In 'Tea Party' Speech
Taking
aim at President Barack Obama and the Democrats, Sarah Palin has told a 'tea party'
convention in Nashville that the country is ripe for another revolution. Noting
his party's dismal showing in elections since Obama moved into the White House
a year ago with talk of hope and promises of change, Palin asked the gathering:
"How's that hope-y, change-y stuff workin' out for you?" MORE |
Netanyahu: Israel
Open to Peace Talks With Syria
Israel's
prime minister attempted to end a war of words with Syria on Sunday, saying his
country is open to peace talks with its longtime enemy. Israeli and Syrian officials
have traded threats over the past week, raising concerns of an escalation between
two countries that have officially been at war for more than 60 years. Israel
desires peace agreements with "all of its neighbors," Netanyahu told his weekly
Cabinet meeting. MORE |
Southern Baptists
Ask Obama to Help 10 Missionaries in Haiti
Leaders
of the Southern Baptist Convention, the nation’s largest Protestant denomination,
have asked President Obama to “do everything within the authority of your office”
to free the American missionary team charged with abduction in Haiti. In a letter
dated Feb. 5, the leaders said it is “the consuming passion” of Southern Baptists
to share the good news with the world and to “love every person He has created.”
MORE |
City Officials
Under Fire for Pro-Christian Comments
Two
city officials in a California town are being targeted for possible hate crimes
over comments they made recently about the Christian and Muslim faiths. Speaking
to a group of Christian ministers on January 27, Lancaster Mayor R. Rex Parris
stated: "We are growing Christian community -- and don't let anybody shy away
from that." And Councilwoman Sherry Marquez has been criticized for posting biblical
references on her Facebook site encouraging Christians to defend themselves --
along with quotes from Muslim leaders exhorting followers to convert the world
to Islam.. MORE |
North Korea Frees
Christian Activist; Park Arrives in Beijing
North
Korea made good on its word and freed American Christian activist Robert Park,
who arrived in Beijing Saturday. A spokesperson for the United States Embassy
said Park would fly to the United States later that day. Park, 28, had been held
by North Korea since late December after he crossed the frozen Tumen River on
Christmas Day and entered without permission. The Christian activist from Tucson,
Ariz., said he wanted to draw international attention to the human rights
abuse in North Korea. MORE |
Bible Prophecy
Today: Mark Hitchcock Discusses the USA in Ezekiel 38-39
Mark
Hitchcock is a leading Bible prophecy expert, prolific author who has penned over
20 books on the end times, senior pastor of Faith Bible Church located in Oklahoma,
and adjunct faculty member of the Dallas Theological Seminary. He is also a much
in demand speaker at Bible prophecy conferences all over the nation. Dr. Hitchcock
was invited to answer questions based on his book The Late Great United States.
MORE |
Evangelicals Band
Together to Keep Gospel Alive in PC(USA)
Evangelicals
in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) have banded together and committed themselves
to hold to the biblical faith as their denomination continues to "stumble," as
they put it. With the PC(USA) losing churches and conservatives beginning to feel
like they have no voice in the denomination, remaining evangelicals will support
one another with the formation of the Biblical Presbyterian Network.
MORE |
Air Force Pagan
Circle Invites God's Judgment, Says Pastor
A
new Earth-centered worship area at the Air Force Academy has generated wide attention
and discussion over religious freedom and political correctness. While officers
say the site for pagans, Wiccans, Druids and other Earth-centered believers is
in congruence with their duty to defend freedom for all Americans, including the
freedom to practice religion, one Baptist pastor condemned it as idolatry. "What
we label today as 'pluralism,' God called 'idolatry,'" said Dr. Robert Jeffress,
pastor of First Baptist Church of Dallas... MORE |
String of Texas
Church Arsons Worry Congregations
Eight
Texas churches barely 150 miles apart have caught fire since New Year's Day, putting
pastors and congregations on edge and on guard wondering whether theirs is next.
Authorities determined seven of those fires were intentionally set and they are
investigating one that broke out Thursday as a possible arson. There have been
no reported injuries or arrests, and federal officials aren't saying whether...
MORE |
Egyptian Christians
Call for Right to Build Churches
Egyptian
activists have protested in front of parliament and called for legislation giving
Christians equal rights as Muslims to build houses of worship. The demonstrators,
both Muslim and Christian, were also protesting Wednesday against sectarian strains
in the country, particularly in light of a Christmas Eve slaying of six Coptic
Christians and a Muslim guard outside a church in southern Egypt.
MORE |
Guidelines Approved
for Teaching Bible In TN Public Schools
Tennessee's
state Board of Education has approved guidelines on how to teach the Bible in
public high schools despite concern that the curriculum could be challenged in
court. Legislation approved in 2008 authorized a course for a "nonsectarian, nonreligious
academic study of the Bible" in public schools. MORE |
Bible Prophecy
Today: Playtime for Kids and It's Called Divination
...now
Toys-R-Us has a cute little pink Ouija board and one that glows in the dark, both
marketed for children. They advertise that kids as young as 8 need to have these
new sorcery objects! (Well, they don't call them "sorcery objects" but the Bible
does.) I know it is billed as a "toy" but I have enough personal experience that
I can tell you it is blatant divination. MORE |
| /////////
| Update
for February 6th-7th, 2010 |
 | Obama
Uses Prayer Breakfast To Call For Civility, Cooperation
President
Barack Obama preached politics – the importance of “civility” in the public square
and finding common ground – at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington on
Thursday. He mentioned health care several times. Bemoaning the “erosion of civility
in the public square,” Obama said it “sows division and distrust among our citizens;
it poisons the well of public opinion; it leaves each side little room to negotiate
with the other; it makes politics an all-or-nothing sport, where one side is either
always right or always wrong, when in reality, neither side has a monopoly on
truth.” Obama said in those conditions, it’s easy to “lose sight” of hungry children,
homeless men, and “families without health care.” Through faith and prayer, “We
need to find our way back to civility,” Obama said, adding that such a move begins
with “stepping out of our comfort zones” to bridge divisions. MORE |
| |
Attorney
says U.S. Baptists Charged In Haitian Child Case
Ten Americans
detained in Haiti for trying to take 33 children out of the country after the
earthquake were charged with child kidnapping and criminal association on Thursday,
their Haitian lawyer said. Edwin Coq said that a judge found sufficient evidence
to file charges against the Americans, who were arrested Friday at Haiti's border
with the Dominican Republic. Coq attended Thursday's hearing and has represented
the entire group in Haiti. The U.S. citizens, most of them members of an Idaho-based
church group, were whisked away from the closed court hearing to jail in Port-au-Prince,
the capital. One of them, Laura Silsby, waved and smiled faintly to reporters...
MORE | Survey
Says Churches, Ministers Are Not the Friendliest Places
Less than
18 percent of Americans say the church is the friendliest place in town, a recent
survey reveals. Though the church is ranked second behind "my home," which 35
percent of Americans listed, Group Publishing – which commissioned the survey
– says the low number indicates that what is generally considered to be one of
the safest havens in the world isn't seen as that friendly by most Americans.
Even among self-declared Christians, less than a quarter named the church as the
friendliest place. Even fewer non-Christians, 7 percent, agreed. With attendance
across churches in the U.S. declining, Christians can't really afford not to be
friendly, said Amy Nappa, who leads Group for Women's... MORE |
| |
 | Air
Conditioning Hell: How Liberalism Happens
Theological
liberals do not intend to destroy Christianity, but to save it. As a matter of
fact, theological liberalism is motivated by what might be described as an apologetic
motivation. The pattern of theological liberalism is all too clear. Theological
liberals are absolutely certain that Christianity must be saved…from itself. The
classic liberals of the early twentieth century, often known as modernists, pointed
to a vast intellectual change in the society and ... MORE | Two
Men Preaching Religion Shot To Death in Florida Town
Jeriah
Woody executed two men who made the mistake of preaching religion to the 18-year-old,
a witness has told police. Woody, who turned himself in to Boynton Beach
police Wednesday, is charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the Saturday
night deaths of Stephen Ocean, 23, and Tite Sufra, 24, near the Boynton Beach
city library. He was expected to be taken to the Palm Beach County Jail
later today and have a bond hearing Thursday. MORE |
| | |
 |
| ‘"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." John 3:16 |
| On January 26th,
2005 a California train derailed, killing 11 people and injuring over 200.
One of those 200 was a 44 year old man named John Phipps. His story is the
basis for this message. Phipps was the man who, though pinned in the wreckage
of the train, scrawled a message in his own blood to his wife and kids.
As he regained consciousness, he felt his head and body and saw he was bleeding
profusely. An upended train seat sat right above him, and thinking he might
be dying, wrote this message: "I (heart symbol) my kids. I (heart symbol)
Leslie." Later he said, "It wasn't a cons- cious thought. I've always
told my wife and kids I loved them, and it just happen- ed. I didn't plan
it. I didn't say I have to leave a last word. I just wrote it without
thinking." | | His
rescuers came on the scene minutes later and saw the message. Fire Captain
Robert Rosario said, "I've seen some gruesome things on this job, but that moved
me. My only thought was, I have to get that seat to his wife and kids."
His wife said about the message, "Hallmark is never going to top that. It's
moving, it's thoughtful and chilling all at the same time." |
| The story of John Phipps and his message
written in his own blood is a moving one, especially at this time in which we
celebrate human love, Valen- tine's Day. There is another moving love story
written in blood, one I want us to consider now. That love is the love of
Jesus Christ for a lost world. MORE |
| ////////// |
 |
| Ask, and
it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened
unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth;
and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Mat. 7:7-8 |
| What makes a prayer really a prayer?
The saying of it? Or the hearing of it? Or is it the answering of
it? Most Christians pray superficial and shallow prayers. We pray
like children in a sandbox throwing up sand toward the sky. Our prayers
today may be exactly the opposite tomorrow. The lyrics to a country song:
Sometimes I thank God for unanswered prayers; Remember when you're talkin'
to the man upstairs; That just because he doesn't answer doesn't mean he don't
care; Some of God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers. |
| Sadly, those song lyrics are true
for many Christians. Something is wrong with our prayers. Iam not
saying our prayers will unlock the vaults of Heaven and give us prosperity and
health. Prayer is not a mystical gift which binds the hands of God to do as we
wish. Prayer is the communi- cation between a Father and His child.
Jesus Himself prayed constantly as an illustration to us. And He taught on prayer
to help us understand & answer... MORE |
|
Theologian:
Most Christians Infected with Prosperity Gospel
Most
professing Christians in America are infected with at least some measure of the
health and wealth gospel, said one theologian. That is, believers have no concept
of a love and a joy that does not eliminate hardship and heartache, Sam Storms
of Bridgeway Church in Oklahoma City said at a pastors conference this week. "For
most professing believers if God is love He must promise to minimize my struggles
and maximize my pleasure," he lamented. Many believe it's their spiritual birthright
to experience comfort and prosperity and that it's God divine obligation to provide
it. It's a disease that's rampant in the culture and in the church. MORE |
| U.S.
Church: Our Team Was 'Falsely Arrested' in Haiti
A
Baptist church in Idaho whose members were detained in Haiti for attempting to
move children to the Dominican Republic said Sunday that its team was “falsely
arrested” and it is working to “clear up the misunderstanding.” A ten-member team
from several Baptist churches in the United States was arrested by Haitian officials
Saturday after trying to take 33 children across the border to the Dominican Republic.
The church members say they are bringing the children to an orphanage where they
will be given medical and emotional care. MORE |
| Brits
'Waking Up' to Islamic Influence
A
British-born scholar who now lives in Jerusalem says the British government is
finally starting to take steps to stem the tide of Islamic expansion that has
led to home-grown anti-Semitism, much of which has been driven by radical Islam.
Recently the British government banned an Islamic group notorious for glorifying
al-Qaeda and tied to terror plots both in Britain and abroad. Members of the cell
were reportedly involved in the July 7, 2005, London bombings. MORE |
| Parents
Convicted in Botched Faith Healing of Son
A
Clackamas County, Ore., jury found a faith healing couple guilty of criminally
negligent homicide for failing to seek medical help for their son. Jeff and Marci
Beagley were convicted Tuesday, nearly two years after their 16-year-old son,
Neil, died. When Neil grew sick in 2008, the parents called family members and
friends to lay their hands on him and pray for healing. Marci on Friday testified
that her son said he didn't need to or want to go to the doctor. MORE |
| First
Openly Gay Episcopal Bishop Says St. Paul Was Condemning Homosexual Acts by Heterosexuals
In a section
of his New Testament letter to the Romans (1:22-27) dealing with God’s admonitions
against same-sex relations, St. Paul was actually writing about heterosexuals
who engage in same-sex acts and not homosexuals, said the Rt. Rev. V. Gene
Robinson, the first openly gay bishop in the Episcopal church. “We have to understand
that the notion of a homosexual sexual orientation is a notion that’s only about
125 years old," Bishop Robinson told CNSNews.com. "That is to say, St. Paul was
talking about people that he understood to be heterosexual engaging in same-sex
acts. It never occurred to anyone in ancient times that... ” MORE |
| Boehner
Says Obama Adviser Appears to be ‘Anti-Catholic Bigot’
House Minority
Leader John Boehner said today that Harry Knox, who serves on President Barack
Obama's faith-based advisory council, appears to be an "anti-Catholic bigot" and
should resign. Earlier this week, Knox said he stood by a statement he made last
year that Pope Benedict XVI is “hurting people in the name of Jesus” because the
pope does not support promoting the use of condoms as a means to stem the spread
of HIV. MORE |
| Mich.
Pastors File Suit Against Expanded Hate Crimes Law
Four
Christians on Tuesday filed a federal lawsuit challenging the recently enacted
Hate Crimes Prevention Act, arguing that it seeks to criminalize deeply held religious
beliefs that are in opposition to homosexuality. The new law, the lawsuit contends,
"is an effort to eradicate religious beliefs opposing the homosexual agenda from
the marketplace of ideas by demonizing, vilifying, and criminalizing such beliefs
as a matter of federal law and policy."MORE |
| American
Thinker: What's Wrong with Celebrating Life?
University
of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow hasn't even made it to the NFL yet, but he is
going to be a star of the Super Bowl. The Heisman Trophy-winning passer for the
Florida Gators is the first college football player to both rush and pass for
twenty touchdowns in a season, and he is the first sophomore to win the highly
coveted trophy. Nevertheless, his recent fame comes from an ad that will be placed
among dozens of others during one of the most popular... MORE |
|
| Update
for February 3rd-4th, 2010 |
| |
AP:
Haitian Official Insists American Baptists Be Prosecuted
Haiti's prime
minister says it's clear to him that the ten U.S. Baptists who tried to take 33
children out of his quake-ravaged country without permission "knew what they were
doing was wrong." But Prime Minister Max Bellerive says his country is open to
having the Americans go before courts in the United States because Haiti's judicial
system was devastated by the Jan. 12 earthquake. The purported Baptist "rescue
mission" has become a distraction for a crippled government trying to provide
basic life support to millions of earthquake survivors. But Bellerive said some
legal system must determine whether the Americans were acting in good faith as
they claim or are child traffickers in a nation that has struggled to fight exploitation
of children. MORE | Televangelist
Kenneth Copeland Blasted for 'Unfulfilled Promises'
Kenneth
Copeland Ministries is under fire, mainly by one man, for failing to fly disaster
relief supplies to Haiti's earthquake victims after allegedly promising aviation
assistance during such crises. The international organization, which is
also under scrutiny by the Senate Finance Comm- ittee for possible abuse of its
nonprofit status, has been accused of "unfulfilled" pledges and unaccounted donations.
"While there is a huge crisis going on in the nation of Haiti right now Kenneth
Copeland's promised Angel Flight 44 ministry is nowhere to be found and the money
he collected to start that ministry has not been accounted for," Rich Vermillion,
co-author of Angel Flight 44, charges. Angel Flight 44 was birthed in 2006 during
the Southwest Believer's Convention. Vermillion, Glen Hyde (co-author) and Kenneth
Copeland announced in a live... MORE |
| |
 | Protestant
Pastors Name Graham Most Influential Living Preacher
He
has preached the gospel to more than 200 million people in 185 lands and, at 91,
still maintains that his one purpose in life is "to help people find a personal
relationship with God, which, I believe, comes through knowing Christ."
Billy Graham, whose crusade in Los Angeles in 1949 vaulted him into the public
square, is far and away the top living preacher that has most influenced Protestant
pastors, according to a recent survey... MORE | U.S.
Air Force Creates Wiccan Worship Space
The
U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado will set aside a worship space for followers
of "Earth- centered" religions such as Wicca and Druidism, according to an Air
Force news release. A stone circle atop a hill on the base in Colorado Springs
will likely be dedicated in a ceremony March 10, according to the release, and
be available to cadets and other service members who live in the area. The base
already has worship spaces for others... MORE |
Climate
Researchers Manipulated and Hid Data
Climate-gate
has struck again: A new investigation reveals crucial flaws in data about climate
change, as well as attempts by leading researchers to cover up their own mistakes.
The study by London paper The Guardian relies upon e-mails leaked by hackers from
the University of East Anglia's climatic research unit (CRU). The paper found
serious flaws in measurements from Chinese weather stations, noting that documents
from them could not be produced. MORE |
| Pentagon
Moves to Repeal 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Policy
Defense
Secretary Robert Gates announced Tuesday that the Pentagon has begun the process
to repeal the “don't ask, don't tell” policy that bars homosexuals from openly
serving in the military. Gates told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee
that the policy will take over a year to repeal because the Pentagon is looking
at various options in order to “get this right and minimize disruption to a force
that is actively fighting two wars and working through the stress of almost a
decade of combat.” MORE |
| Churches
Tread Lightly with Super Bowl Viewing Parties
As
the New Orleans Saints get ready to battle it out with the Indianapolis Colts
this weekend, churches are being cautious with their Super Bowl viewing parties
to avoid copyright infringement. And they're starting by leaving "Super Bowl"
out of their event title. Fall Creek Baptist Church is calling their annual event
the "Big Game Bash," three years after the Indianapolis church was warned by the
National Football League to cancel their Super Bowl viewing party. MORE |
| Witnessing
at the Mall Becomes a Crime?
A
California court has ruled in favor of a mall in a free-speech case. rad Dacus
of Pacific Justice Institute (PJI) tells OneNewsNow about the 2007 case, which
the Institute now plans to take to the California Court of Appeal. "A youth minister
in Roseville, California, decided that he wanted to share the gospel with people
in a shopping mall," the attorney explains. "However, he was initially arrested
and removed from the [Roseville Galleria Mall] because the shopping mall has a
policy that forbids any discussions of faith with anyone else in the shopping
mall unless you directly knew them prior to the visit to the shopping mall." MORE |
| Sharper
Iron: What Is The New Spirituality?
The
New Spirituality is a paradigm for devotion and spiritual formation that utilizes
forms and approaches originating from the Bible and from traditions and sources
other than the Bible. It emphasizes individual autonomy and focuses on experience
rather than on indoctrination. It is rooted in mysticism and the occult but often
wrapped in Christian terminology. The premise of The New Spirituality is pantheistic
(God is all) and panentheistic (God is in all). MORE |
| Leftist
Version of National Prayer Breakfast Formed
Pro-gay
activists and church leaders are touting an alternative "inclusive" prayer event
to this year's National Prayer Breakfast. Called "The American Prayer Hour," the
event on Feb. 4 is being held in protest of Uganda's Anti-Homosexuality Bill.
Organizers claim that the "secretive fundamentalist organization" – The Fellowship
Foundation, also known as The Family – behind the annual National Prayer Breakfast
is directly tied to the bill. MORE |
| Medical
Journal Retracts Study Linking Autism To Vaccine
The
medical journal The Lancet on Tuesday retracted a controversial 1998 paper that
linked the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine to autism. MORE |
| Church
Bells at Center of Legal Scuffles
Alliance
Defense Fund (ADF) has argued two cases involving a Phoenix noise ordinance, one
in federal court and the other in state. Erik Stanley, the ADF attorney handling
the cases, argues in federal court that the law is unconstitutional and in state
court that the conviction and jail sentence of Bishop Rick Painter of Christ the
King Liturgical Charismatic Church should be overturned. MORE |
| New
Study Shows Merits of Abstinence Education
A
new study gives proponents of abstinence education ammunition in the struggle
to receive federal funding for abstinence-centered education. MORE |
| /////// |
