In 1 Out Of Every 5 American Families, Nobody Has A Job - Michael Snyder THE ECONOMIC COLLAPSE BLOG

In 1 Out Of Every 5 American Families, Nobody Has A Job Posted: 24 Apr 2016   Michael Snyder  THE ECONOMIC COLLAPSE BLOG If nobody is working in one out of every five U.S. families, then how in the world can the unemployment rate be close to 5 percent as the Obama administration keeps insisting? The truth, of course, is that the U.S. economy is in far worse condition than we are being told.  Last week, I discussed the fact that the Federal Reserve has found that 47 percent of all Americans would not be able to come up with $400 for an unexpected visit to the emergency room without borrowing it or selling something. But Barack Obama and his minions never bring up that number. Nor do they ever bring up the fact that 20 percent of all families in America are completely unemployed. The following comes directly from the Bureau of Labor Statistics… In 2015, the share of families with an employed member was 80.3 percent, up by 0.2 percentage point from 2014. The likelihood of having an employed family member rose in 2015 for Black families (from 76.4 percent to 77.7 percent) and for Hispanic families (from 85.9 percent to 86.4 percent). The likelihood for White and Asian families showed little or no change (80.1 percent and 88.6 percent, respectively). For purposes of this study, families “are classified either as married-couple families or as families maintained by women or men without spouses present” and they include households without children as well as children under the age of 18. Digging into the numbers, we find that there were a total of 81,410,000 families in America during the 2015 calendar year. Of that total, 16,060,000 families did not have a single member employed. So that means that in 19.7 percent of all families in the United States, nobody has a job. And of course there are lots more families that are “partially employed”. In other words, maybe the wife has a job but the husband does not. So based on these numbers, it would appear to me that the true rate of unemployment in this country is vastly higher than 5 percent, and John Williams of shadowstats.com agrees with me. According to his calculations, the broadest measure of unemployment in the U.S. would actually be sitting at 22.9 percent if honest numbers were being used. But let’s not just focus on where we are. Let’s take a look at where we are going. According to Challenger, Gray & Christmas, job cut announcements by big companies in the United States were up 32 percent during the first quarter of 2016 compared to the first quarter of 2015, and it appears that the job losses are going to continue to mount as we roll into the second quarter. For instance, late last week Intel announced that it is going to be laying off 12,000 workers… As it navigates its path into the future, Intel, the 47-year-old corporation best known for making microprocessor chips that power personal computers, has announced significant changes to its business. On Tuesday, Intel’s CEO Brian Krzanich said in a letter to employees that the company over the next year will cut its 107,300-person global workforce by 12,000 people, or 11 percent. Those are good middle class jobs, and they are exactly the kind of jobs that we cannot afford to be losing. Meanwhile, the “retail apocalypse” appears to be accelerating once again. Bloomberg is reporting that teen clothing chain Aeropostale is preparing to file for bankruptcy.  Aeropostale currently operates more than 800 stores across the nation, and it is unclear if any of them will be able to stay open as this process plays out. But of course it isn’t just Aeropostale that has gone bankrupt lately. Here are a few more examples of major retailers that have recently filed for bankruptcy… April 16, 2016: Vestis Retail Group, the operator of sporting goods retailers Eastern Mountain Sports (camping, hiking, skiing, adventure sports), Bob’s Stores (family clothing and shoes), and Sport Chalet (general sporting goods), filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. It will close all 56 stores and stop online sales. In the filing, it blamed the going-out-of-business sales at “certain Sports Authority locations,” plus the weather, which had been too warm, and trouble with switching to a new software platform. It’s owned by private equity firm Versa Capital Management LLC. April 7, 2016: Pacific Sunwear of California, clothing retailer with nearly 600 stores and derailed ambitions of skate-and-surf cool, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. PE firm Golden Gate Capital, a lender to the company, agreed to convert over 65% of its loan into equity of the reorganized company and add another $20 million in financing. Wells Fargo agreed to provide $100 million of debtor-in-possession financing. March 2, 2016: Sports Authority filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. It said it would close 140 of its 450 stores, including all stores in Texas. Just because the stock market has been doing well in recent weeks does not mean that the crisis has passed. In fact, many experts believe that the crisis of 2016 is just getting started.  Albert Edwards of Societe Generale is one of them… But what I do know is when in the last few weeks I have heard that Janet Yellen sees no bubble in the US, when Ben Bernanke hones and restates his helicopter money speech, and when Mario Draghi says that the ECB’s policy of printing money and negative interest rates was working, I feel utterly depressed (I could also quote similar nonsense from Japan, the UK and China). I have not one scintilla of doubt that these central bankers will destroy the enfeebled world economy with their clumsy interventions and that political chaos will be the ugly result. The only people who will benefit are not investors, but anarchists who will embrace with delight the resulting chaos these policies will bring! All over the world, the underlying economic fundamentals continue to deteriorate. Here in the U.S., retail sales have been extremely disappointing, total business sales have been steadily falling, corporate revenues and corporate profits continue to plunge, and corporate debt defaults have soared to their highest level since the last financial crisis. All of these numbers are screaming that a major economic downturn is here, and with each passing week things look even more ominous for the second half of 2016. *About the author: Michael Snyder is the founder and publisher of The Economic Collapse Blog. Michael’s controversial new book about Bible prophecy entitled “The Rapture Verdict” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com.*

Leading Israeli Rabbis: Time for Messiah to Come - Israel Today Staff

Leading Israeli Rabbis: Time for Messiah to Come

Monday, April 25, 2016 |  Israel Today Staff

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Topics:

Bible

Just a day before the start of Passover last week, two of Israel’s most prominent rabbis got together to discuss the delayed coming of the Messiah.

Rabbi Moishe Sternbuch is head of the Rabbinical Court and a leader of one of Israel’s largest and most influential ultra-Orthodox communities.

Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky is considered a leading authority in ultra-Orthodox Jewish society.

The Orthodox news portal Kikar Hashabbat recorded their conversation:

Sternbuch: This is a difficult generation. Not a day goes by without someone cursing his friend. You deal with one situation, and immediately someone starts something else.

During the campaign on behalf of the Bnei Israel from India I worked with your father, and then we spoke of an abundance of Jews (to bring to Israel). But today they want to bring to the Land those who hold to the Christian faith, the so-called “Jewish Christians.”

Kanievsky: Foreshadowing of the Messiah.

Sternbuch: Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin interpreted what is said at the end of the Mishnah in Sotah (‘We will have no one upon whom to rely other than our Father in Heaven’ - Sotah 9:15) as a curse in and of itself, that in the generation of the foreshadowing of Messiah those who fear God will become tired and give up the fight against sinners. …We need to bring Messiah.

Kanievsky: The seventh (period of blessing) is not yet finished. ‘At the conclusion of the seventh the son of David will come.’ (Babylonian Talmud - Megilah 17:22)

Sternbuch: ‘The harvest is past, the summer has ended, and we are not saved.’ (Jeremiah 8:20)

Kanievsky: According to the signs recorded in the Gemara (rabbinic commentary on the Mishnah), the Messiah should already have come.

Sternbuch (reading from the Gemara): ‘The generation during which the Son of David comes will accuse the scholars.’ Rambam wrote that before the coming of Messiah, Christians and Ishmaelites would come to the Land of Israel.

Kanievsky: When Messiah comes everyone will repent, and those who were ‘barren trees’ will bear fruit and become scholars.

Sternbuch: It would seem that we are now in the ‘Generation of Messiah,’ and God willing will meet again at the coming of Messiah, may He come quickly. Then we will see the fulfillment of the verse, ‘When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dreamed.’ (Psalm126:1) It will seem like the world in which we lived until the coming of Messiah was but a dream.

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Bill Yount: "Oh, America...Don't Sell Your Birthright!" - The Elijah List

Bill Yount: "Oh, America...Don't Sell Your Birthright!"

The Elijah List

Apr 24, 2016

From the desk of Steve Shultz:

Bill Yount gave this word back in 2008 and just recently released it again. From time to time we will repost something that has great impact for the times we are in...this is one such word!

Revival is breaking out, we are in an election year, much negativity is being spoken in the airwaves as well during this time. It's important in times like these to pray for our leaders, speaking words of life over them and our nation.

Bill Yount shares here:

I sense during this time that the words that we speak, especially concerning our nation, will carry tremendous power in how the Lord responds to us. I sense it is as though our words will be amplified in the spirit realm during this time.

Be encouraged in your prayer declarations during this season!

By the way friends...our "What is God Saying for 2016?" Elijah List conference set is one of our TOP SELLERS right now! And YOU CAN ORDER THE CDs, DVDs OR MP3 DOWNLOAD just below!

This truly, truly, truly was the best conference yet and I've NEVER EVER heard so many positive words coming forth from God's prophets. Our speakers were: Chuck Pierce, Jane Hamon, Dutch Sheets, and Dr. Alveda King (niece to Martin Luther King, Jr).

Here is the link to purchase this TOP SELLER in DVD, CD, or MP3 audio formats:

http://www.elijahshopper.com/what-is-god-saying-for-2016-conference/

Enjoy! And thanks for forwarding this to your friends! They cansubscribe just below...

Steve Shultz, Founder and Publisher
The Elijah List & Breaking Christian News 
http://www.elijahlist.com

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"Oh, America...Don't Sell Your Birthright!"

Bill Yount, Hagerstown, MD

I gave this word below in 2008, but I believe it is a now word for this critical time. It shook me as I recently read it and released it again. "Forty days" as I speak below is used throughout God's Word representing a time of extreme urgency in calling on God for supernatural intervention. Jesus fasted 40 days in the wilderness, was being tempted by the devil, and came out filled with Heaven's power to change the world. In this season of 2016, I sense our fasting of the tongue can become a rudder that can turn our nation back to God as we speak life and pray for our leadership, whoever they may be.

I saw a violent wrestling in the heavenlies as a window of opportunity was opening up momentarily for a space of time for our nation to be redeemed by the Blood of the Lamb! I heard a strong voice of an angel proclaiming and piercing through the powers of darkness over America..."Oh, America...don't sell your birthright!"

For the Healing of Our Nation, Watch Your Mouth for the Next 40 Days. Fast From All Negative Thinking, Critical Words, and the Pointing of the Finger.

Post a guard at my mouth, God, set a watch at the door of my lips. Psalm 141:3 MSG

I sense we have entered a critical space of time during the next 40 days as we repent and draw closer to the Lord. I sense during this time that the words that we speak, especially concerning our nation, will carry tremendous power in how the Lord responds to us. I sense it is as though our words will be amplified in the spirit realm during this time.

God will be listening, but so will the enemy! Much of the battle and breakthroughs will be won by the words that we speak! Remember that the power of life and death is in our tongue! I sense the Lord saying, "Oh, America...decree your birthright!" (Photo via Pixabay)

Israel's Mouth Kept Them Out of Their Inheritance...They Murmured and Complained About the Leadership of Their Nation!

Murmuring and complaining against their leader, Moses, became full-blown and rooted in unbelief, keeping the Israelites from entering into their promised land. I sense we need to be reminded, especially during these next 40 days, to be careful what we speak concerning the leadership of our nation, churches, and yes, the husbands and fathers of our families. Perhaps, if you are a Republican, it may be wise to pray more for the Democratic leaders, and vice versa.

If you are a leader, remember that Moses also was kept out of his inheritance by getting angry with the people and striking the rock instead of speaking to it. We as leaders must be careful to speak encouragement and not provoke those under us to wrath.

If Our Mouth Can Keep Us Out of Our Inheritance – Our Mouth Can Take Us In!

It is interesting that even with all of the sin, the giants, and the evil in the land of Canaan, that God still called it a "good land...flowing with milk and honey." Even when the evil report came about how big the giants were, Joshua and Caleb responded, "If the giants are that big, imagine how big the fruit of that land is!" Two men could only carry out one cluster of grapes on a pole.

I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Psalm 27:13 KJV

I believe the Lord will open our eyes and ears as we close our mouths more during these next 40 days. He will show us great and mighty things that we just never saw or heard before. We will begin to see the good of our land – the fruit – instead of the giants and evil. We will then begin to pray and say what He says about our nation! I believe we will even begin speaking blessing to the ground beneath our feet!

Speak to Your Mountains, Sing to Your Valleys, and Bless Your Ocean Shorelines..."This Land Was Made for You and Me!"

I heard the Rocky Mountains, the Grand Canyon, and the oceanfront properties crying out to Heaven, "Don't let go of me!" I heard the earth herself groaning; "from California to the New York island, and from the redwood forest to the Gulf Stream waters" she was travailing, as though crying out for the manifestation of the sons of God to come forth in power and might! (Photo via Pixabay)

A Verbal Blessing is so Powerful in Reversing the Curse of the Land!

Remember the old saying, "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all!" As I saw our words blessing the land of our nation, much of the land was beginning to come under the anointing and ownership of God's people as though it was responding to our love and kindness to it.

This time period is the perfect time to speak forth God's Word and call those things in this nation that are not as though they were!

"Oh, America...don't sell your birthright – decree it!"

Bill Yount
Blowing the Shofar Ministry
Email: theshofarhasblown@juno.com
Website: www.billyount.com

Bill Yount has been a member of Bridge of Life in Hagerstown, Maryland, for the past 36 years where he is now an elder and a home missionary. He is currently an advisor at large for Aglow International. Bill faithfully served in prison ministry at Mount Hope for 23 years and now travels full-time, both in the U.S. and internationally, ministering in churches and Aglow circles. "Humility and humor" characterize his ministry as he brings forth a fresh word that is "in season," proclaiming the Word of the Lord! The shofar (or ram's horn) is often used in his meetings, breaking the powers of darkness over regions, churches, and households. The shofar represents God's breath blowing into the nostrils of His people, reviving them and awakening the lost. Many of God's messages, which Bill ministers prophetically, come out of his everyday life with his family and friends.

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Global Wave of Earthquakes a Prelude to Redemption? By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz - BREAKING ISRAEL NEWS

Global Wave of Earthquakes a Prelude to Redemption?

By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz April 24, 2016 BREAKING ISRAEL NEWS

“Who looketh on the earth, and it trembleth; He toucheth the mountains, and they smoke.” Psalms 104:32 (The Israel Bible™)

An end of days scenario has suddenly appeared in Japan and Ecuador as seven major earthquakes hit both coasts of the Pacific in 96 hours. Many seismologists are convinced this is only the beginning of a global phenomenon, but rabbis and people of faith recognize this as part of the Messianic process.

Over 500 people were killed on Saturday when a 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit Ecuador. 1,700 people are still missing, over 4,000 are injured, and thousands more are wandering homeless.  A 7.3-magnitude quake hit Japan’s southern island last Thursday, while over 600 smaller tremors continued to shake the survivors. The death toll in Japan stands at 47 killed, more than 1,000 injured, 8 missing, and over 100,000 left homeless.

Other less-deadly earthquakes were felt around the world. Many scientists are convinced this recent epidemic earthquakes is just a prelude to increased seismic activity around the globe in unprecedented magnitudes. University of Colorado seismologist Roger Bilham told the Express, “The current conditions might trigger at least four earthquakes greater than 8.0 in magnitude. And if they delay, the strain accumulated during the centuries provokes more catastrophic mega-earthquakes.”

Experts from  India’s Ministry of Home Affairs warned in January that yet another major quake, equal or larger than the last disaster, can be expected in the region.

Seismologists at Tokyo University estimate there is a 98 percent chance that in the next 30 years Japan will be hit by another major earthquake of catastrophic proportions. 2011’s 9.0-magnitude quake killed over 20,000 people, but its destructive effects didn’t end at mere earth-shifting. Japan’s Fukushima power plant was designed to withstand earthquakes, but a meltdown occurred when the ensuing tsunami washed away generators powering the emergency cooling, leaking large amounts of radioactive material into the atmosphere.

This apocalyptic scenario could easily be repeated with devastating results in many developed countries, including the US. Nuclear power plants in California, New York, Washington State, and Arkansas are situated near major fault lines. Other plants in Maine, Pennsylvania, and Virginia have raised concern of their earthquake survivability with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission but were deemed within acceptable standards.

Especially at risk is the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant in California, which is situated directly on the ocean, making it very vulnerable to tsunamis. It sits in an earthquake red zone, in close vicinity to four active fault lines, one lying only 2,000 feet away from the plant’s two nuclear reactors. S. David Freeman, a former general manager of the Sacramento Municipal Utility District, called the nuclear plant “a disaster waiting to happen.”

In fact, tsunamis are far more devastating than the earthquakes that trigger them. In 2004, the Band Aceh earthquake, barely felt on land, created a tsunami in the Indian Ocean that killed about 250,000 people in Sumatra and Indonesia.

A recent study by seismologists at the University of California suggests that Southern California is at greater risk of tsunamis than previously thought. A 7.0-magnitude earthquake in the Ventura Basin Fault could generate a tsunami that would penetrate up to two kilometers inland in less than half an hour, devastating a heavily populated area.

“This is a severe, but plausible, scenario,” study lead author Kenny Ryan told Live Science.

Rabbi Yitzchak Batzri, a noted Kabbalist from Jerusalem, spoke to Breaking Israel News about how the wave of earthquakes fits into the Messianic process. There is no doubt that the earthquakes have a divine origin, he said.

“The potential of earthquakes is in the world from the first days of creation, but the power that brings it into existence is God’s will,” Rabbi Batzri said.

That will is triggered by human action, he continued. “Our actions, in relation to God, affect his decision to enact the forces of nature, especially in things having to do with our rejecting sanctity.”

“King David wrote, ‘Who looketh on the earth, and it trembleth; He toucheth the mountains, and they smoke’ (Psalm 104:32) to describe what will happen in the End of Days before the final redemption. There will be an earthquake in Israel, but it will be beneficial, opening up the Temple Mount, bringing forth living waters, purifying the city to receive the Messiah.”

The rabbi’s understanding of the prophecy supported by the opinions of many scientists. Israel sits on the Syria-African rift, which runs along the Dead sea Valley. It passes through the area thought to be the sites of Sodom and Gomorrah, and the city of Jericho, which still stands today. The Biblical accounts of the destruction of the twin cities of evil, and the later account of the falling walls of Jericho, could very well be interpreted as divinely powered geologic catastrophes.

Such events are not uncommon in the region. Dr. Shmuel Marco, who has spent many years studying the timeline of earthquakes in the region, told the Jerusalem Post that a major earthquake could be expected in the near future. Major earthquakes were recorded in the Jordan Valley in the years 31 BCE, 363 CE, 749 CE and 1033 CE.

“So roughly,” said Marco, “we are talking about an interval of every 400 years. If we follow the patterns of nature, a major quake should be expected any time because almost a whole millennium has passed since the last strong earthquake.”

The rash of earthquakes has brought about one of those rare scenarios in which scientific theory and prophetic vision agree: earthquakes threaten our future. Man would be wise to prepare, spiritually and physically, for what lies ahead.

STEWARDSHIP by Morris E. Ruddick (SIGN)

STEWARDSHIP   (c) Morris E. Ruddick     Stewardship is the effective management of the responsibilities and resources with which we have been entrusted. Stewardship requires the wisdom to master the responsibility. It involves diligence and excellence in bringing result. The result is to bring increase, to creatively nurture the resource to advance the process.   We've been addressing the topic of Jewish business secrets. Effective stewardship is an expectation and commitment required of each member of the community, and the businesses in the community, each according to their own talents and abilities, to do their part. It is also a commitment by the community to nurture its destiny and future by preparing each generation to assume their roles in this pathway.   When stewardship is operating in community according the books of Moses, it results in disproportionate achievement. Jews have a track record as disproportionate achievers. It is written that diligence is an invaluable possession for the one who knows how to apply it. Diligence produces excellence. Diligence involves hard work. The operational word for "work" in the Hebrew language is avodah. The meaning of this word "avodah" bears on the Jewish mind-set toward work. Avodah shares the root word with three Hebrew words: purpose, passion and future. Work provides the purpose and passion setting the stage for the future. It is vital to good stewardship.   Mentorship is also an important part of stewardship and very Jewish in its practice. Moses mentored Joshua to do what he did. Joshua served Moses alone in this capacity. He didn't have several mentors. His mentor was Moses. Joshua may not have been the only one Moses mentored, but Moses was Joshua's only mentor. In the process, Joshua learned how Moses related to God, how he thought and the skills he employed to lead the Israelites.   In this process, Joshua accomplished many exploits, which included leading the defeat in the battle with the Amorites, as well as being one of the spies who reconnoitered the promised land. However, it was not until Moses died, that the baton was fully passed to Joshua. Only then did Joshua enter the fullness of his destiny. The process involved all the factors of faithful stewardship.   Roughly two-thirds of the parables of Jesus have a business context. Jesus had a lot to say about stewardship. He placed great importance on faithful stewardship. He told the story of an unfaithful steward who was slack about his responsibilities. However, when he learned that he was about to lose his position, realizing his future was in jeopardy, he immediately began shrewdly recovering from his laxness. The point was that the steward knew what to do and cleverly began putting things in order. He was commended by his master for his creative way of turning things around. A good steward prepares for every eventuality. A good steward knows how to act wisely and decisively when under pressure.   There was another steward that Jesus spoke about who also was also lax in the way he managed his responsibilities because his boss was absent for a time. When his boss returned unexpectedly and discerned the situation, this steward failed to do anything. He was held accountable. The management of one's responsibilities calls for faithfulness in the commitment.   In still another illustration of the importance of stewardship, Jesus told about three stewards whose work was evaluated by their boss. One steward brought about a lot of increase. He was not only commended by his boss, but given a promotion and entrusted with more responsibility. The story speaks of the favorable response and joy of his boss due to this steward exceeding expectations. However one of the other stewards was timid and afraid to take any risks, so he hid his boss' assets. He returned everything in-full upon his boss' return. But the boss wasn't pleased. Because the steward had failed to bring about any increase, he deemed the steward to be worthless.   The expectation of stewardship is to make a difference, to challenge the status quo and bring change and increase. The expectation is based on each person's abilities.   The Dynamics of Stewardship Good stewardship, whether in business or in building the community entails three key factors: giving or generosity, managing, and bringing increase. Each of these dimensions draws from and builds on the other. Each is vital to not only good business practices, but maintaining a fertile environment for opportunity both for current and future generations. It is the God-focused business model of Abraham which draws from community, while spawning community-builders who produce the difference seen by those in the surrounding societies.   Generosity. The spirit of generosity or tz'dakah operating within the community recognizes the responsibility and commitment of the members toward one another. It is a social system that fosters opportunity and cares for the needs of its own. It is written: "Do good to all men, but especially the household of faith." When tz'dakah prevails in the community, it ensures the maintenance of the community as a safe place that takes care of its own.   Managing. Managing change is a necessary part of any business. It incorporates the diligence of providing a service or product with greater excellence than that offered by competition. Stewardship is the mastery of this process of managing one's assets creatively so that it brings increase.   Increase. It is written: "I am the Lord who teaches you to profit, who leads you in the way you should go." God's expectation is for us to align our ways with His so that, for our benefit and destiny, we also will perform with His nature. In this process we are, like Abraham, blessed to be a blessing. It is the means by which both families and communities are fed and strengthened for the future.   Once again, this dynamic of stewardship operates both for the benefit of individuals, but also the community and future generations. Let me illustrate with the story of a Christian businessman who lived during the days of WWII. His name was Robert LeTourneau  Mr. LeTourneau owned a successful manufacturing company. One night he had an unusual dream. In his dream he saw a blueprint, a scaled drawing of a new form of machinery. He wondered about the meaning of the dream, but then a few days later, he had the same dream with the exact same blueprint with specifications for a type of machinery that didn't currently exist.   The third time he had this dream, he realized it was God who was showing him something, the specifications for a more advanced type of earth-moving equipment than was currently on the market. He realized his manufacturing company had the capability to start building this type of equipment.   He developed the prototype. Then he began manufacturing this equipment. This new earth-moving equipment was an instant success in building new roads. When the US government learned about this new technology, they came, looked it over and began making purchases in order to build runways for airfields where the US was at war in the Pacific. By some estimates, this equipment was able to build a runway ten times faster than previous equipment they had been using.   Mr. LeTourneau's company began experiencing dramatic growth. Being a committed believer whose spiritual gift was giving, he decided he wanted to test what would happen if he increased his giving from his current contributions of roughly 10 to 15 percent of his profits to 25 percent of his profits. His company expanded even more.   After a period of time, he increased his contributions to 45 percent of his company's profits. Still, there was plenty of operating capital for growth and his profits soared with the increase in the sales volume. He eventually increased the ratio of his contributions to 95 percent of his company's profits. The company flourished and Mr. LeTourneau lived very well on the 5 percent.   Mr. LeTourneau became well known for his statement: "You cannot out-give God." Of course this man had the gift of giving with the necessary faith to progressively build his generosity to that level. He likewise took tangible steps to this most unusual example of generosity. Nevertheless, he is a great model of how these three factors of stewardship blend together: giving, managing and increase.   Robert LeTourneau's generosity not only served the interests of his nation and the cause of freedom. He made possible the building and endowment of a Christian college. He supported many timely initiatives and helped a lot of people.   Faith and Stewardship It is written that without faith, it is impossible to please God. Good stewardship requires the faith to hear and obey God. Faith is the substance of things hoped for, of things not seen. Abraham pleased God because he considered that which was not as though it were. Abraham believed and acted on what God had told him.   God speaks and things are created. Abraham joined in the creative process of birthing what God told Abraham when there was no evidence in the natural of God's word to him. In doing so, Abraham was bridging the seen world with the unseen world. It was a different way of responding to the reality around him.   The opposite of faith is fear. The dimension of fear that has the most subtle influence on business success is a poverty spirit. There is a Western saying: "Penny wise is dollar foolish." In other words, those with a poverty spirit are so obsessed with the pennies that they lose dollars, because they've lost their grasp of the big picture.   A poverty spirit is a fear of risk. Yet, faith and risk must be taken to bring increase. Stewardship requires confidence and is efficient. A poverty spirit tends to waste time rather than maximizing time and is very inefficient. We've mentioned the parable in which the steward who brought about no increase was considered worthless. He was the one with the poverty spirit.   Faith is working smart and applying diligence to the work being done. You have to spend money to make money. My friend Stan Bullis has developed a model for his companies, which is a reflection of the mix of the creative, of tz'dakah, and of bringing increase. Twenty percent of his companies' profits go back into company growth, another twenty percent is for charitable purposes and the remaining sixty percent is for employee bonuses according to each employee's responsibility and role in bringing about the profits.   Stewardship and Planning A Jewish proverb states that the naive believes anything, but the prudent man is cautious and considers well his steps. That caution is not being reluctant to act, but rather taking the time to adequately do your homework. In Jewish culture, this is a way of thinking and looking at things. Due diligence is required when taking a look at any type of opportunity.   Before you can get the right answers to something you need to be able to ask the right questions. This involves doing your homework, looking into a matter and doing investigative research.   An essential part of stewardship is planning. Planning in business is preparing your business for the future, for alternatives that may take place, in order to wisely be prepared to take advantage of the opportunity that may emerge.   The first step in business planning is the research required to look at every facet of the steps ahead, including trends and the expectations for the future. Planning is a process just as good stewardship is a process. Planning maps out the steps needed to accomplish a set of wisely, clearly-defined goals.   Iridium is the company that launched satellite phone technology. However, over the twelve years from its start, instead of adapting to market conditions and the demands of the market, Iridium held to their original business plan. Business is the art of managing change. The market acceptance of new technology will change over time. It involves a dynamic known as the product life cycle curve.   There are innovators and then early adopters, the consumers who are inclined to try new things. But then market acceptance tends to slow as technology faces the hurdles of increasingly greater challenges in market acceptance. Iridium operated on the basis that they had the best thing going, which they indeed did and that the market would come to them. But it didn't. They did not adapt to the needs of the market and they ran out of money before the market ever caught up with them.   Wise planning results in a different way of thinking. We're going to be discussing this type of creative thinking in another of this series. It is the type of thinking that is constantly revaluating the assumptions of each business proposition and the conditions evolving in the marketplace.   Wise planning constantly readjusts the goals and strategies to seize the opportunity needed for the momentum to achieve the optimum long-term impact. It is interesting that companies that begin with bottom-up foundations that start small versus those whose beginnings are developed through fast-track top-down accelerator strategies have a higher ratio of long-term success.   Stewardship and Mentoring We've established that stewardship is the effective management of the responsibilities for which we've been entrusted. Those responsibilities include both resources and people. Businesses utilize both. So does community. Community also not only is the means to enhance the gifts and destinies of the businesses and people within the community, but portends a future purpose of the community itself.   As such, mentoring is a vital part of community stewardship. It is the preparation made by one generation for the future role to be served by the next generation. It is the means by which the older, successful generation imparts their gifts and the wisdom of their journey of life to select, potential leaders they choose to mentor.   Within Jewish business culture, serving an apprenticeship is a form of being mentored. An apprentice is one who is learning the tools of the trade. That means not only the tools of the business, but the tradecraft of running the business. That is stewardship from a business perspective.   Mentoring entails a meaningful, proactive dialogue between the generations on the strategies and subtleties of the management of vital responsibilities, for business and for the community. It is an essential dimension in the proactive planning for the future. It is the means to enhance the wisdom of the emerging generation to lead. It is the process of revealing the ways of God and how to walk them out with an undivided heart. It is imparting the blessings of God from one generation to the next.   Moses wrote about these things. He said: Tell these things to your children and your grandchildren. He made a point that doing so should be a lifestyle: Tell them these things when you walk by the way, when you lie down and when you rise up. It is an ongoing attitude of both the apprentice and the one imparting the skills and wisdom. It incorporates the blending of the perspectives of the spiritual, the economic and community with the secrets of what operationally binds them together. It triggers an unveiling of the dynamics of the destiny of the Jews as a prophetic people of God.   When I was a boy, my father was a very busy man. He was general manager of the manufacturing company that was the major employer in my hometown. He was also the mayor of my hometown. He loved the people he worked with and they loved him. Yet he made the opportunity to take me with him. We were always talking. I attended meetings and sat quietly and listened as my dad conducted his business.   As I grew up, I also heard stories about his grandfather, who had immigrated to America from Ireland by himself at the age of 16. My dad told me how of all his grandchildren my dad was the one my great-grandfather chose to take with him to the rural church meetings he held. He was a circuit preacher in a time and area when the communities didn't have churches.   My dad got involved in Little League baseball so he could help coach me in this skill and we could share in this sport. My dad was my greatest mentor. My dad always sought for me to have opportunity that he had not had.   Yet, there were many others my dad mentored. He mentored a young man who had immigrated to the US and had a talent. This man could repair anything. Eventually he became maintenance manager of the manufacturing company my dad ran.   As a father, and as a business and community leader, my dad was a mentor as he had learned from his grandfather. There were certain people in whom he invested his life and ways. As a mentor he was an example in the way he lived his life. During the days when Jesus had His earthly ministry he taught many people. However, he chose twelve to be his disciples. These are the ones he mentored. Then there came a time when he told them, I no longer call you disciples, but friends.   A mentor is an investor in people. A mentor is someone who spends time with you, who is willing to show you the ropes, who sees your potential and prepares you for the next level of opportunity enfolding before you. Then there comes a time when the process shifts. Within the Jewish community an important first step in this shift is a rite of passage called the bar mitzvah. For women it is the bat mitzvah. It is a rite of passage into adulthood recognized by the community.   Effective stewardship is the responsible administration of the secrets with which we've been entrusted spiritually, economically and leadership-wise. Stewardship prepares us for the future to creatively prosper our community, our businesses and our culture from one generation to another. Stewardship releases a powerful dynamic, an authority which we'll discuss in a future session called dominion. ___________________________________________________   Morris Ruddick has been a forerunner and spokesman for the higher dimensions of business leadership since the mid-90s. As founder of Global Initiatives Foundation and designer of the God's Economy Entrepreneurial Equippers Program, Mr. Ruddick imparts hope and equips economic community builders to be blessed to be a blessing where God's light is dim in diverse regions around the globe.   He is author of "The Joseph-Daniel Calling;" "Gods Economy, Israel and the Nations;" "The Heart of a King;" "Something More;" "Righteous Power in a Corrupt World;" "Leadership by Anointing;" and "Mantle of Fire," which address the mobilization of business and governmental leaders with destinies to impact their communities. They are available in print and e-versions from www.Amazon.com, www.apple.com/ibooksand www.BarnesandNoble.com.   Global Initiatives Foundation (www.strategic-initiatives.org) is a tax-exempt 501 (c) 3 non-profit whose efforts are enabled by the generosity of a remnant of faithful friends and contributors whose vision aligns with God's heart to mobilize economic community builders imparting influence and the blessings of God. Checks on US banks should be made out to Global Initiatives and mailed to PO Box 370291, Denver CO 80237 or by credit card at http://strategicintercession.org/support/   Likewise, email us to schedule a seminar for your group's gathering on the Joseph-Daniel Calling or on anointing the creative in business.   2016 Copyright Morris Ruddick -- sign@strategicintercession.org   Reproduction is prohibited unless permission is given by a SIGN advisor. Since early 1996, the Strategic Intercession Global Network (SIGN) has mobilized prophetic intercessors and leaders committed to targeting strategic-level issues impacting the Body on a global basis. For previous posts or more information on SIGN, check:http://www.strategicintercession.org   Morris Ruddick Global Initiatives Foundation www.strategic-initiatives.org www.strategicintercession.org Global Initiatives is a tax-exempt 501 (c) 3 organization

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