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Standing in support of Israel, Jews, and believers in all the nations, in the name of Jesus (Yeshua). Sharing biblical truth, encouragement, news and prophecy.
Friday, April 6, 2018
Mossad Chief: ‘100% Certain’ Iran Committed to Nuclear Weapons - Breaking Israel News
Bible Ban: God's Word Disappears from Online Stores in China - CBN News Talia Wise,Gary Lane
Bible Ban: God's Word Disappears from Online Stores in China
04-05-2018
Bibles are being pulled from online retailers in China as the government cracks down on how its citizens practice religion. Christians fear a new wave of widespread persecution may be underway.
The communist country has always controlled the sale of the Bible, but according to CNN, now online searches for the "Holy Bible" do not garner any results.
JD.com, Amazon.cn and Taobao, China's biggest online marketplaces, did not include the Bible. Some online searches did turn up "baby food bible" and the "autoimmune disease healing bible" and other related study guides and children's Bible stories.
JD.com, Amazon.cn and Taobao, China's biggest online marketplaces, did not include the Bible. Some online searches did turn up "baby food bible" and the "autoimmune disease healing bible" and other related study guides and children's Bible stories.
Searches did, however, include results on the Koran.
Online merchants have said copies can be obtained through private message, but public listings for the Bible are now impossible on Taobao.
Sarah Cook, a senior research analyst for East Asia at Freedom House told CNN the ban "is an important example of how internet censorship intersects with restrictions on religious freedom."
"Sensitive religious topics and groups are among the most censored in China," she said. "In our research we found the Chinese authorities increasingly using more high-tech methods to control religion and punish believers - including surveillance and arrest of believers for sharing information online."
China recognizes Buddhism, Islam, Christianity, and Taoism.
The Bible crackdown comes less than three months after officials demolished Golden Lampstand Church in the city of Linfen, Shanxi province.
One month earlier, authorities destroyed a 20-year-old Catholic church in the same Chinese province.
Chinese Christians fear a new wave of persecution has now come against them.
They believe the central government directed the removal of more than 1,200 crosses from atop churches throughout Zhejiang province from 2013-2015.
And more recently, Chinese Christians questioned the sudden death of prominent Christian lawyer Li Baiguang.
Li had defended many Christians and unregistered churches targeted by the government for cross removal or demolition.
Ten Public Security Bureau (PSB) plainclothes police kidnapped Li in October 2017. He was beaten severely and left abandoned at the side of a road.
Last February, the 49-year-old human rights attorney died suddenly at a military hospital in Nanjing. The cause of death was listed as liver cancer, but China Aid President Bob Fu said Li had attended the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, DC just days before his death.
Fu said, "He did not have liver related illness before and his death raises a lot of questions…"
Fu said, "He did not have liver related illness before and his death raises a lot of questions…"
Fordham University law professor Carl Minzner is an expert on Chinese law and governance.
He says China was a one-party state (Communist Party) in the 1980's and 1990's, where collective leadership was the norm.
But in February, the party did away with presidential term limits. That means like Chairman Mao Zedong, President Xi Jinping is now "leader for life."
"You're now seeing China begin to swing back to the more personalized authoritarian regime that in my view is a lot less stable," Minzner explained.
100,000 Participate in Priestly Blessing at Western Wall - JNN/VISION FOR ISRAEL CHARISMA NEWS
Around 100,000 people took part in the Passover priestly blessing of the kohanim(members of the priestly line) at the Western Wall in Jerusalem on Mon. 2 April, 2018.
The blessing is recited by Jewish people who are said to be descendants of Aaron, the brother of Moses, and is one of the most ancient blessings in the Jewish faith. Kohanim often cover their faces when they utter the blessing, it being a long-held tradition that the face of a kohen during the blessing is awe-inspiring.
The ceremony was attended by leading rabbis in Israel in addition to USA Ambassador to Israel David Friedman. The blessing is recited by kohanim at various times throughout the Jewish calendar in the diaspora, but is recited daily during prayers in Jerusalem and weekly across Israel, according to the Jerusalem Post.
The priestly blessing: "The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face to shine upon you, and be gracious unto you; the Lord lift His countenance upon you, and give you peace" (Num. 6:24-26).
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The One Spiritual Habit You Need Most - J. LEE GRADY CHARISMA MAGAZINE
When I was a teenager, my mentor, Barry, taught me to have a daily devotional time with God. This has become the single most important habit in my life, and I'm convinced no one can grow as a Christian without it.
I memorized Proverbs 8:34 when I was just 18: "Blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at my doorposts." I started getting up early and praying in my college dorm room. I discovered that God promises a blessing to those who spend time with Him! More than 40 years later I'm still setting aside that special time with God.
But how do you structure a daily quiet time in today's overscheduled culture? Many Christians today say they are way too busy to set aside time to pray and read the Bible. Instead, they multi-task their devotional lives by listening to Christian podcasts while commuting to work or praying under their breath while showering or brushing teeth.
There's nothing wrong with doing those things, but if you never set aside time to focus wholeheartedly on prayer or the Bible, your relationship with God will feel cluttered and superficial. It's not too late to develop new habits. Here are a few ways you can make your time with God richer and more intimate.
- Set a regular time for your "date" with God. There is no rule about when to pray. Some people prefer mornings; others find prayer easier in the evening hours. Devotional time works better for me early in the morning, before life's pressures crowd my time. Once you develop your unique habit, and you realize how much you benefit from it, you'll find you simply can't live without time with God.
- Choose a special place that gives you privacy. Jesus reminded us that seclusion is a secret to effective prayer. He said: "But you, when you pray, enter your closet, and when you have shut your door to pray, pray to your Father who is in secret" (Matt. 6:6a). This doesn't mean you can't pray while driving to work or walking in the woods. But you need a quiet place in order to focus. My favorite chair in my study at home is where I'm most centered.
- Turn off your phone. Would you talk to friends, reply to texts or answer e-mails during a date with your spouse? Not unless you simply don't care about that relationship. The same principle applies when you spend time with the Lord. We need to reclaim the art of undistracted devotion.
I love my phone, but I've found it necessary to silence it during my times with God. And if you use your phone to read the Bible, consider switching to an old-fashioned hard copy of the Scriptures. The temptation to check messages or post Instagram photos can waste time and ruin your devotional life.
- Don't put yourself under pressure. You don't have to read 50 chapters of the Bible or pray three hours. Pace yourself. Be realistic and take small steps. If you have not been seeking the Lord regularly, start by reading a chapter a day in the Bible and praying for 15 minutes. Eventually you will want more. It is better to be a tortoise than a hare. The key is to be consistent.
- Learn to "chew" the Bible. One of the simplest ways to study the Bible is to read one book at a time (such as Romans or Isaiah) and slowly "chew" on each verse. The biblical word "meditate" means "to chew," as a cow chews its cud over and over. The more you read a passage, the more "juice" you squeeze out of it!
- Don't just read the Bible; listen for God's voice. Some people have complained to me, "I just never hear God speaking." Yet when I ask if they read the Bible regularly, they say they're too busy. God wants to speak directly to us through the pages of His Word.
When you read Scripture with a prayerful heart, God can cause a verse to jump off the page as a direct personal message. British preacher Charles Spurgeon recognized this years ago when he wrote: "When I have been in trouble, I have read the Bible until a text has seemed to stand out of the Book, and salute me, saying, 'I was written specially for you.'"
- Use a prayer list. Many Christians view prayer selfishly, as if it's just about getting their own needs met. But Jesus calls us to a deeper place of sacrifice by inviting us to pray for others. Years ago, I started the habit of praying for certain people God had put in my life. Today, I have a long list of family members, friends, mentors and disciples I pray for regularly. Pouring my heart out in prayer for them has become one of the most fulfilling spiritual disciplines I engage in.
The apostle Paul feared that the Corinthians might be "led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ" (2 Cor. 11:3, NASB). Our high-tech, media-saturated culture gives us a million ways to occupy our time, but simple devotion remains the antidote to all distraction. Tune out the noise, go into your prayer closet, close the door and spend time with God. Make devotion a daily habit.
J. Lee Grady was editor of Charisma for 11 years before he launched into full-time ministry in 2010. Today he directs The Mordecai Project, a Christian charitable organization that is taking the healing of Jesus to women and girls who suffer abuse and cultural oppression. Author of several books including 10 Lies the Church Tells Women, he has just released his newest book, Set My Heart on Fire, from Charisma House. You can follow him on Twitter at @LeeGrady or go to his website, themordecaiproject.org.
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