Wednesday, October 31, 2018
Trump Visits Pittsburgh
Trump Visits Pittsburgh by Bill Wilson
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump Tuesday visited Tree of Life Synagogue to pay tribute to the Jews who were murdered Saturday at the hands of a brutal killer that shouted "All Jews must die" as he slaughtered 11 in their house of worship. The Trumps mourned with the victims and their families amid accusations by Democrats and their media mouthpieces that the president, himself, was to blame for inciting violence against Jews. Headlines across the news media zeroed in on a story that Jewish leaders in Pittsburgh refused to meet with Trump unless he denounced "White Nationalism." The story, repeated by The Washington Post, The Hill, The NY Daily News, and others was false.
The demand originated from a leftist Jewish organization dedicated to electing progressives that Alexander Soros was a part-founder. Bend the Arc's website is chockfull of stories fingering Trump as the root cause of all anti-Semitism in America. The Pittsburgh chapter issued the statement that Trump was not welcome. News reports twisted the story to make it seem like the leaders of the Tree of Life Synagogue wanted no part of Trump's visit. This headline was carried by major news outlets such as CNN and was not corrected. In fact, the headline "Rabbi says he won't meet with Trump as Synagogue funerals begin" was the click-bait of an ABC News story in the search engines even today. The story, however, says just the opposite. Taking a tragedy and turning into a political forum. Fake News at its best.
CNN and other news outlets persisted with the Bend the Arc story even though Rabbi Jeffrey Myers, who survived the attack at Tree of Life Synagogue, told CNN directly, "The president of the United States is always welcome. I'm a citizen. He's my president. He is certainly welcome." Other members of Tree of Life, however, did not want the president to visit, which were reported repeatedly. The media found others to quote against the president's visit. As the news cycle wore on, Rabbi Myers said he received hate mail and death threats for welcoming Trump to Pittsburgh. The media frenzy continued with hate rhetoric from those it gave platform in their stories, making it seem like everyone was against Trump and that he was responsible for the shooting. Talking points of fake news, sowing deceit and discord among Americans.
Rabbi Meyers said, "Hate is not blue, hate is not red, hate is not purple... hate is in all...Speak words of love, speak words of decency and of respect. When the message comes loud and clear, Americans will hear that and we can begin to change the tenor of our country." There are those, however, who hate with a deep hate, and from the content of their hearts accuse others of the same. We can see how the news media is giving the haters a platform and trying to twist the American mindset into thinking one side is the root of all evil. It is a religion of hate and it is being evangelized by the haters and their media minions, who are also haters. Proverbs 6 says there are seven things that are an abomination to the Lord. Verse 19 tells of one of them: "A false witness that speaks lies, and he that sows discord among brethren." Let us discern it and take action.
Today in History
Today in History
1517
Martin Luther Posts 95 Theses
1517
Martin Luther Posts 95 Theses
On this day in 1517, the priest and scholar Martin Luther approaches the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany, and nails a piece of paper to it containing the 95 revolutionary opinions that would begin the Protestant Reformation.
In his theses, Luther condemned the excesses and corruption of the Roman Catholic Church, especially the papal practice of asking payment—called “indulgences”—for the forgiveness of sins. At the time, a Dominican priest named Johann Tetzel, commissioned by the Archbishop of Mainz and Pope Leo X, was in the midst of a major fundraising campaign in Germany to finance the renovation of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.
Though Prince Frederick III the Wise had banned the sale of indulgences in Wittenberg, many church members traveled to purchase them. When they returned, they showed the pardons they had bought to Luther, claiming they no longer had to repent for their sins.
Luther’s frustration with this practice led him to write the 95 Theses, which were quickly snapped up, translated from Latin into German and distributed widely. A copy made its way to Rome, and efforts began to convince Luther to change his tune.
He refused to keep silent, however, and in 1521 Pope Leo X formally excommunicated Luther from the Catholic Church. That same year, Luther again refused to recant his writings before the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V of Germany, who issued the famous Edict of Worms declaring Luther an outlaw and a heretic and giving permission for anyone to kill him without consequence.
Protected by Prince Frederick, Luther began working on a German translation of the Bible, a task that took 10 years to complete.
The term “Protestant” first appeared in 1529, when Charles V revoked a provision that allowed the ruler of each German state to choose whether they would enforce the Edict of Worms.
A number of princes and other supporters of Luther issued a protest, declaring that their allegiance to God trumped their allegiance to the emperor. They became known to their opponents as Protestants; gradually this name came to apply to all who believed the Church should be reformed, even those outside Germany.
By the time Luther died, of natural causes, in 1546, his revolutionary beliefs had formed the basis for the Protestant Reformation, which would over the next three centuries revolutionize Western civilization.
Visiting Survivors
President and Mrs. Trump at Allegheny Hospital in Pittsburgh to visit survivors of synagogue shooting.
Tuesday, October 30, 2018
A Bit of Irony.
A Bit of Irony.
Today’s Jews make up .22 percent of the planet’s population, but they have won 22 percent of all Nobel Prizes (they comprise 37 percent of all US recipients). It is estimated that their contributions to medical and scientific advances have saved at least 2.8 billion lives.
When Robert Bowers was rushed to Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh after his shootout with police, he shouted, “I want to kill all the Jews.”
Ironically, as the hospital’s president later noted, “The first three people who took care of him were Jewish.”
Another nurse, whose father is a rabbi, also helped save his life.
Wisdom of Wigglesworth
Wisdom of Wigglesworth
"God takes us just as we are and transforms us by HIS power." Smith Wigglesworth
"God takes us just as we are and transforms us by HIS power." Smith Wigglesworth
Words to Ponder
Words
to Ponder The BIBLE
“It is by grace
you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the
gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8, 9
Quotes
of Presidents
“The up-coming election is a choice between Democrats who want
to abolish ICE, and Republicans, who want to abolish MS-13. It is very simple.” Donald Trump
Wise
Words
“Nike’s free to celebrate whomever they wish, and Kaepernick is
entitled to his opinion – kneeling, standing, or lying down., but if I was
going to put someone’s face on a billboard – someone who epitomized bravery and
sacrifice – I might have gone another way.”
Mike Rowe
Today in History
Today in History
1938
War of the Worlds
1938
War of the Worlds
Welles scares nation
On this day in 1938, Orson Welles caused a nationwide panic with his broadcast of “War of the Worlds”—a realistic radio dramatization of a Martian invasion of Earth.
Orson Welles was only 23 years old when his Mercury Theater company decided to update H.G. Wells’ 19th-century science fiction novel War of the Worlds for national radio. Despite his age, Welles had been in radio for several years, most notably as the voice of “The Shadow” in the hit mystery program of the same name.
“War of the Worlds” was not planned as a radio hoax, and Welles had little idea of the havoc it would cause.
The show began on Sunday, October 30, at 8 p.m. A voice announced: “The Columbia Broadcasting System and its affiliated stations present Orson Welles and the Mercury Theater on the air in ‘War of the Worlds’ by H.G. Wells.”
Sunday evening in 1938 was prime-time in the golden age of radio, and millions of Americans had their radios turned on. But most of these Americans were listening to ventriloquist Edgar Bergen and his dummy “Charlie McCarthy” on NBC and only turned to CBS at 8:12 p.m. after the comedy sketch ended and a little-known singer went on. By then, the story of the Martian invasion was well underway.
Welles introduced his radio play with a spoken introduction, followed by an announcer reading a weather report. Then, seemingly abandoning the storyline, the announcer took listeners to “the Meridian Room in the Hotel Park Plaza in downtown New York, where you will be entertained by the music of Ramon Raquello and his orchestra.”
Putrid dance music played for some time, and then the scare began. An announcer broke in to report that “Professor Farrell of the Mount Jenning Observatory” had detected explosions on the planet Mars. Then the dance music came back on, followed by another interruption in which listeners were informed that a large meteor had crashed into a farmer’s field in Grovers Mills, New Jersey.
Soon, an announcer was at the crash site describing a Martian emerging from a large metallic cylinder. “Good heavens,” he declared, “something’s wriggling out of the shadow like a gray snake. Now here’s another and another one and another one. They look like tentacles to me … I can see the thing’s body now. It’s large, large as a bear. It glistens like wet leather. But that face, it… it … ladies and gentlemen, it’s indescribable. I can hardly force myself to keep looking at it, it’s so awful. The eyes are black and gleam like a serpent. The mouth is kind of V-shaped with saliva dripping from its rimless lips that seem to quiver and pulsate.”
The Martians mounted walking war machines and fired “heat-ray” weapons at the puny humans gathered around the crash site. They annihilated a force of 7,000 National Guardsman, and after being attacked by artillery and bombers the Martians released a poisonous gas into the air.
Soon “Martian cylinders” landed in Chicago and St. Louis. The radio play was extremely realistic, with Welles employing sophisticated sound effects and his actors doing an excellent job portraying terrified announcers and other characters. An announcer reported that widespread panic had broken out in the vicinity of the landing sites, with thousands desperately trying to flee. In fact, that was not far from the truth.
Perhaps as many as a million radio listeners believed that a real Martian invasion was underway. Panic broke out across the country. In New Jersey, terrified civilians jammed highways seeking to escape the alien marauders. People begged police for gas masks to save them from the toxic gas and asked electric companies to turn off the power so that the Martians wouldn’t see their lights.
One woman ran into an Indianapolis church where evening services were being held and yelled, “New York has been destroyed! It’s the end of the world! Go home and prepare to die!”
Presidential Proclamation
Presidential Proclamation
Presidential Proclamation Honoring the Victims of the Tragedy in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
As a mark of solemn respect for the victims of the terrible act of violence perpetrated at The Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on October 27, 2018, by the authority vested in me as President of the United States by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, I hereby order that the flag of the United States shall be flown at half-staff at the White House and upon all public buildings and grounds, at all military posts and naval stations, and on all naval vessels of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its Territories and possessions until sunset, October 31, 2018.
I also direct that the flag shall be flown at half-staff for the same length of time at all United States embassies, legations, consular offices, and other facilities abroad, including all military facilities and naval vessels and stations.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-seventh day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand eighteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-third.
DONALD J. TRUMP
Influence Peddling
Influence Peddling
Iranians Caught Posing As Americans On Facebook To Hype Mueller Investigation, Slam Trump And Kavanaugh - Daily Caller
Facebook on Friday deleted 82 pages, groups and accounts that it determined were part of an online influence operation located in Iran.
The Iranians operated 30 Facebook pages, 33 individual accounts and three groups, as well as 16 accounts on Facebook-owned Instagram, Facebook head of cybersecurity policy Nathaniel Gleicher said in a statement Friday.
The pages had over a combined 1 million followers and the groups had more than 25,000 members, Gleicher said.
Facebook provided several examples of the Iranian propaganda, which promoted former National Football League (NFL) quarterback Colin Kaepernick's activism while criticizing President Donald Trump and Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
- Lord, we pray that You will protect all Americans from any influence by foreign powers.
Just Pray for America
VP Mike Pence: "Bow the Head and Bend the Knee...Just Pray for America"
Vice President Mike Pence stopped by Regent University in Virginia Beach, Virginia Wednesday night to give US Rep. Scott Taylor the last-minute boost he needs to beat Democratic opponent Elaine Luria and keep his seat in the house. "Virginia and America need Scott Taylor back," Pence told an excited crowd.
He reminded the crowd of the importance of praying for our leaders and our country. "The sweetest thing the president and I ever hear is when people grab a hand and say, 'I'm praying for you,'" Pence shared, adding that America especially needs prayer during such a divided time.
"I just encourage you to pray for this land we love; I encourage you to pray fervently for America," he said.
Fear Not!
Fear Not!
From: Today God Is First by Os Hillman
October 30, 2018
"For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, of love and of self-discipline." 2 Timothy 1:7
God calls each of us to engage in spiritual warfare at times. Whenever satan wants to come against one of God's children, he does so by trying to intimidate through fear. Goliath's formidable size and arrogant boasting intimidated Saul and Israel's army. And because God's anointing had fallen from Saul, he was unable to respond with courage to Goliath's charge. Fear paralyzes and torments. That is why Saul could not respond.
The anointing had fallen on David, who was just a young boy, but mighty in spirit. David did not cower at the size or shouts of the giant Goliath. He saw Goliath through the eyes of God, who saw him as a mere speck. David had righteous indignation for an affront to the armies of the living God.
David did not weigh the risk of failure because his faith was resting totally in God. That is another important factor in overcoming fear-complete trust in God.
When the Lord began training me to confront fear, the training grounds were a groundless lawsuit, intimidations, and calamity that confronted my very existence. Learning that these were merely tactics of the enemy, designed to instill fear, allowed me to stand firm in God's power to overcome.
Do not fear sudden calamity if you are walking uprightly before God. It may be setting the stage for a great victory that will bring praise and honor to your heavenly Father. These battles are training grounds for greater victories to come.
The Warfare Within
The Warfare Within by Dr. D. James Kennedy
“For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice.” Romans 7:19
Have you ever felt the aggravation of doing the very sin you wanted to avoid? Or of not doing a good work you had intended to do?
Why do we find ourselves in this bind on such a consistent basis?
When we hand our lives to Jesus, He gives us a new nature that is spotless and clean, incapable of sinning. But as fallen people we also carry within us a nature capable of vile and hideous deeds. And herein lies the battle. Our regeneration sets up a dichotomy of the new and old natures, and when the Spirit of God dwells in our hearts, we recognize just how wretched we truly are.
Only when Paul identified his God-given nature was he able to comprehend his captivity, “O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me?” (Romans 7:24).
St. Augustine, poignantly aware of his sinfulness, wrote, “By these links, as it were, a chain was I held, shackled with a hard bondage. So these my two wills—the one old, the other new; the one carnal, the other spiritual—contended together, and by their discord disturbed my soul.”
Does your soul cry out for deliverance from your sinful nature? Then nurture your new nature. Read God’s Word daily, and spend quiet time with the Lord.
My friend, I urge you to act on God’s directive: “Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10). If you want your new nature to conquer the old, you must allow Him to feed your soul. And no matter how tough the battles get, always remember that on the cross Jesus Christ won the war—once and for all.
"I make it a rule of Christian duty never to go to a place where there is not room for my Master as well as myself." JOHN NEWTON (AUTHOR OF “AMAZING GRACE”)
Monday, October 29, 2018
Dealing with Hatred
Dealing with Hatred by Bill Wilson
The Pittsburgh synagogue shooting is a horrible event that should never happen in America. I express deepest sympathies and condolences to the victims' families. My prayers are with you and this very divided nation.
But despite the tragedy, those filled with hate only increased their vitriolic rhetoric against President Trump and conservative members of society, blaming them for the type of anti-Semitism that lures people to kill for race, religion or politics.
They continue to ruthlessly promote political gain over empathy for humanity. Their words are how to discern who really cares about what they say they care about. The blame continues no matter the circumstances.
The finger-pointers come from one side of the political aisle. They don't even express the decency of reverence for the victims and their families. They just relentlessly attack.
Take for instance, Washington Post columnist Dana Milbank telling MSNBC that Trump was giving license to unbalanced people like the perpetrators of mail bombs being sent to political figures and the synagogue shooting.
Billionaire Democratic Party donor Tom Steyer told CNN that Trump created the atmosphere of "routine, systematic lawlessness."
GQ Magazine's Julia Ioffe told CNN Trump has been trafficking in "anti-Semitic tropes" since he took office. She said his actions were like dog whistles to those who would commit violence.
Last week, Democratic Party Leaders Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer said Trump condones the violence.
In reality, CNN, the NY Times, MSNBC and other networks are giving platforms to people suggesting assassination of the president, blowing up the White House, and other acts or visions of violence.
There have been over 610 incidents of violence against Trump supporters perpetrated by the left since January 2016 as documented by John Nolte of Breitbart News.
A Republican congressman was shot. Democratic leaders have labeled those who disagree with them as racists, bigots, deplorables, dregs, Nazis and more.
They have encouraged confrontation at restaurants, gas stations, and homes. They refuse to denounce violence committed by Antifa and others. There is a right and a wrong here. There is no moral equivalence to what these people have suggested and the rhetoric of Trump's tweets, although he needs to tone it down.
While Ioffe is wrong about Trump being anti-Semitic, after all, his son-in-law and his daughter are Jewish, she is right that vitriolic rhetoric is like a dog whistle to the crazies. We the People must demand that it stop. This is not America. It is rebellion and coup-making. It is way out of hand.
First, we can intercede by repenting for our country and praying the Lord brings peace to our land.
Next, we can invoke the Golden Rule whenever we speak to others--As Christ said in Luke 6:31,"And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise." We need to bring the rhetoric down and hold one another accountable to civility.
The third thing we can do is vote. Those politicians who blame others for what they themselves are doing must be sent a clear message that it is unacceptable and divisive behavior.
If Christians vote in unity, that message will be clearly sent.
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