Worthy Brief - 1/2/2019
Friend, reality check!
Phillipians 3:13-15 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.
New Year's Eve celebrations have come and gone. Now the reality is settling in -- it's 2020 and we've entered into a new decade!! Some of us are wondering where in the world the time went... the Lord knows I am.
A famous preacher, Henry Ward Beecher once said: "We have passed through one more year. One more long stage in the journey of life, with its ascents and descents and dust and mud and rocks and thorns and burdens that wear the shoulders, is done. The old year is dead. Roll it away. Let it go. God, in His providence, has brought us out of it. It is gone; . . . its evil is gone; its good remains. The evil has perished, and the good survives."
I say amen to that -- how 'bout you?
Friend, let's be sure to confess the sins of 2019 today. Roll them away. Let them go. Rest assured in the fact they are forgiven so we can confidently look towards the future. Today is the beginning of a fresh new decade. Let's press forward to do exciting and new things for the Lord --- 'cause there's sooooo much work to be done!!
Your family in the Lord with much agape love,
George, Baht Rivka, Elianna & Obadiah
Kansas City, Missouri
Editor's Note: We'll be speaking in Colorado this weekend! Check out our calendar for our upcoming speaking engagements. If you would like us to minister at your congregation, home fellowship, or Israel focused event, be sure to let us know ASAP. You can send an email to george [ @ ] worthyministries.com for more information.
Editor's Note: Looking for the best holiday gift EVER for the person who has everything??? How about a LIFE ALTERING trip to ISRAEL?! Join us (George and Baht Rivka Whitten of Worthy Ministries) as we will be your personal hosts through the Holy Land! Together we will experience amazing historical and biblical sites, relax at the Dead Sea Spa, enjoy all the delicious cuisine of the Middle East, join in power packed worship and solid teaching, participate in hands-on ministry, meet Israelis and Holocaust Survivors, an outreach concert, a special Yemenite lunch, tasting at Jerusalem’s outdoor food market, camel rides, Bedouin hospitality, Shabbat dinner at our home, a baptism at the Jordan River, sunset Galilee boat ride, and loads more!! Experience Real Israel with us— you don’t want to miss this!! We have limited spaces available. For more information, visit Worthy Israel Tours or send an email to george [ @ ] worthyministries.com.
Editor's Note: If you have a prayer request, or if you'd be interested in becoming an intercessor, be sure to visit the Worthy Prayer Team!
Hundreds of troops deployed to Iraq to defend US embassy as Trump says peace with Iran not likely
The US is scheduled to deploy 750 new troops to defend the US embassy in Iraq, Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Tuesday night, following protests by Iran-backed groups that marched on the compound in retaliation for US strikes Sunday that killed 25 Kataeb Hezbollah fighters.
Surge of IS Violence Seen in Syria
Islamic State militants have increased their terror activity in recent weeks in Syria, carrying out deadly attacks against Syrian regime troops and U.S.-backed forces.
Israel-Palestinian Conflict
Israel moving towards ‘calm’ agreement with Hamas
Israel made progress toward a ceasefire agreement with Hamas in Gaza, in a two-hour meeting on Wednesday that ended without a vote.
Annual poverty report reveals 841,000 children in Israel live in poverty
The poverty rate in Israel has grown by a percent over the last year – with a bigger increase in the number of children under the line of poverty, according to the poverty report for 2018 published by the National Insurance Institute of Israel (NII) on Tuesday.
IDF unveils first-of-its-kind unit unifying pilots, tank drivers and more
The Israel Defense Forces on Wednesday created a new type of combat unit bringing together infantry, tanks, combat engineering and air power to serve as a proving ground for new fighting techniques and tactics.
Inside the United States
Hundreds of Counties Across America Have Declared Themselves ‘2nd Amendment Sanctuaries’
Hundreds of local counties, cities, and towns across America are declaring themselves 'Second Amendment sanctuaries' or 'constitutional counties' as part of an ever-expanding movement over the past few years that has surprised even those who enacted the sanctuary resolutions in the first place.
FBI data underscores rising threat to places of worship
When a machete-wielding attacker walked into a rabbi’s home in Monsey, New York, during Hanukkah and a gunman fired on worshipers at a Texas church 14 hours later, the two congregations in different regions of the country joined a growing list of faith communities that have come under attack in the US.
More Roman Catholic sexual abuse history comes to light in Charlotte, North Carolina
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte released a list of 14 clergy Monday it said had been credibly accused of sexual abuse of minors since its founding in 1972, including the names of six other clergy who had been credibly accused before the diocese's founding, and 23 men who had been caught outside its jurisdiction.
Christian News
China intends to exercise total control over religion beginning February 2020
China will roll out new measures to further circumscribe the spiritual activities of its citizens on February 1st in the New Year, as state news reported Monday that the 42 articles of the Administrative Measures for Religious Groups had been approved.
Radicals in India disrupt inauguration of Jesus-centered prayer hall
Three Bharatiya Janata Party-affiliated people led an attack on a new prayer hall dedicated to Jesus in India's West Bengal state Saturday, as a mob of 800 people, mostly non-Christians, surrounded the building's inauguration ceremony.