Worthy Brief - 2/9/2017
Friend, do you remember when phones were for phone calls?
When I was growing up in the 1980's we had a rotary dial phone. You put your finger in a numbered spot on a circular dialer which clicked as it returned to its place and registered the 7 or 10 numbers you selected. It took a full 10 to 20 seconds to complete a call and was really annoying if the number had a lot of 8s or 9s! Then came touch-tone phones. You pushed a button, it beeped, and you could make a call in two and a half to three seconds. Back in those days, a phone was simply an instrument to talk with someone voice to voice. Nowadays, phones are "smarter"; they are "smart" phones; and they do everything but make coffee for you in the morning, although soon I think you can program them to start your coffee maker before you wake up. You can send or receive emails, text, Facebook, "Skype", play games, study French, listen to music, record love letters, pay your bills, watch movies...your phone can be the interface for your life, and it is, for many people!
These days when you get a phone -- a "smart phone", the first thing you do is to find the best “apps” for it. Thousands and thousands of apps are available, with more being created every 5 minutes. Your apps define the interface of your life. But I had this thought...
...there's God apps... throughout the Scriptures, and they're FREE -- thousands of them, every one "GUARANTEED" to be a top-level "interface" for your life! Check out the love app! [Matthew 22:37-39] Or the Spiritual Fruit App! [Galatians 5:22] Or the Unity App! [Ephesians 4:2-6] The Scriptures are just filled with apps to apply to the interface of your life!
Friend, spend some time in God's free "App Store" today, it's just an opened Bible away! Apply God's apps to your life -- you'll be dialing into His will, purposes, power, and His infinitely interesting universe!
Your family in the Lord with much agape love,
George, Baht Rivka, Elianna & Obadiah
Denver, Colorado
Editor's Note: Join us, along with thousands of others in sending a strong, encouraging message to President Trump concerning the importance of the nation of Israel in relation to God’s Word, and encourage him to FOLLOW THROUGH on his affirmations concerning Jerusalem and the Promised Land! Our goal is to deliver a petition of 1,000,000 signatures! Sign and share on your pages and email lists! Sign our Petition!
Editor's Note: We are on a cross-country speaking/music tour this winter and early spring in the United States! If you see that we will be close to your area and you want to hear a timely word from Worthy News Founder and Director, George Whitten and powerful Israeli Worship Music from Baht Rivka Whitten, Lazman Hazeh Music, as well as testimony of life and ministry in the Land, we invite you to join us -- or even invite us to speak/sing at your Congregation, Conference, Church, Midweek Meeting or Israel focused Event, especially if you see a free date on our way! We hope to hug you! Send us an email to george [ @ ] worthyemail.com for more information. Check out our calendar and see if we're speaking near you!
Around the World
US airstrike in Syria kills Al Qaeda leader with ties to bin Laden, Pentagon says
The Pentagon said Wednesday that two U.S. airstrikes conducted in Syria last week killed 11 Al Qaeda operatives, including one with ties to former leader Usama bin Laden.
War In Europe? Germany Sends NATO Troops To Russia's Baltic Borders As Military Dispute With Moscow Escalates
Germany sent several hundred troops to Lithuania Wednesday as a contribution to a NATO-led effort designed to counter what the international alliance perceives as a military threat from Russia.
2017 terror forecast for US, Europe 'alarming,' says House report
The U.S. and European terror forecast for 2017 'looks alarming,' in part because of increased pressure on ISIS and other terror groups on their home turf, according to a monthly assessment by House lawmakers.
UK's House of Commons passes bill authorizing Brexit
Britain's House of Commons gave its final approval Wednesday to a bill authorizing the government to start exit talks with the European Union, despite fears by opposition lawmakers that the U.K. is setting out on the rocky path to Brexit with a sketchy roadmap.
Iran fires another missile from launch pad, US official says
Iran launched another missile Wednesday from the same launch pad east of Tehran where it conducted a previous ballistic missile test last month, an official told Fox News.
Court upholds guilty verdict for Russian opposition leader
A court in a provincial Russian city has found opposition leader Alexei Navalny guilty in the retrial of a 2013 fraud case, which means that he cannot run for president next year.
Turkish, Syrian moves could transform fight against Islamic State
Forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar Assad have dramatically stepped up their attack on the Islamic State in recent weeks, just as the Trump administration is reportedly offering Turkey a larger military role in the assault on the terrorist group's self-proclaimed capital of Raqqa, two developments that could transform the battle against the Islamic State in its Syrian stronghold.
Israel-Palestinian Conflict
Elite Hamas fighters defecting to Islamic State
A member of Hamas's naval commando unit defected from the Gaza-based terror organization nearly a year ago to join the Sinai Province -- the Islamic State group's branch in the Sinai Peninsula, Palestinian sources told The Times of Israel.
Abbas threatens to halt security coordination over settlement push
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas threatened Wednesday to halt security coordination with Israel over a series of steps boosting the settlement enterprise in the West Bank.
Islamic State in Sinai said to claim Eilat rocket attack
An attack that saw four rockets fired into southern Israel from the Sinai Peninsula on Wednesday night was reportedly claimed by an Islamic State-affiliated terror group.
The First Bible? New Dead Sea Scrolls Cave Found By Hebrew University Archaeologists In Israel
Archeologists in Israel discovered a 12th cave they believe once housed the Dead Sea Scrolls after finding historical artifacts proving they had been stored there. If they are right, it would be the latest 'scroll cave' discovered in over 60 years, Harretz reported Wednesday.
Inside the United States
Nationwide Protests to Hit Planned Parenthood Facilities Saturday
Anti-abortion protesters are expected to gather at nearly 200 Planned Parenthood facilities across the nation Saturday to rally support for an ongoing effort aimed at urging the federal government to defund the abortion giant.
Planned Parenthood Pressured Clinics to Meet Abortion Quotas, Former Employees Say
Planned Parenthood, the nation's largest abortion provider, demanded its clinics meet monthly sales quotas of abortions and rewarded employees with pizza parties and paid time off for reaching their goals, according to former employees. Clinics that did not reach their abortion quotas, were subjected to 'corrective action plans.'
Trump: ISIS Vowed to Infiltrate, and 'We're Not Allowed to Be Tough?'
Americans seem to either love or hate an executive action by President Donald Trump that keeps people from seven Muslim majority nations known to harbor terrorists from visiting the U.S.
Trump's Supreme Court pick calls president's attacks on judges 'demoralizing'
Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch told a US senator Wednesday that the president's attacks on judges and courts weighing the legality of his controversial immigration order was 'disheartening' and 'demoralizing.'
Sessions confirmed as attorney general after bitter Senate fight
The Senate approved Jeff Sessions as attorney general Wednesday, installing one of President Trump's biggest backers at the head of the Justice Department after one of the nastiest confirmation battles in a generation.
Homeschool Family Sues NYC After Being Subjected to 60-Day Investigation
The Home School Legal Defense Association announced in December that it filed a lawsuit against the New York City Department of Education, alleging that the department's Central Office of Home Schooling is systemically mishandling homeschooling paperwork and failing to record students being withdrawn from public schools.
Christian News
Top Evangelical Leaders Write a Big Letter to the President about Refugees
More than 500 evangelical leaders from all 50 states signed a letter to President Trump asking him to reconsider his controversial executive order. The letter included the likes of Ann Voskamp, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary President Daniel Akin, and Open Doors USA President and CEO David Curry.