Worthy Brief - 4/27/2023
Friend, look beyond the blessing!
Psalm 3:8 Salvation belongeth unto the LORD: thy blessing is upon thy people.
Yeshua (Jesus) told His disciples to go into the deep waters and let down their nets for fish. When they did, their nets were filled up with fish to the point of breaking. Being fishermen and businessmen, they may have been tempted to start doing business. I mean, think how much they could make!
But God had a different purpose. The disciples' occupation as fishermen was just a vehicle for God to demonstrate His great power and love. He wasn't blessing them with fish so that they would get excited about fishing -- He was blessing them with fish so that they could get their eyes off their fishing and on to the greater call He had for them! Thankfully, they left the fishing business and went off with the Lord to do great and mighty things.
Too many of us are wrapped up in fish. We seek the Lord for His blessings, prosperity, and success. But true discipleship is focusing not on the blessings of the Lord, but on the Lord of the blessings!
Friend, we can rejoice in our blessings, but let's not dwell on them! Let's set our eyes on the Lord and the calling He has for us. When He sees that we have pure and willing hearts, He will be faithful to use us to accomplish His glorious plan!
Your family in the Lord with much agape love,
George, Baht Rivka, Obadiah and Elianna (Going to Christian College in Dallas, Texas)
Jerusalem, Israel
Chinese and Ukrainian Leaders Talk Peace, But Bloodshed Continues (Worthy News Radio)
The president of war-torn Ukraine said Wednesday he had held a meaningful dialogue with China's leader after Beijing unveiled a peace plan to end the armed conflict between Kyiv and Moscow. Yet despite the talks between President Volodymyr Zelensky and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, there were no signs of peace returning to the frontline of an armed conflict in which hundreds of thousands of people are believed to have been killed and injured.
Sudan: WHO warns of “extremely, extremely dangerous” situation as fighters occupy laboratory holding samples of deadly disease
The World Health Organization warned Tuesday of an "extremely, extremely dangerous" situation developing in Sudan where fighting forces have taken over a national public laboratory storing samples of dangerous, contagious diseases, including polio, cholera, and measles, CBS News reports.
Israel-Palestinian Conflict
At Independence Day ceremony, Netanyahu says Israel’s miracles ‘only possible when we march together’
Speaking in a pre-recorded message broadcast at the Independence Day ceremony on Mount Herzl, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continues to call for unity amid widespread divisions and protests against his government.
House Passes Resolution Calling to Expand Abraham Accords, Honor 75 Years of US-Israel Ties
The House of Representatives on Tuesday evening passed a resolution honoring the 75th anniversary of Israel’s founding and the establishment of US-Israel relations by a vote of 401 to 19.
Inside the United States
Final vote on House GOP debt limit bill could take place as early as Wednesday evening
The floor vote on House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s debt limit legislation could come as early as Wednesday, but as of midday, it was still unclear whether the leader of the GOP-controlled House had the votes.
Supreme Court to hear case of 94-year-old Minnesota woman who lost her condo over $2,300 in unpaid taxes
Geraldine Tyler, now 94, lost her one-bedroom condo in Minneapolis over $2,300 in unpaid taxes, plus interest and penalties. Hennepin County sold the apartment for $40,000 and kept every penny.
Federal court dismisses challenge to Texas’ anti–BDS law
The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on Tuesday dismissed a challenge to a Texas law that prohibits companies from receiving state funds if they participate in the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement, Algemeiner reports.
Christian News
100 Christian Families Freed From Pakistan Brick Kilns
A Christian aid group said Wednesday that it managed to free some 100 Christian families in Pakistan from brick kilns where they were effectively held as enslaved people by Muslim owners.
Nigeria: Mass slaughter of Christians continues; 134 murdered by Fulani jihadists in Benue state
The mass slaughter of Christians in Nigeria continues unabated and with impunity: radicalized Fulani Muslim herdsmen murdered 134 Christians in Benue state in the first week of April, Morning Star News (MSN) reports.
Eritrea: Police round up and imprison 103 Christian college students
Eritrean police arrested and detained 103 Christian college students at a worship event in the capital city of Asmara last month, International Christian Concern (ICC) reports.