Worthy Brief - Christian Newsletter » Newsletters » 2016 » August » Worthy Brief - 8/16/2016

Worthy Brief - 8/16/2016

Friend, don't faint, you're being renewed!

2 Corinthians 4:16 For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.

There is a process going on in us believers. Since the day the Holy Spirit came to dwell in us He has been at work with perfect wisdom and supernatural power to renew and transform our character, to some extent, our personality, and even our physical body. Our outward man, this mortal body with its natural weakness and sinful ways was doomed to death and is "wasting away" even now. Yet a new life dwells within this clay jar, and that life is constantly at work having a profound effect on the body which contains it. The Holy Spirit is working renewal, the manifestation of God in and with us.

Real estate developers do something similar. They buy a piece of property that is terribly run down, seemingly useless, without much value to the naked eye...and reform it completely, from the inside out. With great skill and vision, they know what to keep, what to get rid of, what part of the property needs renovation, refurbishing, or complete rebuilding. So it is with God and us. He knows everything that comprises our life from the moment of conception; our gifts, abilities, strengths, weaknesses, wounds, and all the characteristics of our personalities. And He wants to completely renovate us according to the vision He has for our lives, which is much greater than we can imagine. He has purchased the "property" of our lives, with His blood, and His Holy Spirit is powerfully and skillfully at work developing the Lord's "real estate"!

Friend, your life is in good hands. Your Developer knows exactly what He's doing with you. You might be a little tired or discouraged, run down, or even wrecked in some places, but soon, you will sense, once again that He is building, renovating, and renewing you in the best possible way...for eternity.

Your family in the Lord with much agape love,

George, Baht Rivka, Elianna & Obadiah
Negev Desert, Israel

Editor's Note: Watch George's message: Which voice will you listen to in the last days?

Today's Breaking News
Around the World
Islamic State says bus blast killed 50 fighters at Syria-Turkey crossing
Islamic State claimed a suicide bombing on a bus in Syria near the Atmeh border crossing with Turkey late on Sunday that the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said killed at least 32 people.
Vladimir Putin's rumblings raise new fears of Ukraine conflict
Rumblings from Russian President Vladimir Putin and other top Moscow officials during recent days have set off new fears that the frozen conflict in Ukraine could be on the verge of dramatically heating up again.
U.S. transfers 15 inmates at Guantanamo in push to close prison during Obama presidency
President Barack Obama's administration on Monday transferred more than a dozen detainees at the controversial naval prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to the Middle East as part of government efforts to close the facility by the time Obama leaves office.
Russia Building New Underground Nuclear Command Posts
Russia is building large numbers of underground nuclear command bunkers in the latest sign Moscow is moving ahead with a major strategic forces modernization program.

Israel-Palestinian Conflict
Republicans launch pro-Trump campaign in Israel
The Republican Party launched its first ever election campaign in Israel on Monday, trying to convince skeptical American-Israeli dual citizens to cast their votes for Donald Trump.
Second Temple-era synagogue unearthed in northern Israel
The remains of an unusual structure that served as a synagogue during the Second Temple era have been unearthed at an archaeological excavation underway at Tel Rechesh in the heart of the Nahal Tavor Nature Reserve in the lower Galilee.
Police: Most weapons used in violent crimes stolen from IDF
Most weapons used in the dangerous crime family wars in Israel's streets are stolen from the Israel Defense Forces, a secret police report Israel Hayom obtained on Sunday reveals. The use of military-grade weapons in crime families' disputes places innocent lives at risk and has long caused great concern for the Israel Police.
Israel Loses Secretive Oil Pipeline Case To Iran, Ordered To Pay $1.1 Billion Plus Interest
The Swiss Federal Tribunal, Switzerland's highest court, ordered Israel to pay $1.1 billion plus interest to Iran in a decades old dispute over a secretive oil pipeline predating Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution. The verdict was dated June 27, while media broke the story late last week.

Inside the United States
More Than 20,000 Rescued, 6 Dead From Catastrophic Louisiana Floods; Federal Emergency Declared
More than 20,000 Louisiana residents have been rescued from their homes, and 12,000 are in shelters in the wake of historic, devastating flash flooding that led President Barack Obama on Sunday evening to declare a federal emergency in the state, authorities said. At least six people have died in the disaster.
House Republicans detail perjury allegations against Clinton
House Republicans have detailed perjury allegations against Hillary Clinton, citing the apparent conflict between her 2015 congressional testimony about her email practices and the FBI's conclusions announced in July, according to a letter to the US Attorney for the District of Columbia.
Aetna Drops 70 Percent of Obamacare Coverage
Aetna, one of the largest health insurers in the UnitedStates, announced Monday it would be dropping out of 70 percent of the counties in which it offers coverage through Obamacare, also known as the Affordable Care Act.
Black Lives Matter blindsides Jewish supporters with anti-Israel platform
The Black Lives Matter movement blindsided its Jewish supporters with the recent unveiling of its social and political policy agenda, a far-left manifesto that strays well beyond police brutality and accuses Israel of 'genocide' and 'apartheid.'
Milwaukee officials say Sylville Smith had gun in hand before being fatally shot
Milwaukee officials on Monday sought to tamp down on rumors that a black man shot and killed by an officer on Saturday was not armed, as police grappled with the aftermath of another night of violence in the wake of his death.

U.S. Politics
Trump's immigration plan blueprint: "Extreme Vetting"
Donald Trump's speech on foreign policy Monday focused in large part on his proposal to suspend immigration from dangerous parts of the world and impose a new system of "extreme vetting" that would subject applicants to questions about their personal ideology.

Christian News
US Likely Won't Have Largest Christian Population by 2030
The greater the persecution, the greater the revival. It’s a phrase Chinese Christians are using these days, and with good reason.
Christian persecution intensifies in DRC as 36 tied up and hacked to death
Another jihadist organisation is feared to be gaining strength after persecution of Christians intensified in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
BBC Ignores Olympian Usain Bolt's Commitment to Christ
The fastest man on the planet, Usain Bolt is making headlines around the world, but reports say the God he worships is being ignored by the BBC.
'One World Religion' Metaphysical Event Gathers Muslims, Jews and Christians to Pray
Christians, Jews and Muslims are flocking to the Holy City for a 'spiritual gathering' dubbed Amen--A House of Prayer For All Believers. The self-stated goal is to create 'a single home for the world's three major religions to harness the city's ancient powers to inspire artists, musicians and cultural figures from around the world to redefine their art and traditions and connect amid troubling times.'
Algerian Christian given 5 years in prison for saying Jesus will outshine Islam on Facebook
An Algerian Christian man has been sentenced to five whole years in prison after making alleged 'blasphemous statements' online about Islam and Prophet Muhammad.
Christians in Indonesia stand strong despite violent threats
According to Bruce Allen of Forgotten Missionaries International, a group of believers, led by FMI-supported church planter Pastor Yudianto, was holding a meeting when about 20 radical Muslims interrupted.