Our Worthy Brief is a daily Christian newsletter designed to encourage, inform, and edify believers in their daily walk with God. Our online Christian magazine incorporates our daily devotional (Worthy Devotions) along news from around the world provided by our Christian News service, Worthy News.

Worthy Brief - Christian Newsletter » Newsletters » 2016 » March » Worthy Brief - 3/28/2016

Worthy Brief - 3/28/2016

Friend, do you want a greater treasure?

Matthew 5:45 That you may be the children of your Father who is in heaven: for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

The Lord is quoted in this scripture in Matthew and it contains an important principle which I think we sometimes tend to overlook. Many believe and even teach that if someone acquires much material prosperity, then God has surely given them favor, and that if someone is undergoing extreme trial, it must be because they have sinned or that they lack faith. But the Lord says that the sun rises and the rain falls on both the righteous and the unrighteous alike. A life of good circumstances does not necessarily mean that God is with us. And likewise, a life of trial and suffering does not mean that God is not with us!

If we base our lives on our circumstances, we are no different than people without God. What makes us different from the world is that we have something far greater than our circumstances! We can live victoriously both in want and in plenty because we have a relationship with the living God!

Friend, there is nothing wrong with rejoicing through the good times but we need to rejoice through the bad as well! If you're going through some hard times, choose to rejoice in the Lord today! We have a greater treasure and a more amazing victory when our lives are centered upon Him at all times!

Your family in the Lord with much agape love,

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

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

Today's Breaking News
Around the World
Syria army vows to 'end IS' in Raqa, Deir Ezzor after Palmyra win
Syria's army vowed Sunday to follow its victory against the Islamic State group in the city of Palmyra with an advance against the jihadists in their other strongholds.
North Korea propaganda video shows nuclear strike on U.S.
North Korea released a propaganda video on Saturday depicting a nuclear strike on Washington warning 'American imperialists' not to provoke the communist nation.
Pope's Easter message condemns failure to help migrants
The Pope said migrants often met rejection from those who could offer them welcome and assistance. He also condemned terrorism as a blind and brutal violence that should be fought with 'weapons of love'.
Police use water cannon as hundreds demonstrate in Brussels after attacks
Police used water cannon to control hundreds of rowdy protesters in central Brussels on Sunday after they ignored an official call for solidarity marches following Tuesday's bomb attacks to be postponed.
Palmyra victory shows Assad, Putin finally confronting Islamic State
The commanders of the Syrian army announced on state television Sunday that their troops had completed the recapture of Palmyra, the resonant, ancient city in the Syrian heartland 130 miles north of Damascus.

Israel-Palestinian Conflict
NSA chief 'makes secret Israel trip to talk Iran, Hezbollah cyber-warfare'
The director of the US National Security Agency, Admiral Michael Rogers, reportedly paid a secret visit to Israel last week to discuss cooperation in cyber-defense, in particular to counter attacks by Iran and its Lebanon-based proxy Hezbollah.
ISIS branch in Egypt's Sinai planning big operation in southern Israel
The ISIS affiliate in Egypt's Sinai peninsula plans to carry out a 'big operation' in southern Israel, which will include an attack on the resort city of Eilat, a militant close to the group warned.
Israel's Supreme Court shoots down gas deal
Israel's Supreme Court on Sunday overturned the government's landmark deal to begin pumping natural gas, handing a painful blow to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a consortium of energy companies.
Hezbollah still far from realizing its goal of attacking Israel from Syria
The Assad regime's military has seized Palmyra in recent days, and the Iranian-backed Shi'ite axis in Syria, of which Hezbollah is a core member, appears to be gaining in strength.

Inside the United States
Law Enforcement Investigators Seek Out Private DNA Databases
Investigators are broadening their DNA searches beyond government databases and demanding genetic information from companies that do ancestry research for their customers.
Obama's next gift to Iran means breaking another promise to America
In the drive for Senate approval of Obama's nuclear deal with Iran, the administration repeatedly said Tehran would be denied access to the US financial system. Looks like it's about to get it after all. The move would not only give Iran financial resources well beyond the $150 billion it's already pocketed under the nuke deal, it would also leave all the remaining economic sanctions in tatters.
Volcano Erupts in Southwest Alaska; Sends Ash 20,000 Feet
The U.S. Geological Survey reports that a volcano on Alaska's Aleutian Islands erupted Sunday afternoon and sent ash 20,000 feet into the air.

U.S. Politics
Why Bernie Sanders' West Coast Blowouts Matter
Bernie Sanders did not just win all three states that voted this weekend -- Washington, Alaska and Hawaii -- he won them by overwhelming, impressive margins. The presidential hopeful won every county in Washington, and some of his biggest victory margins came from the state's most rural and traditionally conservative areas.
Trump: Palestinians must stop terror for peace deal
Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump outlined his views of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in an interview published Sunday, saying he is under the impression that the overwhelming majority of Israelis really do want to make peace, but that he has doubts the Palestinians feel the same way.
Clinton email probe enters new phase as FBI interviews loom
Federal prosecutors investigating the possible mishandling of classified materials on Hillary Clinton's private email server have begun the process of setting up formal interviews with some of her longtime and closest aides, according to two people familiar with the probe, an indication that the inquiry is moving into its final phases.

Christian News
Islamic State crucifies Catholic priest on Good Friday
The Islamic State committed a grisly Good Friday commemoration, crucifying a Catholic priest.
At least 70 killed in Pakistan bombing targeting Christians
An explosion ripped through a crowded Pakistan park where Christians were celebrating Easter on Sunday, killing at least 70 people, officials told the Associated Press.
Britain must defend its Christian values against terrorism, David Cameron says
David Cameron has declared that Britain is built on 'Christian values' -- and must defend them against terrorism.