Wednesday 25 September 2019

Students Around the World Pray Together for 'See You At The Pole'


This year's "See You At The Pole" prayer rally is set for Wednesday, Sept. 25. It's an event organized and led by students around the world.

According to the SYATP organization's website, it's just about one thing—prayer.

Public school students are urged to pray at 7 a.m. Wednesday around their school's flagpole.

The theme for the event is a Bible verse found in the Old Testament: 2 Chronicles 7:14.

"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

The event is a part of the Global Week of Student Prayer held from Sept. 22 to Sept. 28.

Other private or home-school students will pray in unique ways, places and times all during the week.

'Fastest-growing church' has no buildings, no central leadership, and is mostly led by women

For the last few years, researchers have credited the underground church in Iran as the fastest-growing Christian church in the world. It has unique characteristics that defy comparison with churches in America and Europe, and in the opinion of some who know it well, the church in the West could learn by studying it.

“The fastest-growing church in the world has taken root in one of the most unexpected and radicalized nations on earth,” according to “Sheep Among Wolves,” the outstanding two-hour documentary about the revival that has taken place inside Iran. “The Iranian awakening is a rapidly reproducing discipleship movement that owns no property or buildings, has no central leadership, and is predominantly led by women.”

Biblical Secrets to Shatter Your Financial Misery

Do you find yourself struggling monthly to make ends meet? Wealth Codes coach Rob Saunders says you don't have to live such a mediocre existence.

It's all a matter of biblical wisdom. In the Bible, Jesus talked more about money than he talked about salvation and grace. And when you understand and choose to practice the Lord's way of doing business, you will experience the abundance that exceeds all you can ask or think, dream or imagine.

Tuesday 17 September 2019

5 Things You Need to Know About Depression, Mental Illness

Many know all too well the debilitating effects of mental illness. We do a great disservice when we tell those struggling to "just get over it and think positive thoughts" or "read your Bible more." Although positive thinking (the right kind) is biblical, and it's crucial to meditate on God's Word, one cannot simply turn depression, anxiety and hopelessness on and off like a light switch. But on the flip side, there are factors that contribute to mental anguish. After many years of praying with, talking to and counseling thousands of people, I've found five factors that stand out that may cause mental pain. (Watch the short video here outlining these same points.)

1. Chemical imbalances and other physical factors can cause mental illness. Medication has a place, such as when neurotransmitters and hormone levels need assistance. In the same way that diabetes needs to be treated with insulin, some struggling with emotional pain may need medication, such as serotonin reuptake inhibitors, but medication doesn't always fix the problem. Often, it complicates it. Before jumping immediately on the medication bandwagon, consider the next four points. There isn't a one-size-fits-all approach, but we can look at a combination of things that may be adding to mental anguish.

Edward Snowden brands advancing AI ‘greatest danger’ for future

A bus passes by a poster of Edward Snowden, a former contractor at the National Security Agency (NSA), displayed by his supporters at Hong Kong's financial central district during the midnight hours, while Snowden is engaged in a live chat online believed to be in Hong Kong, on June 18, 2013.
Former NSA contractor and whistleblower Edward Snowden warned that continued advancement of artificial intelligence could lead to more pernicious policing of people around the world through the creation of a “permanent record” of their life.

The warning comes ahead of the release of Snowden’s book, Permanent Recordset for release on Tuesday.

Friday 13 September 2019

Pope Francis to visit Thailand and Japan in November

The Vatican confirmed Friday that Pope Francis will travel to Thailand and Japan in November with stops scheduled in Tokyo, Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Pope Francis will visit Thailand Nov. 20-23 in commemoration of the 350th anniversary of the Vatican Mission to Siam in 1669. The pope will then travel Nov. 23-26 to Japan, where the theme of his visit is “Protect all life.”

Friday 6 September 2019

Arizona M.D. Reveals: 4 Weird Signs You'll Live Past 100


At some point, one question has crossed everyone's mind:

"When am I going to die?"

And while none of us have a magic crystal ball...

What if there was some scientific way to know for sure?

Well, one Arizona doctor may have just cracked the code.

Monday 2 September 2019

Why Your Christian Marriage Doesn't Have to Be Boring


As a counselor, I have helped many people grieve many different events or realities in their lives. In grief counseling, the model for grief comes from Elisabeth Kübler Ross, who studied people dying. She identified the grief stage as: shock, denial, anger, bargaining, sadness and acceptance.

The very first stage of grief is shock. Shock is kind of visceral feeling throughout one's body. When you genuinely hold tightly to an idea and a truth comes against that idea, you can experience shock. It can feel like disconnection or pain or numbness depending on the intensity of what you are grieving.

New study ‘finds genetic links to same-sex behavior’: 3 facts you need to know

LGBTQ advocates have long sought evidence for the claim that same-sex sexual attraction is genetically conditioned. “God made me this way” is a common claim.

If it could be proven that same-sex sexual attraction is inherited, many would find it even easier to liken homosexual persons to racial minorities and castigate those who affirm biblical sexual morality as prejudiced and homophobic.

We should therefore not be surprised by the way a new study of same-sex sexual behavior is being reported. “Research Finds Genetic Links to Same-Sex Behavior” headlines the Wall Street Journal. The New York Times headlines the story a bit differently: “Many Genes Influence Same-Sex Sexuality, Not a Single ‘Gay Gene.'”

If these headlines were all you read, you’d assume that the “God made me this way” claim has finally been proven. The opposite is actually true.