Prayer Team

That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine...But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things... according to the effectual working in the measure of every part...(Eph. 4:14-16)

Dear Praying Friends,
Since the beginning, factious people and religious cults have tried to infiltrate, divide and conquer Bible-believing Christians. Today believers are targets for various causes. Some are good, but many are not. Some causes lack Biblical priority, others are scientifically unsound, and still others are dishonest. Christian leaders must be careful, prayerful and astute. Dr. Tim LaHaye wrote in 1980, "What this life is all about is THE BATTLE FOR YOUR MIND: whether you will live your life guided by man's wisdom (humanism) or God's wisdom (Christianity)."
Yet believers do not war over men's ideas alone. Demon powers seek to seduce, deceive and delude us (Eph. 6:10-13). Some Christians are very naive, even some of our leaders. For example, the Unification Church has for years wooed Christians into their politically conservative but spiritually confused movement by seducing them to participate in an array of events and alliances, all while masking their identity. Some prominent "evangelicals" have succumbed.
Other "evangelical" leaders have abandoned Biblical priorities and reason to promote a leftwing political agenda among believers. One prominent leader, who identifies himself as pro-life, aggressively promoted Obamacare despite its unlimited abortion and taxpayer-funding. Another leading "evangelical" who once advocated pro-life, pro-family policy in Washington, abandoned those priorities to promote scientifically questionable "global warming" and other liberal environmental causes. He used his earned influence to turn other evangelicals. He ultimately aligned with George Soros and has now changed his views on homosexual "marriage."
Pastors and Christian leaders must be careful with whom and what causes they align. In 2006, Bishop Wellington Boone, signed on to the Evangelical Environmental Network's (EEN) "Evangelical Climate Initiative," which recruited evangelicals to an alarmist view of manmade global warming. Later, after more study, Dr. Boone withdrew and signed, instead, the Cornwall Declaration, a more balanced and Biblical treatment of the issue.
If you are a Christian leader and are recruited to lend your name to some cause, take time to consider what you are doing. First, search Scripture as it pertains to the matter. Is this a Biblical priority? Second, study the pertinent scientific, legal and political facts and consider unintended consequences. Third, consult with the best Christian experts you can find. Fourth, pray and let the peace of God rule in your heart. Few leaders have the humility to repent publicly, as Dr. Wellington Boone did.
Obama Vows Security Council Veto -- On Friday, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas submitted his formal request to the United Nations (U.N.) to recognize a Palestinian State with Israel reverting to pre 1967 borders. President Obama earlier warned delegates that that the U.N. could not mandate peace and that such could come only through negotiations between the principle parties. He promised that the U.S. would exercise its veto in the Security Council. While Abbas won praise from supporters, the spectacle of his bid brought peace no closer. U.N. operatives cannot predict when or if the Security Council will vote on the proposal, given the U.S. pledge to veto. Abbas, returning home to a hero's welcome, declared a "Palestinian Spring" (see No Peace; Vote Uncertain, Palestinian Spring, www.daytopray.com).

• Please continue to pray for the peace of Jerusalem and join our brethren around the world in prayer this Sunday, October 2^nd. May God restrain activists in the Palestinian territories and the nations surrounding Israel that have already been experiencing citizen unrest and violence! May He prevent increased anti-Israeli violence! May God cause our own State Department and President Obama to now back up the words the President spoke to the U.N. (Gen 12:1-3; 13:15; Ex 32:13; 2 Chr 20:7; Pr 21:1; Ps 122:6; Is 60:1-21; Zec 12:1-10; 1 Tim 2:1-8).

Utah Cross Case; ObamaCare & the U.S. Supreme Court -- The Utah Highway Patrol Cross case was not among those selected for hearing by the Supreme Court this past Monday, Next Monday, October 3^rd, we will learn whether it was rejected or held over for further consideration. Ken Klukowski, Director of FRC's Center for Religious Liberty, coordinated legal support for the State of Utah in this case and submitted an amicus brief on FRC's behalf. Utah has allowed the Highway Patrol Association (UHPA) to honor patrolmen killed in the line of duty by erecting memorial crosses near where they were stricken. In Davenport v. American Atheists, American Atheists, Inc. sued the State of Utah. The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the erection of any cross on public land is unconstitutional.
If the U.S. Supreme Court won't hear the case, or agrees with the 10^th Circuit, government employees in Oklahoma, Kansas, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, and parts of Yellowstone National Park in Montana and Idaho, will soon be required to dismantle and remove all crosses on government-owned property. Crosses from the UHPA and Mothers against Drunk Driving (MADD) will likely go first. Given time, the Atheists will demand that memorial crosses be removed from all public parks and cemeteries. The issue is how the Establishment Clause is applied. Ken contends that it does not forbid "appearances of support," but only acts of "coercing citizens to support religion. If there is no coercion, there is no constitutional violation." The consequences of the Court's action or inaction will be huge. This illustrates the importance for Americans to elect a President who will appoint constitutional conservatives to the Supreme Court (Cert Petition, Monday's List).

• May God move the Court to hear and rule in favor of the Patrolmen and all who love religious liberty! May He give us a President who will appoint justices faithful to the Constitution, not hostile toward expressions of Christian faith (Ps 82:1-5; Is 10:1; Acts 5:29; Rom 13:7; Gal 5:1; 1 Tim 2:8; Rev 12:11).

ObamaCare -- On Monday, the President Obama's Justice Department (DOJ) announced it will not appeal a ruling by a three-judge panel of the 11^th Circuit Court of appeals to the full Court, but may appeal directly to the U.S. Supreme Court. The panel ruled ObamaCare unconstitutional. On Friday, the D.C. Circuit became the fourth appeals court to hear arguments over ObamaCare. Over thirty lawsuits have been filed against the new Health Care law, each in various stages of litigation. Experts say the DOJ's action could hasten the High Court's hearing the case, possibly during the summer of 2012 and the ramp up to the elections, and could have a huge impact upon its outcome (see Elections; 30 Lawsuits).

• Pray for each of the Supreme Court Justices, who will ultimately decide on the constitutionality of ObamaCare. May the next President and Congress overturn it, if the court fails to do so first! (Ex 18:21; 20:13; Pr 1:10 ff; Eph 6:11 ff)

Finally, please pray for the Values Voter Summit (VVS), October 7-9 in Washington, DC. May every aspect of this event, including the planned Presidential Straw Poll, have a huge impact on next year's election. May God give us wisdom to select godly leaders and may they prevail (Ex 18:21)!