Prophecy Update Newsletter
IN TODAY'S NEWSLETTER...
The Elephant in the Room: Og, Gog, Magog and.........OIL??? - A.V. Rauf - https://bibleprophecyfortoday.com/2019/04/03/the-elephant-in-the-room-og-gog-magog-and-oil/
When you read the phrase "elephant in the room..." this isn't implying that there actually is an elephant inside of a room. "Elephant in the room" is an English metaphorical idiom for an obvious truth that is either being ignored or going unaddressed. The idiomatic expression may also apply to an obvious situation or risk no one wants to potentially discuss. What I simply want to accomplish is simply examine current events through the lease of biblical Scripture, which is one of the primary focuses of this website. As of late, the current news headlines have been centering around global events that pertain to the Golan Heights, Gaza, the West Bank, the status of Jerusalem, Hezbollah, Hamas, Iran, Syria, Turkey and Russia. Those who don't know Bible prophecy find it it difficult to understand but the Word of God is never wrong. An old friend of mine once told me that truth and time go hand in hand. I believe what we are witnessing today is the an acceleration factor pertaining to events in the Middle East that directly involve Israel and ultimately point to the return of the LORD Jesus Christ. The Golan Heights, a rocky plateau in south-western Syria, has a political and strategic significance which clearly become advantageous to its owner. As of now, both Iran and Lebanon would have direct access through Israel via the Golan Heights. I suggest this area may now be one of financial significance. More on that in a moment. Historically speaking, the British colonial power gave the Golan to France's Syrian colony in 1923. After the 1948-49 Arab-Israeli War, the Golan Heights were partly demilitarized by the Israel-Syria Armistice Agreement. Furthermore, Syria attacked Israel in 1967 and lost the Golan Heights. Syria had occupied it for 44 years. During the closing stages of the Six-Day War in 1967, Israel seized the Golan Heights from Syria and as a result, most of the Syrian Arab inhabitants fled the area during this conflict. Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently thanked U.S. President Donald Trump f signing a proclamation recognizing Israel's authority over the long-disputed Golan Heights two weeks before Israeli elections are set to take place. Benjamin Netanyahu also referred to Trump as a modern Cyrus after the signing of the Golan Heights recognition. In his remarks, Benjamin Netanyahu mentioned the great leaders through history who have had a profound influence on the Jewish people and the state of Israel, including King Cyrus who liberated the Jews and issued an edict for the rebuilding of the Jewish temple in Jerusalem.This was the second time the comparison was made. For what it's worth, remember that President Trump announced the moving of the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem and recognized it as Israel's capital. This was done on May 14, 2018, 70 years from the very birth of the nation of Israel which was on May 14, 1948, Trump's formal recognition of the Golan Heights occurred on Purim, the festival that recognizes the utter defeat of the enemies of Israel. Biblically speaking, the Bashan region, now known as the Golan Heights, is a part of the biblical territory promised to the Patriarch Abraham and the people of Israel for an everlasting covenant - the Covenant of the Parts - recounted in Genesis 15. Genesis 15: 1-21-After these things the word of the Lord came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.2 And Abram said, Lord God, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus?3 And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir.4 And, behold, the word of the Lord came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir.5 And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.6 And he believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness.7 And he said unto him, I am the Lord that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee this land to inherit it.8 And he said, Lord God, whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it?9 And he said unto him, Take me an heifer of three years old, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon.10 And he took unto him all these, and divided them in the midst, and laid each piece one against another: but the birds divided he not.11 And when the fowls came down upon the carcases, Abram drove them away.12 And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, an horror of great darkness fell upon him.13 And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years;14 And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance.15 And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age.16 But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full.17 And it came to pass, that, when the sun went down, and it was dark, behold a smoking furnace, and a burning lamp that passed between those pieces.18 In the same day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates:19 The Kenites, and the Kenizzites, and the Kadmonites,20 And the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Rephaims,21 And the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the Jebusites. The city of Bashan was also one of three cities of refuge: Deutoronomy 4: 40-49-40 Thou shalt keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, which the Lord thy God giveth thee, for ever.41 Then Moses severed three cities on this side Jordan toward the sunrising;42 That the slayer might flee thither, which should kill his neighbour unawares, and hated him not in times past; and that fleeing unto one of these cities he might live:43 Namely, Bezer in the wilderness, in the plain country, of the Reubenites; and Ramoth in Gilead, of the Gadites; and Golan in Bashan, of the Manassites.44 And this is the law which Moses set before the children of Israel:45 These are the testimonies, and the statutes, and the judgments, which Moses spake unto the children of Israel, after they came forth out of Egypt.46 On this side Jordan, in the valley over against Bethpeor, in the land of Sihon king of the Amorites, who dwelt at Heshbon, whom Moses and the children of Israel smote, after they were come forth out of Egypt:47 And they possessed his land, and the land of Og king of Bashan, two kings of the Amorites, which were on this side Jordan toward the sunrising;48 From Aroer, which is by the bank of the river Arnon, even unto mount Sion, which is Hermon,49 And all the plain on this side Jordan eastward, even unto the sea of the plain, under the springs of Pisgah. The town of Bashan was located in the middle of the Golan Heights. It was under the rue of the northern of Goliath, yet another giant whose name was Og. Now let's fast forward to the 21st Century. What could make the Golan Heights even more valuable to Israel? How about the discovery of a huge oil deposit? The Russian Times (RT) and many other sources report that Israel has indeed discovered a major deposit of oil on the Golan Heights. In addition, Israel has granted a Golan Heights oil drilling license to an American Company. Recent tests have indicated that there very well may be large oil and gas deposits in the Golan!!! This discovery just may help readers to understand why Russia is making such a strong play to support the Assad regime in Syria. It also may explain why Netanyahu is lobbying the US to support its bid to annex the Golan Heights in view of the failed state of Syria. It appears that the prophetic scenario in Ezekiel 36-39 is beginning to take shape as Russia moves more military assets into and close to Syria. Turkey is also sending troops and has troops situated in Northern Syria. Iran too has troops amassed north of the Golan Heights. Is this the spoil and plunder that is spoken of in Ezekiel 39?? I don't foresee the Golan Heights in a land for peace deal. Ezekiel 38:1-12-And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him,3 And say, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal:4 And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:5 Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:6 Gomer, and all his bands; the house of Togarmah of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee.7 Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.9 Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee.10 Thus saith the Lord God; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:11 And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey.... According to Trunews.com an American-based oil and Gas Company has been operating in the Golan Heights: https://www.trunews.com/article/genie-oil-the-syria-goldman-sachs-israel-isis-connection Here is where it gets really interesting. Of the many prophecies in the Old Testament of the Bible depicting the return of Jesus Christ, the book of Nahum also provides a vivid description of the coming in the air of Jesus Christ: Nahum 1:1-9- The burden of Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite.2 God is jealous, and the Lord revengeth; the Lord revengeth, and is furious; the Lord will take vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies.3 The Lord is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the Lord hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet.4 He rebuketh the sea, and maketh it dry, and drieth up all the rivers: Bashan languisheth, and Carmel, and the flower of Lebanon languisheth.5 The mountains quake at him, and the hills melt, and the earth is burned at his presence, yea, the world, and all that dwell therein.6 Who can stand before his indignation? and who can abide in the fierceness of his anger? his fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by him.7 The Lord is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him.8 But with an overrunning flood he will make an utter end of the place thereof, and darkness shall pursue his enemies.9 What do ye imagine against the Lord? he will make an utter end: affliction shall not rise up the second time. The land that Nahum mentioned in the verses above include Bashan, Carmel, and Lebanon. These places all describe the Golan Heights that separate Israel from Syria and Lebanon. Last year, Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan invited 57 Muslim nations to unite in an effort to defeat Israel: https://www.wnd.com/2018/03/57-muslim-nations-urged-to-besiege-israel/ Remember that Turkey is also mentioned in Ezekiel 39 as is Bashan or the Golan Heights. The bottom line here is that God's prophetic word is coming to pass. It is very possible that the enemies of Israel are gathering for an attack from the Golan Heights. Remember, in the Bible whenever Israel was invaded, the invasion always came from the North. Could current developments in this area coinciding with this being the 70th year of the birth of Israel as a nation be setting the stage for the onset of the 70th week of Daniel also known as the time of Jacob's trouble, i.e. the 7 year tribulation period??? We will find out very soon. Maranatha! The Duplicitous Double Standard Of The UN Towards Israel - By Sarah N. Stern - http://www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=3092 There are 194 nations in the world. Out of those, precisely 193 acquired their territory through the use of military force. That is how borders have traditionally been drawn. Most of these campaigns were offensive. I have asked many military experts, historians and scholars about this, and they have, to a person, told me that there is only one nation in the world who gained territory through the use of force that has been sued, time and time again to relinquish that territory. You guessed it: the state of Israel. What is so profoundly outrageous about this is that Israel acquired lands in defensive wars. It is not as though Israel is a colonial state that set out to acquire land to enrich itself. Israel acquired the Golan Heights in an act of self-defense when they had been attacked on all sides in the 1967 war, and managed to successfully retain this land in the 1973 war. Syria is a failed state. We have seen how the eight-year-old brutal Syrian civil war at the hands of Bashar Assad has left at least a half a million of his own people dead, and 5.6 million refugees along with 6.8 million internally displaced persons. According to a recent article in Commentary by the legal scholar Vivian Bercovici, "Since World War II, the accepted understanding of international law that involves territorial loss during conflict is quite straightforward: The attacking nation may not retain permanently land acquired as a result of armed conflict." For those who are objecting to this move: Kindly inform us of with whom, precisely, Israel is supposed to negotiate with? Let's take a look at the players inside Syria. Bashir Assad of the rump state of Syria? Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi, the head of ISIS in the Levant? Qassam Solomeini of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps that works hand in glove with Bashir Assad? Hassan Nasrallah of Hezbollah, who now has approximately several thousand troops in Syria? The reality on the ground is that the 400 square miles of the Golan Heights is the demarcation line of a Hobbesian state of war of "man against man" and a relatively tranquil, democratic area. The political reality within Israel is that every Israeli, right, left and center agrees that the Golan Heights is critical for the survival of Israel. General Giora Eiland stated that "There is no solution to Israel's survival without the retention of the Golan Heights." Every Israeli knows that whoever controls the high ground of the Golan Heights controls the security of the area. Most of us have stood on the Heights, and have peered down into Damascus and Beirut. We know it affords a protective shield extending all the way down to Lake Tiberias. And the Israeli intelligence and military officials up there are the "eyes and ears" for vital intelligence and military information that they willingly share with the United States. Words matter. By framing the language of the Golan Heights as "Occupied Territory", it whets the appetite of Israel's enemies, and indicates to them that this region is still in play. That is why it is no less than infuriating when 14 nations of the UN Security Council met on Wednesday, at the request of Syria, to condemn America's recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights. Would any of these distinguished representatives ever subject their own citizens of their nations to the uncertainty of "trading land for peace" if they had such wolves banging at their gates? As I have written many times in the past, the birth of Israel was supposed to have been the denouement of the age-old problem of anti-Semitism. Instead, it is the focal point for all of the anti-Semites. And many of them are distinguished representatives wearing suits and ties, casting votes in the United Nations. Nearing Midnight: The Great Flood of 2019 - Todd Strandberg - https://www.raptureready.com/category/nearing-midnight/ There has been massive flooding in the central region of the U.S. I lived in Nebraska from 1987 to 2009, so I'm very familiar with the state's flood history. A few days ago, I was shocked to read reports of record flooding on the three largest rivers in the state. According to a press release from the Nebraska Emergency Management Agency, or NEMA, the Missouri River crested between 30 and 47.5 feet in different areas throughout the state, breaking previous records by 1 to 4 feet. The Platte River in Louisville crested at 14.3 feet, breaking its 1960 record by 1.9 feet, NEMA said. The Elkhorn River at Waterloo crested at 24.6 feet, breaking its 1962 record by 5.5 feet. I was stationed at Offutt Air force Base in Bellevue, Nebraska, and I was shocked to see the building where I first worked under several feet of water. The worst I've ever witnessed was water creeping up to the back gate of the base. In this flood about one-third of the base was under water, including 3,000 feet of runway, the 55th Wing headquarters building, and about 60 other structures. If this flood happened during the Cold War, it would be a national crisis to have the Strategic Air Command flooded out. It is very strange to have so much water this early in the year. Most of the previous record floods were the result of massive spring or summer thunderstorms. The trigger for this flood was a historic winter storm called a "bomb cyclone." This storm had hurricane force winds that dumped record amounts of rain and snow over a vast area. This flooding has done a huge amount of damage to farmland. Over 200 miles of levees have been breached and several dams have been destroyed. It may take months for millions of acres to dry out. Cropland that has had water rushing over it may require years to recover from the buildup of sand and the removal of top soil. The National Weather Service is warning that there may be worse to come in this apocalyptic Midwest flood. Thanks to a very snowy winter, a massive amount of snow is going to melt during the next several weeks. There are still 20 inches of snow in North Dakota, and Minnesota. On top of all of that melting snow, forecasters are telling us that it will be a very rainy spring. During the next three months, the Weather Channel is warning that there will be "above-average precipitation across much of the Lower 48." The American farmer has always had to deal with good and bad years. Lately, the worst-case scenario has been the norm: a cold planting season and a wet harvest had corn yields edging lower for the past two years, drought thinned cattle herds in many Western states and pathogens have killed millions of chickens, turkeys and piglets. Farms filing for Chapter 12 bankruptcy protection rose by 19 percent last year across the Midwest, the highest level in a decade, according to data compiled by the American Farm Bureau. In this year's flood, farmers have lost a large amount of their 2018 crops and livestock. Millions upon millions of bushels of wheat, corn and soybeans have been washed away from ground-level storage bins and containers. It's hard to get numbers on livestock deaths because ranchers are reluctant to acknowledge the death of their animals and blame themselves when it happens. The wind and icy water are a deadly combination. Many farms lost 10-20% of their calves during the flood. The recent decline in cattle future prices is seen as an indication that farmers are being forced to liquidate their herds because of heavy losses from winter kill. I don't expect to see a massive food shortage ahead of the rapture. Because it normally takes several years for a famine to develop, we may get a glimpse of worst to come from seeing a sudden decline in global food production. Unless the weather pattern suddenly turns around, this year may forewarn what could be the start of the predicted end-time famine. "And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny..." (Rev 6:5-6). Russia positions itself as 'final judge' in Syria amid escalating Israeli-Iranian tensions - By Yaakov Lappin - https://www.jns.org/russia-positions-itself-as-final-judge-in-syria-amid-high-israeli-iranian-tensions/ Moscow has also attempted to play the role of mediator between Israel and Iran, seeking to douse the shadow war raging between them on Iranian soil. Israel, for its part, is determined to disrupt Iran's plan to turn Syria into a war front against it. The flurry of meetings between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin likely reflect urgent developments in Syria that relate to Iranian activities. The meetings come in the shadow of recent reports of a major Israeli airstrike on March 28, targeting an Iranian weapons' warehouse near the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, which reportedly resulted in large blasts and casualties. Russia leads a pro-Assad military coalition in Syria, of which Iranian forces are a central part of. Yet it also maintains a deconfliction channel with Israel to avoid unintended clashes between its air force and the Israeli Air Force, both of which are active in the Syrian arena. Putin has also attempted to play the role of mediator between Israel and Iran, seeking to douse the shadow war raging between them on Iranian soil. Israel, for its part, is determined to disrupt Iran's plan to turn Syria into a war front against it. Netanyahu will fly to Moscow on Thursday for a meeting with Putin, just five days before Israel's April 9 elections. On April 1, Netanyahu and Putin held a phone conversation to talk about "military cooperation issues," according to the Kremlin, as well as "pressing bilateral issue," and "the situation in the Middle East region." On Feb. 27, the two leaders met in Moscow to discuss Syria. Netanyahu said during that meeting, the two sides reached an agreement on how to coordinate between the militaries. They also apparently agreed on a goal of getting "foreign troops" to leave Syria, according to Netanyahu. While Russia will not be able to satisfy everyone, it does understand that it will need to leave each side with "half of its desires," Professor Uzi Rabi, director of the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies at Tel Aviv University, told JNS. To achieve this, Moscow gets every actor to spell out "what is really important to it, and here, Israel has an opportunity to define the range and perimeter of Iran's actions in Syria," he added. "In general, this is a new situation that the region is not used to. The Russians are managing this game with many bargaining chips, and Israel will have to adapt itself to the new rules of the game." Iran's activities in Syria are tied to internal power struggles Doron Itzchakov, a research associate at the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, and at the Alliance Center for Iranian Studies at Tel Aviv University, agreed that the current situation is good for Moscow. "The Russian interest is to position itself as the 'final judge' in Syria, and this situation, in which Netanyahu runs to Putin and the Iranian side runs to him, is comfortable for them. They are comfortable with being the balancing scales," he said. Iran, for its part, will be closely monitoring Israel's contacts with Russia and adapt its policies in Syria accordingly. "The Iranians will be watching out for Russia's policy in Syria, to see how they need to change their tactics. Iran has no plan of releasing its grip on Syria, but it changes tactics so as not to lose momentum," stated Itzchakov. On recent example of how Iran has adapted its takeover efforts in Syria is by embedding its military personnel and weaponry into sites run by the official Syrian Arab Army. However, that didn't stop Israel from reportedly striking such targets when it detects them. Itzchakov stressed that Iran's decisions in Syria cannot be disconnected from Tehran's wider, geo-political ambitions or from internal power struggles that are raging inside the Islamic Republic. He cited a visit in March by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to neighboring Iraq as an example of this linkage. The goal of that visit was to develop an economic corridor to bypass biting American sanctions, said Itzchakov. Yet the visit also boosted the prestige of Rouhani, who is facing major criticism at home from the rival conservative bloc and the Islamic Republican Guards Corps (IRGC). "The economic corridor Iran wants in Iraq is tied to its desire for an economic corridor to Lebanon and its ties to Syria. One cannot separate these things," said Itzchakov. In addition, Iran has been able to build up armed forces in all of these countries-Iraq, Syria and Lebanon-and has turned them into deeply influential political forces in Iraq and Lebanon. Iran plans to do the same in Syria. But the element responsible for this activity is mainly the IRGC and General Qasem Soleimani, commander of the overseas Iranian Quds Force unit, which is competing with Iran's Foreign Minister, Mohammad Zarif, for control of Iran's regional policies, said Itzchakov. Out of this internal rivalry emerges the story of Iranian activities in Syria, he added. "The IRGC's power as a decision maker in geo-political, economic and diplomatic areas is rising," he said. The internal power struggle is making "Iran more sensitive to Syria," said Itzchakov. "Even when done in opposition to the popular wishes of the Iranian people, the IRGC makes its own decisions, including in Syria. The IRGC wants to set the agenda." Daily Jot: A threat to every American - Bill Wilson - www.dailyjot.com Freedom of religion, speech and the press are linchpins to the success of America and every American citizen. The First Amendment to the Constitution reads: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances." The neo-communists who are conducting an ongoing coup attempt in America shout the loudest about these freedoms and are the first to insinuate that the current Administration seeks to take them away. But the truth of the matter is that Democrats in the House are trying to frustrate these freedoms. Case in point are the ongoing investigations into the Trump Administration combined with efforts to silence those who disagree with these boards of inquiry. The House Committee on Oversight and Reform is one such example. Chairman Elijah Cummings (D-MD) is investigating why Fox News did not publish information about Trump's alleged affair with porn star Stormy Daniels prior to the 2016 election. Cummings is demanding the reporter who covered the story for Fox provide all her notes and documents concerning any affairs Trump may have had and the money spent to silence the women involved. In particular, Cummings is demanding to know any actions taken against the reporter to suppress the story. On the surface, this is just another investigation of Trump by those who are sore that he won the election. Those who had so much anxiety about whether Trump would accept the results of the election if he lost, are the ones who refuse to accept the results of the election. Nevertheless, Cummings and the House Democrats are fishing for more dirt and more media stories about dirt on Trump AND they are trying to silence the free press by intimidation. These communists are implying that Fox made an illegal contribution to Trump's campaign by suppressing stories about Trump's affairs. This sends the message that anyone in the press who doesn't publish a story when the government powers want it published, will be subject to expensive, lawyer-enriching investigations by Congressional communists. It abridges freedom of the press. This is exactly what George Washington warned about in his 1796 farewell address, speaking of political parties: "...they are likely, in the course of time and things, to become potent engines, by which cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people and to usurp for themselves the reins of government, destroying afterwards the very engines which have lifted them to unjust dominion." The ones doing these investigations and obstructing the people's government should be removed from office. They are cunning, ambitious and unprincipled. As in 2 Timothy 3:13, "But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived." These types of people are deceptively trying to take away your freedom and they are a threat to every American citizen. Daily Devotion: Spiritual Obesity - by Greg Laurie - www.harvest.org Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full-pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back. - Luke 6:38 I love Thanksgiving because it's a holiday that hasn't been completely commercialized. Some call it Turkey Day to diminish it, perhaps. But on Thanksgiving we have prayer, eat a wonderful meal, and go into a collective coma for two hours. The last thing I want to do after I eat a big meal is exercise. There can come a point in our spiritual lives when we actually can be guilty of overeating. We can be in church and enjoying the finest spiritual meals, studying the Bible together, worshipping together, and learning together. That's all great. But if we don't have an outlet for what we are taking in, it can be problematic. We must give out what God has given to us, or we can actually reach a state of stagnation, a kind of spiritual obesity. It is called being sedentary. We need to be giving out what God has given us. This is a biblical principle. Jesus said, "Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full-pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back" (Luke 6:38 NLT). It's important to have a new believer in your life, because he or she will energize you. Maybe one reason we don't want new believers in our lives is because we don't want to change our behavior. If we take a new believer to church and then go to lunch afterward, we can't gossip. We'll probably drive the speed limit. And we'll probably do other things Christians should be doing already. Maybe we don't want that added pressure in our lives. Not only are we missing out on helping them, but we are missing out on helping ourselves. 
FROM THE HEART
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