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Prophecy Update Newsletter
July 26, 2016
IN TODAY'S NEWSLETTER...
Shadows over Israel - By Matt Ward - http://raptureready.com/soap2/ward64.html
The balance of power in the Middle East is obviously shifting. From Russia to the Caucasus region, from Egypt to the borders of Israel-change is afoot. Nations are entrenching armies, digging in and readying themselves. Alliances are being sought in shady Machiavellian maneuvers across the entire Middle East region. The stage is seemingly being set for war. Egyptian President Abdel-Fatteh El-Sisi and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have over the last few weeks intensified their efforts at closing any gaps between their two nations, especially in their collective approaches to ISIS and militant Islam. Syria, also, is a common cause of concern for both nations as is the almost miraculous reversal of Syrian President Bashir Assad's fortunes from an international war criminal to the undisputed master of a regime that is now in high demand from all Western nations. President Barack Obama, who once demanded the head of Bashir Assad and his removal from power as a basic element of his entire Middle East strategy, now views Assad as a potential ally. This despite the fact that Assad has used chemical weapons in Syria on at least ten separate occasions. Obama now views Assad as the head of a regime capable of making positive advances against ISIS and Islamic terror within Syria, which therefore puts Assad's strategic objectives alongside America's. At the same time, Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan has secretly extended the olive branch of peace to Assad, potentially allowing for the ominous formation of a Syrian-Turkish-Iranian-Hezbollah-Russian alliance that spans almost the entirety of the Middle East. To say that this has prophetic undertones is a huge understatement. This Turkish initiative to court Assad comes at the same time as Turkey's tentative attempt at mending relations with Israel breaks news around the world. These two actions, mending relations with both Syria and Israel at the same time are clearly at odds with each other and lead to the obvious conclusion that Turkey is acting disingenuously toward Israel. This "mending of relations" between the Israeli-Turkish governments is likely duplicitous and not a genuine effort at all. The outcome of Turkish efforts to placate and re-establish relations with either Assad or Israel will profoundly affect Iran. If Turkey were to renew friendly relations with Assad, instead of Israel, then it would directly impact upon the relative strengthening or weakening of Iran within Syria and the Middle East in general. Biblically, we should all know on which side of this alliance system the Turks will eventually fall, and it will not be with Israel. Ultimately it will be Iran that is strengthened and emboldened by this alliance system, and not Israel-no matter what this present round of negotiations and shuttle diplomacy bring about. It is also increasingly clear that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard is actively taking up positions in southern Syria against Israel. They are entrenching and digging in with significant numbers, both against ISIS encroachment and in preparation for a potential direct future confrontation with Israel. While these complicated machinations unfold, recent advances by transnational actors in the same Middle Eastern area cannot be overlooked. ISIS and Al-Qaeda's Nusra Front, alongside allied groups, have now completely overrun the entire Syrian side of the border area between Syria and Israel. This is significant because Israel believes that one of the groups commanding this area is called the Khaled Bin Al-Walid army; a group with very close ties both to Al-Qaeda and Osama Bin Laden's successor, Abu Musab al-Zaraqawi. Its leader, a man called Abu Abdullah al-Madani is a veteran of war and is vastly experienced. Well-financed and well-motivated, Israel believes this group is actively engaged in trying to buy chemical weapons from military bases that have been overrun within Syria. This group is also currently engaged in training potential homicide bombers using chemical weapons to be detonated inside Israel itself. This group currently controls the border area with Israel facing the Golan region. If this comes to pass and Israel is attacked with any kind of chemical weapons, it would be, in every sense, a game changer with ominous biblical implications for as yet-unfulfilled Bible prophecy. Which brings us to the unspoken elephant in the Middle Eastern room-Russia. Amidst all of this ongoing Middle Eastern chaos, Russia continues to methodically and systematically solidify its position in the Middle East. At this point Russia is fully entrenched in Syria and in an almost unassailable position. Russia continues to insist that the only legitimate regime in Syria is the Assad regime and that all other entities are by definition "terrorists" because of it. Although Washington abhors the tactics used by Russia and the Assad regime in the Syrian civil war, the U.S. fears another void in leadership in Damascus more because of what may come to fill that vacuum, so is muddling from one "peace process" to the next. Truly, the United States has not looked this irrelevant for generations. Obama seems to have conceded leadership in Syria to Putin, and Russia in general has emerged from this civil war emboldened and significantly more powerful. This current status quo will ultimately lead to a much more powerful Russia. America and her allies in the Middle East will continue to attack, degrade and destroy ISIS (even if it is at a lukewarm effort because of the weak American president), while Russia will mop up any opposition rebel groups fighting against Assad's regime within Syria. This includes opposition groups that the U.S. have previously agreed to support, who they have now abandoned. The end result will be a hugely enhanced Iranian presence in Syria; and Hezbollah will have definite resupply from Iran. Russian cover through Syria, and Sunni civilians will continue to abandon Syria and Iraq for Europe. This will leave the victors Russia, Iran and their allies to claim the field of victory, and as conquerors they will remake the Middle East in whatever way they see fit. Fundamental change is coming to the Middle East region. The countries we know on our maps of the region do not and will not exist in the future as they do today. Countries like Iraq, Libya, Syria and Yemen, amongst others, no longer exist as they once did. Neither do their borders. The temporary new Middle East may very well be one made and defined entirely by Russia and her allies. The United States, Britain, France and NATO will play a limited part at best in this reshaping process. The Middle East seems to be readying itself for the coming of Gog and his horde. Indeed, his shadow covers the entire region at this point. It will not be long until the Lord God Himself, puts His "hooks" into his jaw and "brings him forth." God is preparing the world and the Middle East for the time to come when He will turn His face once again back to his Holy inheritance, Israel. It will be through Gog and his horde, and the evil that they intend for Israel, that He will magnify Himself. God will deliver Israel from Gog as He will deliver her from the Antichrist at the conclusion of the Tribulation period. Soon and once again, the Lord God will be known amongst the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and then the whole world through them. This Gentile church age is drawing to a close before our eyes. The time is fast approaching when God will address all the nations of this world through Israel, as He always originally intended. He will refine Israel through the fire of the Tribulation, until they reach the point that all hope of human deliverance is gone. At that point Israel will cry out to Jesus, their Messiah, for the mercy and deliverance He longs to bring to them: "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!" Then the Lord, their God will return to them and He will bring justice, compassion and deliverance! First though, will come Gog with his hordes. Today, in 2016, you can almost hear their approaching footsteps. wardmatt1977@gmail.com 
100 Years Later, Palestinians Call to Sue England Over Balfour Declaration - By Abra Forman - http://www.breakingisraelnews.com/72646/100-years-later-palestinians-call-sue-england-balfour-declaration/#VIYqHYrqdjEYpQkF.97
"For, lo, the days come, saith Hashem, that I will turn the captivity of My people Yisrael and Yehudah, saith Hashem; and I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it." Jeremiah 30:3 (The Israel Bible™) The Palestinian Authority (PA) announced its intentions on Sunday to sue Great Britain for the 1917 Balfour Declaration and the subsequent establishment of a Jewish state. In a statement made at an Arab League meeting in the Mauritanian capital of Nouakchott, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad al-Maliki, speaking for PA President Mahmoud Abbas, said that the Balfour Declaration, which affirmed British support for a Jewish homeland in the land of Israel, was directly responsible for the "Palestinian Nakba (Catastrophe)". "Nakba" is the Arabic word used to refer to the founding of Israel in 1948 and implies the terrible suffering of Palestinians ever since. "We are working to open up an international criminal case for the crime which they committed against our nation - from the days of the British Mandate all the way to the massacre which was carried out against us from 1948 onwards," declared al-Maliki. He requested that the Secretary General of the Arab League assist the PA in "prosecuting the British government" for Balfour, which "caused this catastrophe against the Palestinian people." Al-Maliki also took the opportunity to criticize Arab nations taking steps towards normalizing relations with Israel. The Balfour Declaration, penned a century ago, consists of a three-sentence statement written by United Kingdom Foreign Secretary Lord Arthur James Balfour and sent to Walter Rothschild, a leader in Britain's Jewish community. "His Majesty's government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavors to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country." It was the first official recognition of the Zionist project by a world power, leading to widespread legitimization of the cause and the eventual establishment of Israel. In the Palestinian narrative, it is a tragedy which began the decades-long oppression of the Palestinian people and occupation of Palestinian land. Every year around Israel's independence day, Palestinians commemorate "Nakba Day" by gathering throughout the country, marching, rioting and whipping up a fury of anger and violence. 
Prophecy Alert: Iraq's ancient city of Babylon eyes World Heritage list - Adnan Abu Zeed - http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/07/babylon-unesco-iraq.html?utm_source=apple&utm_medium=applenews&utm_campaign=applenews
BABIL, Iraq - On July 17, UNESCO added al-Ahwar marshes in southeastern Iraq to the World Heritage list. Now, Iraq is seeking to add the 4,000-year-old city of Babylon to the list, which includes world heritage properties of special cultural and natural significance. Hussein Fleih, Babylon's director of antiquities and member of Babil's provincial council, told Al-Monitor, "Babylon will be competing to earn that recognition in the voting process supervised by UNESCO for 2017." He said that naming Babylon a World Heritage site will help to preserve this historical city by drawing not only local but international financial and technical support. In an interview with Al-Monitor, Fleih said, "Both the local government in Babil and the Iraqi government are working toward adding the city to the World Heritage list." In an expression of popular demand for adding Babylon to the UNESCO list, a group of journalists and activists launched a social media campaign June 20 under the hashtag #WeAreBabylon. Journalist and activist Wissam al-Tai told Al-Monitor, "The Saddam Hussein regime was unfair to Babylon with investments that served a political agenda. In 1983, Hussein built a huge and luxurious castle on top of a high hill there. Ignoring the resulting damage to the historic city, Saddam further constructed artificial hills and lakes within the historic site to immortalize his name. The campaign aims to protect this historical city from negligence and ensure more financial allocations to preserve it." Karim Matar al-Zubaidi, head of the history department at the University of Babylon, told Al-Monitor, "Including Babylon on the World Heritage list will draw international technical support from experts, and restoration techniques will help to restore the city according to global standards. The history department at the University of Babylon is ready to provide research and consultation to support Babylon in its bid to become a World Heritage site." However, Fleih argued that these wishes for universal recognition of Babylon as a World Heritage site "face many challenges, especially haphazard maintenance operations that modified the city's original features." That said, since UNESCO refuses architectural additions to historical cities, will the additions in Babylon be demolished? Fleih answered this question by saying, "This will not be the case. UNESCO informed us that one of the clauses of the law governing the list allows architectural additions if they were the outcome of government pressure and plans, thus exceeding the city's power." Regarding the ongoing preparations for nominating the city for the World Heritage list, Fleih said, "One of the weaknesses is the high level of groundwater, as UNESCO requires reducing it to a minimum so it doesn't affect the original building, leading to its deterioration." He added, "We must also maintain the Ishtar Gate, whose pillars suffer from groundwater and mineral exposure. Moreover, the cracked walls of the temples require restoration, the internal wall should be rebuilt and all extraneous additions removed. We should maintain the Lion of Babylon statue, preserve it and remove all the factors influencing the erosion of its legs. "One of the first practical preparations for nominating Babylon was the arrival of UNESCO experts in 2015 to the site. They issued guidelines as to the reinforcement of the buildings to prevent their collapse. These experts also presented a study documenting the results of the work underway. In light of this study, it will be decided whether Babylon will be added to the World Heritage list. Fleih said, "There's still a lot of hard work to be done before the voting in 2017. UNESCO specified further conditions, such as bringing the city back to the borders determined by the Iraqi antiquities law that was published in the Iraqi Waqai'e newspaper in 1935. This law forbids any encroachment on the city's borders in a way that causes damage, especially by farmers who own land within the historic site's borders. According to UNESCO laws, only crops of less than 10 centimeters (4 inches) in height are allowed on its sites. In the event where it proved impossible to stop agricultural work completely, the crops should at least be isolated from the monuments." He pointed out another dilemma, saying, "The resort was built during the era of the former regime and is also one of Saddam's castles. UNESCO specified that this resort should be either removed or turned into a museum and research center specializing in Babylon's monuments and history. Meanwhile, the local government insists on keeping this touristic project for investment, hindering the efforts aimed at listing Babylon as a World Heritage site." Iraq's deputy minister of tourism and antiquities, Qais Hassan Rasheed, said in a statement, "UNESCO mentioned another obstacle. It's the oil pipeline crossing the historic site. Babylon cannot be named a World Heritage site if the pipeline isn't removed." He said, however, that it appears that it will be moved. "The department of antiquities won the lawsuit filed against the Oil Ministry in April. The pipeline will soon be moved to a location outside the historic site." The city of Babylon, universally known as the capital of the ancient world, deserves more care and attention from all the UNESCO member states. These countries should fill the technical gap Iraq suffers from to restore this city, as well as send excavation and maintenance teams to uncover what still lies in its realms. 
Terror wave catches German authorities in denial - http://www.debka.com/article/25568/Terror-wave-catches-German-authorities-in-denial
Two Syrian refugees committed acts of terror in different Bavarian towns Sunday, July 24, the third and fourth violent attacks in Germany in less than a week. One Syrian, a 21-year old, used a machete to murder a pregnant woman in Reutingen near Stuttgart. He was arrested - but only after a motorist saw him attacking two more people and ran him down. Local police assured the populace that there was nothing more to fear since the attack arose from a private quarrel between the Syrian man and a female colleague at work. This did not explain why the attacker went on to stab another two victims. That night, in Ansbach, southwest of Nuremberg, a second Syrian refugee of 27 - denied asylum in Germany a year ago but allowed to stay - was refused entry to a three-day summer popular music festival when he aroused the suspicions of guards at the gate. They let him go without asking to search his rucksack. He then went straight to a nearby wine bar and detonated the device he was carrying, injuring 12 people, three of them seriously. The Bavarian authorities initially attributed the explosion to a gas leak. But then the mayor's office confirmed it was a deliberately detonated device. The 2,500 music fans were sent home and the event was canceled. Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann first tried explaining that the Syrian blew himself up in protest at being turned away from the festival. Only later, on Monday, did the minister tell reporters that he could not exclude the possibility of an Islamist-inspired attack. He said investigators would work tirelessly to investigate the attack and fully understand the man's motives. But Hermann also said that the Syrian bomber had tried to commit suicide twice before and was confined to an institution. It was not clear, he said, if he had planned to kill only himself or "take others with him into death." This suggested that the putative music lover was also a mental case, which sounded much like the snap diagnosis offered by German officials after the Munich mall mass-killer murdered nine people on Friday, July 22. The first of the four attacks was carried out by a 17-year old refugee from Afghanistan exactly a week ago on July 18. Wielding an ax and a knife, he wounded eight people on a train near Wuerzbuerg, not far from Munich, before he was shot dead by police. Although an ISIS flag was found in his room and the Islamic State claimed the Afghan axeman as "one of its soldiers," the Bavarian interior minister said only, "There may be an Islamic background to this but that is far from clear at this point." But the Bavarian police have insisted that neither Sunday's machete attack nor Friday's shooting in Munich bore any sign of connections with Islamic State or other terrorist groups. Some puzzling questions remain unanswered about the slaughter of nine people by the Iranian-German 18-year old Ali Sonboly at the Munich mall Friday - firstly, was he alone? After viewing aerial photos and maps of the scene at the Olympia Einkaufszentrum mall, many counterterrorism experts infer that he was not the only shooter. They also find it hard to believe that a 9mmGlock pistol could have produced the scale and power of gunfire described by multiple witnesses. The only motive officially ascribed to Sonboly was an obsession with mass murder and the claim that he too was receiving psychiatric treatment. Connecting these attacks in a single week of violence links the German state of Bavaria to a triangle of terror (see attached map) along with the Nice, France atrocity on July 14, which left 84 dead, and the under-reported attempt by four Arab-speakers to kidnap a British Royal Air Force officer at the Marham air base in Norfolk on July 20. They add up to 6 violent attacks in 12 days, averaging one terrorist episode every two days in Europe. But Germany stands out as refusing to admit to a reign of terror, partly because of the fallout generated for Chancellor Angela Merkel's open-door policy for masses of distressed refugees. But the damage is not just political. German authorities recently admitted that while accepting a million refugees, 130,000 failed to register at the special reception centers and have dropped out of sight. No one can tell how many terrorists are among them and what violence they are plotting. Instead of burying their heads in the sand, German security authorities need to hurry up and devise counter-measures in good time to head off the mounting threat. 
My thoughts on Tim LaHaye (1926-2016) - Terry James - http://raptureready.com/terry/tim.html
Tim and Beverly were getting on the elevator at a hotel in Dallas last December just as Todd and I were stepping off. We were the only people aboard. As usual, Tim and I hugged and we all had a personal moment of greeting before going on our separate ways. The Pre-Trib Study Group is always busy as we all shuffle to our various destinations during that three-day conference in December. Tim grabbed the material of the sleeve of my cardigan sweater. "Boy, that's really a nice sweater," he said and examined it closer. I told him that my wife thinks it's out of fashion, but that it was one I really like, so defied her wishes in bringing it along. Both Tim and Beverly assured me that it was right in style. (Of course we are of relatively the same generation...). Todd said nothing, knowing little about fashion and of a much younger generation. Sadly, it was the last time Tim and I would speak. I say "sadly," not because I'll never see him again, because I certainly will. I say "sadly," because I will have to wait an indeterminate amount of time to see him again. I will miss him while in this body of flesh and blood, awaiting that spectacular reunion above this fallen sphere we call earth. Tim LaHaye devoted the last years of his life to thinking on what the Bible has to say about the coming of the Lord for His church. God made His opinion known in a spectacular way to the whole world by seeing to it that Tim and Jerry Jenkins' treatment of that coming, great reunion has sold more than 80 million copies. Todd tells me that even though the Left Behind series is well past its primetime sales, it none-the-less continues to sell 100,000 copies per month. Only the God of Heaven could achieve marketing success of that magnitude for any genre within Christian book publishing. So, the Lord of Heaven used this giant of the faith-as his Left Behind co-author called him following Tim's passing into the presence of his Savior-to get out the message that Christ is about to shake this world like it hasn't been shaken since the day Noah climbed into the Ark and Lot was whisked out of Sodom. The Rapture is about to convulse the rebellious planet in one, stunning microsecond. Tim and Jerry were primary messengers in the Lord's merciful gesture in seeing to it that many, many are properly forewarned. One of the last acts of generosity and kindness Tim performed-and he was so kind and generous to everyone-was to endorse my just released book on the very topic of the Rapture. It is a matter I will indeed hold close to my heart. Tim LaHaye didn't quite make it to that stupendous event-the Rapture-while in this life. But, he is now outside of this linear restraint we call time. I have no doubt that at the moment of Rapture he will arrive at where our Lord is just a microsecond before those who are alive and are suddenly translated into Christ's presence. I know just how instantaneous is that trip into the heavenlies. A Good Friday "Widow Maker" heart attack experience had me there within a blink of an eye, three separate times within a matter of one half hour as my heart stopped before being shocked back to life. I was sent back to this earth, among other reasons, to write about that subject for which Tim LaHaye became famously synonymous. He went to his and my-and I hope your-Heavenly home and stayed. I don't mean to sound ungrateful, but I do feel a pinch of envy over the joyfulness my great friend and mentor now must be experiencing. The following is a news article synopsizing Tim's prodigious career in God's work over the years. "The Rev. Tim LaHaye, co-author of the "Left Behind" series, a multimillion-selling literary juggernaut that brought end-times prophecy into mainstream bookstores, died Monday. He was 90. "LaHaye died in a San Diego hospital days after having suffered a stroke, according to publicist Johnnie Moore. "Co-authored with Jerry B. Jenkins, the 16-volume "Left Behind" series of novels sold more than 80 million copies worldwide, Moore said, and popularized a Bible interpretation that said born-again Christians will be instantly taken to God in the rapture, while those left behind on Earth endure seven years of tribulation. "LaHaye was a key figure in conservative political groups, encouraging the Rev. Jerry Falwell to create the Moral Majority; forming the Council for National Policy, a secretive strategy group for prominent political and religious conservatives; and with his wife, Beverly, starting Concerned Women for America in 1979 as an alternative to liberal feminist organizations. "He was also a prolific nonfiction author, writing more than 60 books that included the Christian sex manual "The Act of Marriage" and "The Battle for the Mind," whose denunciations of secularism helped rouse the religious right. "Born in 1926, LaHaye grew up in Detroit, served in the Air Force at the end of World War II and graduated from Bob Jones University in Greenville, S.C. He earned a midcareer doctorate at Western Seminary in Portland, Ore., and joined the Southern Baptist Convention. "After leading churches in South Carolina and Minnesota, he moved to Southern California and for a quarter-century led a thriving congregation that eventually became Shadow Mountain Community Church in El Cajon. After 1981, he devoted himself to writing, promoting his view of Bible prophecy, family life seminars and political activism. "Some fellow conservative Christians pushed back against LaHaye's end-times views, known as premillennial dispensationalism, emphasizing that the books were fictional and should not be read as an exact theological interpretation of the Bible. Still, his books strongly shaped evangelical views of Jesus' Second Coming and popularized the ideas to the broader public. Jenkins called LaHaye a "spiritual giant." "LaHaye extended his influence by founding Christian high schools, San Diego Christian College and a church in the Atlanta area, along with helping establish the Institute for Creation Research, which rejects evolution and contends God created the Earth recently in six literal days. "In 1987, LaHaye resigned as a co-chairman of Jack Kemp's Republican presidential campaign after news reports cited his criticisms of Roman Catholicism and Judaism. "LaHaye is survived by his wife, four children and nine grandchildren, among other relatives. No funeral plans were announced." http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-tim-lahaye-20160725-snap-story.html 
My Review of "Rapture Ready...Or Not?" Over the last 35 years, I have literally read hundreds of books on Bible Prophecy and End Time signs. I especially enjoy books on the Rapture, and I have read almost every Rapture-related book published. In all those years, devouring thousands of pages, and millions of words, I have not read a better book on the Rapture than, Rapture Ready...Or Not? Terry James might be physically blind, but he is spiritually sharp and well discerning beyond most authors. In "Rapture Ready...Or Not?" Terry has nailed the pre-trib Rapture, and removed any doubt what so ever about the Church going through the Tribulation. With great insight and Godly discernment, Terry explains with simple, yet profound words, why and how that he has come to believe the ways he does about the Rapture, the Tribulation, and the End Times scenario. I think after reading "Rapture Ready...Or Not?" you too will believe as Terry does, and be Ready for the Rapture like never before! - Randy Thomas - Publisher / Editor - Prophecy Update For more information and or to get your copy of "Rapture Ready...Or Not?" use this link: http://www.raptureready.com/terry/book35.html 
An 'Unprecedented' Wildfire Hits California at The Same Time 'Unprecedented' Heat Strikes the East Coast - By Michael Snyder - http://endoftheamericandream.com/archives/an-unprecedented-wildfire-hits-california-at-the-same-time-unprecedented-heat-strikes-the-east-coast
It is starting to look more than just a little bit "apocalyptic" out there. If you follow my work closely, you already know that weather patterns in the United States have been going absolutely crazy and that last year was the worst year for wildfires in all of U.S. history. Well, this week things have gotten even worse. A "heat dome" has brought triple digit temperatures to much of the country, and an "unprecedented" wildfire is ripping through the hills north of Los Angeles "like a freight train". The so-called Sand Fire started on Friday, and since that time it has been burning 10,000 acres a day. An acre is approximately the size of a football field, so that means this fire has been burning the equivalent of 10,000 football fields every single day, and it is only "10 percent contained" at this point. According to the latest count more than 51 square miles have been burned by this voracious fire, and on Sunday smoke from the fire could be seen 270 miles away in Las Vegas. Nearly 3,000 firefighters are currently battling the blaze, but the fire still seems to have the upper hand. At least one "charred corpse" has been found so far, and officials are hoping that other nearby residents are heeding their calls to evacuate. Fires of this nature are extremely serious, and they can move with astonishing speed when the conditions are right. This five-year drought is the worst multi-year drought in the recorded history of the state of California, and such dry conditions are ideal for wildfires. Normally we don't see "explosive" wildfires of this nature until later in the year, and that is one reason why authorities are describing what we have seen up to this point as "almost unprecedented". The following comes from NBC Los Angeles... "This fire, what we've seen in 72 hours, is almost unprecedented," said Los Angeles County Fire Department Battalion Chief Dennis Cross. "We'd have to go back a long way to compare a fire to this. And, we're not through with this thing yet." Some of the terms that are being used in the mainstream media to describe this fire are "extreme", "ferocious" and "like a freight train". Without a doubt, nobody should be underestimating the seriousness of what is taking place in northern Los Angeles County right now... Flames raced down a steep hillside "like a freight train," leaving smoldering remains of homes and forcing thousands to flee the wildfire churning through tinder-dry canyons in Southern California, authorities said Sunday. The fire that has destroyed at least 18 homes in northern Los Angeles County gained ferocious new power two days after it broke out, sending so much smoke in the air that planes making drops on it had to be grounded for part of the afternoon. "For this time of year, it's the most extreme fire behavior I've seen in my 32-year career," County fire Chief Daryl Osby said. Nearby residents are posting plenty of photos from this fire on Facebook and Twitter, and some of these photos look quite apocalyptic. Even with all of our advanced technology, this kind of thing can still happen in the United States of America today, and it shows us that we are not quite as "all-powerful" as we would like to think. Meanwhile, another brutal heat wave continues to march across the country. Washington is the only one of the lower 48 states not to be hit by at least 90 degree heat, and many areas of the country have now had several days in a row when temps have soared into the triple digits. The following comes from the Daily Mail... An oppressive 'heat dome' that has brought triple-digit temperatures across the US - leaving more than 100 million people to find ways to cool off - has been blamed for at least 11 deaths. Temperatures have soared above 100F for days and the heat wave is expected to continue Monday in cities including New York, Washington, DC and Philadelphia as it hosts the Democratic National Convention. The heat wave's victims include a 12-year-old boy, who collapsed on a hike in the Phoenix area, a three-year-old boy who was left in a hot car while his family attended a church service in Dallas, and a four-year-old girl who was left in a car in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. Personally, I find it very interesting that this "heat dome" is striking Philadelphia on the exact day when the Democratic National Convention is opening. Perhaps this is just another one of those "strange coincidences" that we have been witnessing in recent months. We live at a time when global weather patterns are starting to spin wildly out of control. For instance, just check out what has been happening in China lately... Some 8.6 million people have been affected by destructive floods and landslides caused by heavy rain in China, local media report. Officials said that at least 154 people have been killed and the death toll is likely to rise. The worst-hit was Hebei province in northern China, Xinhua news agency reported. Some 52,000 homes collapsed in the area. Hebei has about 73 million residents. At least 114 people have been killed and 111 are still missing in the province, according to the People's Daily newspaper. And just consider what we have been seeing in the United States... -The worst multi-year drought in the history of the state of California -The worst year for wildfires in all of U.S. history -The worst stretch of historic floods America has ever seen -One of the worst periods of summer heat the nation has ever experienced Is this all happening by accident, or is there some explanation that ties all of these things together? In my latest book, I talk about how the Bible says that we should expect extreme weather, increased seismic activity and major earth changes during the time just before the return of Jesus Christ. So nothing that is happening right now should take us by surprise. In fact, what we are dealing with at the moment is likely just the tip of the iceberg. Great chaos is coming to our planet, and rapidly shifting weather patterns and unprecedented seismic events are going to have a dramatic impact on all of our lives. Unfortunately, most people are still busy snoozing away, and so they are not taking practical steps to get prepared for what is quickly closing in on us. 
Daily Jot: Hillary-Kaine: All things Muslim - Bill Wilson - www.dailyjot.com
Hillary Clinton's running mate Tim Kaine is reported by the Washington Times as promising a bill to legalize all illegal immigrants in the first 100 days of a new Clinton Administration. Now this would most certainly include all the radicals, would-be terrorists and criminals so important to the Democratic Party's strategy of "remaking" America into the newest communistic society. But even more radical will be the continuation of the terrorist group Muslim Brotherhood as a foreign policy partner and organizer of all things Muslim in the new Clinton Administration. Both Clinton and Kaine have long-time ties with Muslim Brotherhood activists, signaling a pattern to America that Islam will remain front and center under Clinton. Clinton's right hand woman is Huma Abedin. Abedin's brother, mother, and deceased father are all confirmed to have leadership ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. This assists in connecting the dots between the current Administration's assistance of the Muslim Brotherhood in government takeovers in Libya, Egypt, Tunisia, Yeman, and now Syria, where the Muslim Brotherhood in 2012 funded a military arm to help topple the Assad regime. The Muslim Brotherhood is using the facade of democracy to gain Western support as it works to reestablish the Caliphate. The Democratic National Convention hosed a "Juma" in 2012, a congregational prayer of all adult Muslim males. No word yet on this year. Tim Kaine also has ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. Breitbart reports, "He appointed a Hamas supporter to a state immigration commission; spoke at a dinner honoring a Muslim Brotherhood terror suspect; and received donations from well-known Islamist groups." Breitbart documents that In 2007, Kaine was the Governor of Virginia and, of all people, chose Muslim American Society (MAS) President Esam Omeish to the state's Immigration Commission. In the 2008 Holy Land Foundation trial, federal prosecutors named MAS as an overt arm of the Muslim Brotherhood in America. Omeish is also an officer of the Muslim Students Association, the Islamic Society of North America, and Dar al Hijra Islamic Center-where al Qaeda operative Anwar Al Awlaki is Imam. This is a terrorist front. Uncovered in that Holy Land terrorist funding trial was a 1991 Muslim Brotherhood plan to colonize America by creating a "Civilization Jihad" on all fronts of society. Abedin, Omeish and many others associated with Clinton and Kaine are rooted in this philosophy. It has been the philosophy of the White House during the entire tenure of the current Administration. Clinton supported the Muslim Brotherhood as Secretary of State, has a top aide born from the Muslim Brotherhood, and has picked a running mate with ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. Christ said in Matthew 24:4, "Take heed that no man deceive you." Does anyone believe that this influence will not continue? 
Daily Devotion: What Stops Prayer Short - Greg Laurie - www.harvest.org
Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. -Psalm 139:23-24 To pray and then to live in known sin is like hanging up the phone to Heaven. All the praying in the world won't help us if we are living in sin. God said in Isaiah 59:1-2, "Behold, the LORD'S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; nor His ear heavy, that it cannot hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear." Also, the psalmist said, "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the LORD will not hear [me]" (Psalm 66:18). For personal revival to take place in our lives, there must be repentance from all known sin. This includes not only the sins of commission (doing bad things), but sins of omission too. You may say, "I'm living a clean life. I don't lie. I don't steal. I don't get drunk. I'm faithful to my spouse." God bless you for all of that. But you could be guilty of a sin of omission. The Bible says, "To him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin" (James 4:17). If the Lord is prompting you to share the gospel and you say no, if the Lord is asking you to share freely of your finances and invest His kingdom and you flat out refuse, if the Lord is nudging you to pray more and you don't want to, this can be a sin of omission. God wants to change your life and forgive you of all your sins. Is there something you are doing that you know you should not be doing as a follower of Jesus? If so, you need to turn from it. You never will experience personal revival until you do. 
FROM THE HEART
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