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Prophecy Update Newsletter
August 23, 2016
IN TODAY'S NEWSLETTER...
A Highly Calculated Disaster - By Matt Ward - http://raptureready.com/soap2/ward66.html
As President Barack Hussein Obama's final term draws to a close, it is now time to take stock and reflect upon the impact of his presidency, specifically as it relates to foreign policy. It will be the tangible results of Obama's foreign policy, after all, that will dictate the immediate agenda for the next President of the United States of America. Obama started well. In fact, it's hard I imagine how it could have been any better. After mere months as president of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama was awarded the prestigious, and highly coveted Nobel Peace Prize. This Peace Prize was given primarily for Obama's attempts at "resetting" American international relations in the wake of Iraq and Afghanistan. To this end, Obama had toured the world giving a number of benchmark speeches that he hoped would set a new tone in American international relations. For better or worse it seemed that change certainly had come to America. He was lauded for these speeches and the "transformational" attitude they heralded, especially in the Islamic world. Little did those present realize quite how transformational Obama's foreign policy would actually prove to be. An illustrious beginning. But hindsight is an unhelpful friend for people looking to establish any kind of meaningful and lasting legacy. Aspirations mean nothing, neither do good intentions, results are what counts in the cold hard world of international relations. With hindsight, the Nobel Peace Prize, this one crowning achievement at the very beginning of Obama's first term, was perhaps the foreign policy high point of his entire presidency. The following eight years have been characterized by utter failure. It would be no great exaggeration to say that US foreign policy under Obama has been an unmitigated disaster. Obama has left a trail of chaos all over the world with a foreign policy that lacks clarity and vision and has certainly set the stage for worse global conflicts to come. Obama's foreign policy adventure began in real terms by him announcing that all US troops would be gone from Afghanistan by late 2014, and that all troops would be out of Iraq by 2011. He later reversed course in Afghanistan, saying that troops would actually stay until 2017. Obama withdrew U.S. troops from Iraq in 2011 despite heavy criticism and concern, at home and abroad, that this withdrawal from Iraq was entirely premature and would lead to an explosion of terrorism and violence. This is exactly what happened; almost every major Iraqi city erupted into the most horrific sectarian violence after the stabilizing presence of U.S. forces left. Iraq remains in a quagmire of violence from which it seems completely unable to escape to this day. Yet despite all this, Obama persisted in his belief that a withdrawal from Iraq was the correct course of action to take. He was never talked around by his military advisors, his own intelligence community or other international leaders, all of whom were asking him to slow down or pause the troop withdrawal. Nothing swayed him, not even the dramatically rising Iraqi civilian body count. Iraq was undoubtedly the first major foreign policy failure of Barack Obama's presidency, and it came about primarily because of his own personal hubris. Obama simply believed that despite all the conflicting advice and information, he knew better. Time proved him wrong. The mishandling of Iraq led directly to the second major, and ongoing, foreign policy failure of his administration, the rise of ISIS. Withdrawal from Iraq in 2011 left a huge vacuum in leadership. There was a vast, gapping chasm where traditional power structures had once been. The police force had been disbanded, as had the Iraqi military after the allied invasion. In late 2011 there was simply no provision to ensure and provide for basic continued societal stability. There was nobody left in Iraq to keep basic law and order. What there was though, we're lots and lots of ex policemen and soldiers who were not getting paid and were increasingly resentful of the U.S. presence. Many of them flocked towards sectarian violence and it was shortly after this point that ISIS really began to take control of Iraq, bringing these disaffected ex soldiers and policemen within their ranks. Unifying them, ISIS stormed the vast Iraqi land, took Mosul, grabbed the oil fields and rapidly declared a caliphate. Today, in 2016, the Islamic State are the best funded, most heinous and violent transnational terrorist organization this world has ever seen. They are a direct result of poor policy and decision making from within this current White House. ISIS have killed, kidnapped and raped their way across vast swathes of the Middle East. At this point, harsh rhetoric and a few token air strikes are not going to stop them. And now, this new and very modern type of terrorism is morphing again. Not content to take Syria and Iraq, Islamic State fighters are now taking the fight to us, directly, in our streets, in our communities. ISIS affiliates are spreading their terror from Paris to Brussels, Orlando to London. More future attacks in mainland America and Europe are an absolute certainty. It really is not a question of "if" but "when." Up until this point it could be argued that Barack Obama is just inept, that he is in completely over his head. The same cannot be said of his next foreign policy fail, the Iranian nuclear accord. If ever there was an international agreement that illustrated the hubris of an administration and its foreign policy, it would be this nuclear deal. If ever there was an international agreement that showcased an administration disregarding and ignoring obvious facts, it would be this deal. If ever there was an international agreement that demonstrated how dangerous a rogue president really could be, it is this deal. Obama, to this day and despite all the hard evidence to the contrary, regards this nuclear accord with Iran as one of the crowning achievements of his entire two term foreign policy effort. And Iran still has not even signed it. Think about that, they haven't even signed onto it. It is a deal made with the devil himself-it is that bad. Nothing in the last seventy years, since the conclusion of the Jewish Holocaust when six million Jews lost their lives, has placed the tiny Jewish state of Israel in such utter peril. This nuclear deal, of which Obama is so proud, represents a clear existential threat to the continued existence of the Jewish State, something Obama seems to care nothing about. The international community, however, is under no illusion about the real state of Iran's nuclear program. Many, many world leaders are deeply uneasy about Iran's burgeoning nuclear program. Speaking on August 4th, President Barack Obama said that the Iranian nuclear deal had, "worked exactly the way we said it would." He even had the audacity to claim that Israel now supported the accord, something Tel Aviv hotly disputed. World leaders and Israel are so uneasy about this accord because it is based on lies. President Barack Obama, and Hillary Clinton, both claim that the nuclear accord has put Iran's nuclear capability back by 10 years. The facts on the ground tell a different story. If Iran so desired, and likely they do, they could have a workable and deliverable nuclear weapon by the end of 2017. Everybody in the international community knows this. Everybody in the various scientific and military communities know this. Ali Akbar Salehu, President of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, stated that if any party violates the nuclear record then Iran could go back to enriching Uranium within just 45 days. Salehu's deputy has even suggested considerably less than 45 days. It is against this backdrop that Iran's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, has in the last six months on numerous occasions, publicly claimed that America itself has violated the accord, not Iran, this nullifying them of any obligations towards it. The facts are stark and speak for themselves. This nuclear accord with Iran, which Obama views as such a crowning achievement, is actually an utter failure. Worse than that, so obvious is Iran's duplicity that one has to question Obama's motivation in continuing to allow this status quo to stand. Iran are going to become a nuclear breakout state, soon. It will be too late then to do anything about it. Whatever one personally feels about Obama, he is a highly intelligent man. He understands perhaps better than you or me, the true status of Iran's nuclear weapons program, and the subterfuge and lengths they have gone to in order to hide the fact that they are still actively pursuing a nuclear weapon. And they also continue to threaten the very existence of America's greatest ally in the region, Israel. The impression any impartial person looking in from the outside might get is that Obama actually wants Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon. Iran has been consistently lying to the International Atomic Agency Committee, whose job it is to oversee compliance with the joint nuclear accord. They have hidden from the inspectors large quantities of second generation IR-2M centrifuges. These centrifuges cut, substantially, the amount of time required to enrich uranium to weapons grade levels. Obama knows this. Iran, in preparation for the nuclear accord, also stock piled huge quantities of other centrifuges. At Natanz alone there are believed to be 15,400, all capable of enriching uranium whenever required. This is a direct contravention of the nuclear accord. Obama knows this. Further more, Iran has been circumventing the nuclear accord, which under its terms allow Iran to hold about 300 kilograms of low grade enriched uranium. Iran have been covertly transporting some of this stock to Oman, where the uranium refinement process has been continuing. This means that the U.S. estimate of "at least a year" before Iran could achieve a nuclear breakout is entirely flawed as it based on an estimate that assumes Iran only have low grade enriched uranium. Again, Obama knows this, so why the constant charade? This nuclear accord is dead in the water and everybody knows it. It is an epic foreign policy fail. This terrible accord, bad as it is may be, may yet pale into insignificance compared to the next potential foreign policy catastrophe. The last foreign policy disaster of Barack Obama's two terms is slightly different though, because it hasn't happened yet. There are consistent rumblings in diplomatic circles that as a final, parting betrayal, Obama intends to deliver Israel up to the UN before the end of his presidency. Obama obviously despises Israel and his foreign policy displays this clearly. That he might deliver Israel to her enemies at the United Nations before he leaves office is a realistic possibility. Never in Israel's short modern existence has there been a U.S. president so openly hostile to the Jewish State. Betraying Israel at the UN would be no great change of pace for Obama, he has a significant track record for it. Obama's entire foreign policy has been, some would say, a highly calculated disaster. Calculated to disempower America globally, alienate her amongst friends and embolden her enemies. The entire western world has become the victim of Obama's foreign policy. Obama has undermined American influence so much that the traditional balance of power, that has maintained a strained peace for so long, has now been destroyed. He has betrayed traditional allies and sought friendship with enemies who have thrown it back in Americas face. He has fundamentally destabilized Iraq and Syria and because of this allowed for the conditions necessary for the rise of ISIS. The world is a without doubt a worse place for Barack Obama's presidency. Worse though, than all this, is his active and continued betrayal of Israel. It will be these acts alone that signal perilous times ahead for America. Obama's foreign policy has left Israel as a lamb amongst wolves in the Middle East. They are now totally alone. When the very last vestiges of American support for Israel finally do dry up, as it soon must, so will God's cover and protection over America itself will finally end. That is a fearful thing. It might take decades, if that long were left, for the world to recover from Obama's time in office. That is, of course, assuming that somebody even worse will not soon become president of the United States of America. [email protected] 
Netanyahu phones Putin to talk Middle East peace - http://www.timesofisrael.com/netanyahu-phones-putin-to-talk-middle-east-peace/
Israeli and Russian leaders agree to continue 'intensive' contacts, Kremlin says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday night and discussed regional issues and the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. According to the Kremlin presidential website, "the two leaders exchanged opinions on issues surrounding the settlement in the Middle East and current aspects of the general situation in the region." "It was agreed to continue intensive Russian-Israeli contacts at various levels," the Kremlin said. No further details concerning the conversation were released, and the Prime Minister's Office made no immediate statement about it. Netanyahu and Putin had a similar phone conversation on July 23 during which they arranged to maintain the dialogue and contact at various government levels. The phone call came after earlier this week Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi said that Putin was willing to host Israeli and Palestinian leaders for direct talks. "It was agreed to continue intensive Russian-Israeli contacts at various levels," the Kremlin said. No further details concerning the conversation were released, and the Prime Minister's Office made no immediate statement about it. Netanyahu and Putin had a similar phone conversation on July 23 during which they arranged to maintain the dialogue and contact at various government levels. The phone call came after earlier this week Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi said that Putin was willing to host Israeli and Palestinian leaders for direct talks. 
Obama and Iran: A Misguided Messianic Mission - By Peter Berkowitz - http://www.realclearpolitics.com
On August 3, Wall Street Journal reporters Jay Solomon and Carol E. Lee broke a story suggesting that contrary to longstanding U.S. policy, the Obama administration paid the Islamic Republic of Iran a ransom for the return of Americans held captive. "The Obama administration secretly organized an airlift of $400 million worth of cash to Iran that coincided with the January release of four Americans detained in Tehran," Solomon and Lee wrote. "Wooden pallets stacked with euros, Swiss francs and other currencies," U.S. and European officials told the journalists, "were flown into Iran on an unmarked cargo plane." The WSJ piece dutifully carried the administration's denial that the cash was a quid pro quo for the hostages. It was rather, according to officials, "the first installment of a $1.7 billion settlement the Obama administration reached with Iran to resolve a decades-old dispute over a failed arms deal signed just before the 1979 fall of Iran's last monarch, Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi." The following day, President Obama went further. In a news conference at the Pentagon, he said it "defies logic" to think he'd pay ransom for hostages. The president also ridiculed media interest in the WSJ story, dismissing it as old news, while adding that the only fresh fact was that the payment to the mullahs was in cash. His critics, he sneered, were caught up in that detail as if it were part of "a spy novel." On Aug. 18, however, Solomon and Lee produced another scoop: It turns out that Obama's smug denials notwithstanding, the hostage release and the cash payment were closely coordinated (the plane ferrying the cash, moreover, was linked to the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps). This revelation led to an exchange between reporters and State Department spokesman John Kirby that brought the administration's account more in line with reality: Q: "In basic English, you are saying you wouldn't give [Iran] the 400 million in cash until the prisoners were released, correct?" A: "That's correct," Kirby responded. But there are broader questions about the Obama administration's Iran dealings than dissembling about the mechanics of hostage negotiations. They form a substantial part of Jay Solomon's painstakingly reported book, "The Iran Wars: Spy Games, Bank Battles, and the Secret Deals That Reshaped the Middle East." It shows that the Obama administration's far-fetched denials of ransom payment are part and parcel of more fundamental problems. The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action -- the July 2015 Vienna agreement between Iran, on one side, and, on the other, the United States, the other four permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, Germany, and the European Union -- was for the Obama administration, Solomon writes, "the most important initiative of its second term and the defining foreign policy legacy of Barack Obama's presidency." Solomon stresses, "President Obama, from his first days in office, pursued an opening to Iran and Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei with an obsessive commitment." To win Ayatollah Khamenei's trust, Obama withheld support for the spontaneous democratic uprising against the corrupt June 2009 Iranian presidential election. The administration also deceived the public by undertaking secret negotiations with Iran and conducting outreach and talks "behind the backs of the Security Council and the United States' closest Middle East allies, including Israel and Saudi Arabia." During negotiations - both those conducted openly and those done surreptitiously - Obama's diplomatic team, led by Secretary of State John Kerry, made numerous, significant, unreciprocated concessions. And to avoid antagonizing Khamenei, Obama decided that America should stand by and do practically nothing as Syria's president and Iranian client, Bashar al-Assad, slaughtered hundreds of thousands of people, wounded more than a million others, and drove in excess of 12 million Syrians from their homes. A Wall Street Journal foreign correspondent for nearly two decades, Solomon is an old-school reporter who regards his principal mission as getting the story right. On the basis of extensive and courageous reporting from the Middle East and assiduous coverage of the ebb and flow of power in Washington, he discloses the multiple dimensions-political, diplomatic, economic, military, and clandestine-of America's post-9/11 struggles with Iran. Although Obama was determined to correct what he regarded as George W. Bush's mistakes in the Middle East, the 44th president's policies resembled, in a crucial respect, the 43rd's: Both vied with, Solomon's book reveals, an adversary we didn't understand. Obama thought he was replacing a foolish war with smart diplomacy. But a central question Solomon's book explores is whether that approach was effective. His scrupulous reporting will do much to corroborate the judgment of those who believe that, for the sake of Obama's supposedly crowning foreign policy achievement, the president paid much too high a price. "Iran, under the deal, agreed to cap or reduce large parts of its nuclear infrastructure, including the number of centrifuges enriching uranium as well as its stockpile of fissile material, for at least a decade," Solomon writes. "It also agreed to enhance the ability of the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), to access and monitor Iran's nuclear sites to guard against Tehran secretly developing atomic weapons." In exchange, the United States and its coalition "rolled back the crippling economic sanctions they had imposed on Iran over the past decade." But is Iran likely to honor the deal? Will the United States be able, as Obama promised, to snap back sanctions if Iran violates its obligations? Did the deal make the Middle East safer? The evidence gathered by Solomon indicates that the answer to these questions is no. Desperate to strike a deal to avoid the embarrassment of betraying the president's promise to employ military force to block Iran's path to a nuclear weapon, the administration acquiesced to a cascading series of Iranian demands. Instead of requiring the complete dismantlement of Iran's uranium enrichment facilities, the administration agreed to their reduction and regulation. Instead of banning the development of ballistic missiles, whose main purpose could only be the delivery of nuclear weapons, the administration permitted it. Instead of barring weapons trading, the administration allowed it. These and other concessions have left Iran, should it cheat, approximately one year away from producing a nuclear weapon and, under the agreement, free to do so in 15 years. They have also emboldened Iran's export of its Shia Islamic extremism throughout the region. The Islamic Republic has increased its arming and training of Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. In addition, it agreed to Russia's direct military intervention in Syria on behalf of Assad. Last week, Russian long-range bombers for the first time used Iranian air bases to strike the Syrian opposition. Furthermore, consenting to Iran's retention of a nuclear program infrastructure threatens to spark a regional nuclear arms race as America's Sunni Muslim allies conclude that they cannot count on the United States to defend their vital national security interests. Solomon observes that "at the heart of Obama's philosophy was a sense that" his administration "had righted history" with the Iran deal. That's a messianic sense. From paying what bears an uncanny resemblance to ransom, to disregarding state sponsorship of terrorism and declining to confront epic state brutality, to triggering nuclear proliferation in the name of nonproliferation, what will a messianic sense not justify? 
Turkey Uses Bilateral Ties with Israel as Alibi - http://www.debka.com/article/25627/Turkey-Uses-Bilateral-Ties-with-Israel-as-Alibi-
Turkey - in full momentum since the Erdogan-Putin summit on Aug. 9 - is setting a rapid pace for its rapprochement with Israel. Saturday, Aug. 20, the Turkish parliament ratified the reconciliation agreement Ankara signed with Jerusalem and Prime Minister Binali Yildirim announced that ambassadors would be exchanged soon. There is even mention of Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan visiting Israel in September. Both Ankara and Jerusalem are quickly moving on from their sharp exchange of recriminations this week, over the massive IDF military retaliation against Hamas Sunday and Monday for a missile fired from the Gaza Strip. Israel harshly reproved Turkey for its condemnation, as hardly in a position to interfere in another government's response to terrorism. Erdogan uncharacteristically held silent and let Israel have the last word.. Erdogan and Israel's Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu are clearly of one mind that nothing should be allowed to hinder their burying of the hatchet. In today's Middle East's crazy slalom of events, whereby every few hours, new conflicts spring up and new deals are forged - only to end in tatters a couple of days later (e.g. Tehran's abrupt reversal of its permission to allow the Russia an air base in Western Iran), bilateral realpolitik is bound to be the order of the day. Yesterday's enemy might be today's friend, and today's friend might become tomorrow's enemy. The mercurial Turkish president initiated a series of earthshaking moves in the past two weeks: He rid the strategic southern Turkish Incirlik base of the US nuclear arsenal, and is keeping the future of US warplanes there for operations in Syria up in the air, amid talk of opening the base for the use of the Russian air force. Joined Russia and Iran to establish a new Middle East alliance. Opened a direct line of communication from Ankara to Syria's Bashar Assad. Turkish MIT Secret Service director Hakan Fidan paid a visit to Damascus. Working with Israel therefore did not stop the Turkish leader from going after a deal with the Syrian ruler at the same time. Erdogan plans a visit to Tehran for a grand friendship photo op with Iranian leaders with the same fanfare as his summit with Vladimir Putin. That summit which ended in an accord to prevent the Kurds from gaining independence in Syria and Iraq let Ankara off the leash for an all out offensive against the YPG Syrian Kurdish army in northern Syria. Wednesday, Aug. 24, the Turkish army crossed the border to attack ISIS strongholds in the border town of Jarablus, so intervening in the Syrian conflict to block the Kurdish assault on the jihadists. Ankara has also stepped up its interference with Egyptian and Saudi policies in the Middle East. How does the Turkish leader reconcile his contradictory polices? On the one hand he initiates open friendship with Israel while, at the same time, forging alliances with its enemies in Tehran, Damascus and Gaza. How does Israel perceive Ankara's hostile steps against its friends and allies, the Americans, Egyptians, Saudi and Kurds? The wily Erdogan appears to believe that he can use his friendship with Israel as a fig leaf. Whenever the US or others chastise him for his negative actions, he can point out that even Israel goes along with his policies. As for Netanyahu, he appears to have taken a leaf out of President Barack Obama's Middle East book. In the face of all Erdogan's provocations and betrayals, Obama goes overboard to hold Washington's line to Ankara in place and hold Turkey back from irrevocably quitting NATO. To do just that, he even sent Vice President Joe Biden to Ankara Wednesday, Aug. 24. As a global power, the US can afford to look the other way when Erdogan goes over the top, even though it is hard to see where he is going. Israel, on the other hand, can't afford to let itself be used as Erdogan's alibi, without damaging its precious ties with Washington and risk impairing the understandings Netanyahu has been able to develop with Egypt and Saudi Arabia. It would be a mistake to try and isolate the relationship with Ankara as a purely bilateral issue without expecting a backlash on Israel's other ties. 
Nearing Midnight: Ban the Burka - Todd Strandberg - http://raptureready.com/rap16.html
After a series of terrorist attacks in Europe, a number of political leaders have proposed the banning of any type of full-face covering worn by some Muslim women. The French government has been one of the first European countries to pursue a burka ban. Since 2011, full-face coverings have been prohibited in public places there, which means that Muslim women who wear burkas can face a fine of $167-or be required to take a citizenship course. Any man who forces a woman to wear a burka can be hit with a heftier fine of $16,700. A burka ban has just been enacted in Switzerland with fines of as high as $12,000. Two people have already been fined for defying it. One of them is Nora Illi, a member of the Islamic Central Council Switzerland. She purposefully defied the ban and was fined by police officers. The French island of Corsica has banned burkas following a violent clash between Muslims and locals. One man was stabbed for taking a picture of women covered up by a burka. The Koran does not list any specific guidance on female clothing. All Muslims-whether male or female, are told to dress modestly and refrain from revealing "any parts of their bodies, except that which is necessary." That means that the burka, hijab or veil could easily be worn by men. The way liberals defend women who wear burkas, one would think it was mandated by the Koran. Since the Left encourages Western women to wear as little clothing as possible; it is a strange contradiction for them to defend a religion that requires women to have a bag over her entire body. A key reason why I wrote this article is because of the love affair the liberal media had with Ibtihaj Muhammad, a fencer who became the first U.S. athlete to compete at the Olympics while wearing a Hijab. Reports slobbered endless praise over this woman simply because she is a Muslim. Even though followers of Islam only represent less than one percent of the U.S. population, the press called for Muhammad to carry the American flag on opening day. Muhammad said she was at the Olympics to combat hate-meaning the hatred against Muslims. "This has been a beautiful experience," Muhammad told CNN's Chris Cuomo. "This is the America that I know and I love. The America that is inclusive, that is accepting and encompasses people from all walks of life." The wearing of an Islamic head covering has little do with freedom. Anyone with any common sense should know it represents a culture of oppression. Most Muslim women wear such attire because they have no choice. If they dare to defy the dress code, they risk being beaten or arrested. This past weekend, I encountered an ad on a news site featuring a girl portrayed as a rapper wearing Islamic garb. It was an ad promoting a YouTube music service. I simply could not get past the propaganda. Because there have been dozens of Islamic terrorist attacks, this brand of religion should naturally be portrayed in a negative light. Yet for some strange reason, a Western advertiser is trying to convince me and you that the Islamic people are hip. Sometimes this not-so-subtle attempt to glorify Muslims can go too far. Britian's Channel 4 Network used a reporter dressed in a hijab for the coverage on the Muslim terror in Nice. The channel assigned the Islamic reporter to this story to, once-again, combat anti-Islamic bigotry. What they were really doing is poking the eyes of viewers who see the Nice attack as another example of Islam's violent nature. The image that best defines the burka is the video of the 300 young girls who were kidnapped in Nigeria by Boko Haram. None of those girls were smiling because they knew they were trapped in the reality of how Islam treats women. In their case, a burka was the uniform of a sex slave. A good argument against the wearing of a burka comes from the leader of a Muslim country, Kyrgyzstan. President Almazbek Atambayev made a practical observation by saying, "Women in miniskirts don't become suicide bombers." Addressing criticism of his policy, President Atambayev said, "When we erected banners some smart people appeared and started pointing at miniskirts. Our women have been wearing miniskirts since 1950s, and they never thought about wearing an explosive belt." The banning of the burka is just a single baby step. If Europeans want to maintain their freedom, they will need to do far more to fend off the enemy. Islam is a religion that aggressively seeks to dominate the world. Even when they are a minority, they expect the majority to bow to their religious rules and guidelines. If the people of Europe can't resolve a small matter about dress, then the fight is lost. Islam will devour the continent and all women there will lose many of their basic civil rights. 
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 
Hillary's Future Chief of Staff Worked for A Radical Islamic Journal That Blamed America for 9/11 - By Michael Snyder - http://endoftheamericandream.com/archives/hillarys-future-chief-of-staff-worked-for-a-radical-islamic-journal-that-blamed-america-for-911
Huma Abedin worked for Hillary Clinton when she was a U.S. Senator, when she was Secretary of State, and at this moment Abedin currently serves as her top campaign aide. If Clinton wins the election in November, it seems virtually a certainty that Abedin will become the White House chief of staff. She is already one of the most powerful women in America, and yet the vast majority of Americans have absolutely no idea who she is. Well, it turns out that she worked at a publication run by her mother known as "the Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs" for more than a decade as an assistant editor. While Huma Abedin worked there, the journal regularly published articles that promoted radical Islamic causes and that opposed the rights of women. In fact, Abedin's mother edited a book that was published in 1999 "that justifies the barbaric practice of female genital mutilation under Islamic law". If you know anything about that insidious practice, then you already know that it is one of the most horrific things being done to women around the globe today. Not only that, but one article that was published while Abedin worked there actually blamed the United States for 9/11. The following comes from the New York Post... Huma continued to work for her mother's journal through 2008. She is listed as "assistant editor" on the masthead of the 2002 issue in which her mother suggested the US was doomed to be attacked on 9/11 because of "sanctions" it leveled against Iraq and other "injustices" allegedly heaped on the Muslim world. Here is an excerpt: "The spiral of violence having continued unabated worldwide, and widely seen to be allowed to continue, was building up intense anger and hostility within the pressure cooker that was kept on a vigorous flame while the lid was weighted down with various kinds of injustices and sanctions. It was a time bomb that had to explode and explode it did on September 11, changing in its wake the life and times of the very community and the people it aimed to serve." Needless to say, the Clinton campaign is not commenting on any of this. For many years, there has been much speculation about the nature of the relationship between Hillary Clinton and Huma Abedin. And to this day, many of those questions remain unanswered (at least publicly). What we do know is that Hillary feels extremely close to Huma and trusts her implicitly. But should she? Huma Abedin has been accused of being a "Saudi spy", and there are claims that her family has had ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. And without a doubt, her mother holds to a form of radical Islam that should be antithetical to everything that America is supposed to stand for. Despite all of this, Abedin has a tremendous amount of support in both parties, and that includes top Republicans such as John McCain... Many politicians, of both parties, strongly support Abedin including Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona. 'Put simply, Huma represents what is best about America: the daughter of immigrants, who has risen to the highest levels of our government on the basis of her substantial personal merit and her abiding commitment to the American ideals that she embodies so fully,' McCain said then. He added: 'I am proud to know Huma and to call her my friend.' One of the controversies that has brought Abedin into the forefront in recent months was the email scandal that could have potentially derailed the Clinton campaign and ended Hillary's political career for good. And now we are getting indications that the scandal may not be completely over. Earlier today, Bloomberg reported that there are approximately "15,000 previously undisclosed documents" which the FBI has recovered from Hillary's email servers which will soon be released to the public... A federal judge has ordered the U.S. State Department to accelerate its review of almost 15,000 previously undisclosed documents recovered by the FBI from private e-mail servers used by Hillary Clinton while she was secretary of state. Those documents are among tens of thousands of records the State Department is sifting through to cope with the demands of a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed by the conservative group Judicial Watch as the presidential race between Democrat Clinton and Republican Donald Trump enters a crucial phase. So what will those emails show? Could they potentially contain solid evidence that could lead to the prosecution of Hillary Clinton and many of her top aides? I wouldn't hold your breath. But if those documents are released in time, and if they contain some very damaging information, they could perhaps sway some key swing state voters at a critical point in the election. If you follow my work regularly, you probably already know that I am very skeptical of those that believe that Donald Trump is going to win the election. The elite are desperate to keep Donald Trump out of the White House, and so they are throwing their support behind Hillary Clinton in a major way. The Clinton campaign has far more money than the Trump campaign does, the mainstream media has completely sold out for Hillary, and hordes of establishment Republicans have already publicly committed to vote for her. So at this moment, everything appears to be going her way. But there is a long way to go until November, and one huge scandal could literally change everything in a single moment. 
Daily Jot: Christians and Ephesians in prophetic times - Bill Wilson - www.dailyjot.com
The Apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 4:1-6, "I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that you walk worthy of the vocation wherewith you are called, With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in in love; Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body, and one Spirit, even as you are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all." In these times, we often wonder about this unity. We question whether we are alone, probably much the same way Elijah did in standing against the prophets of Baal. I have been reminded, however, that our unity is alive. There have been hundreds of emails pouring in to The Daily Jot this week. They have been incredibly encouraging as if something in the Spirit has prompted a timing of unity. Many Christians are being emboldened to speak, as Ephesians 6:20 says, "that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak." It started with the example that there were some folks who claimed to be Christians that called into question my salvation and Christianity over the comparisons between the Presidential candidates. While those were examples of what you may experience when using The Daily Jot as sourcing to speak about the election from a Christian lens, many felt the urging to write notes of encouragement. There were so many that I cannot begin to do them justice, but I would like to share a few with you that are a representative sample in hopes that they also encourage you. FH writes, "I'm so sorry to see that people are throwing a fit over the Trump issue. They are Christians- using the term loosely- who are holding anger and bitterness rather than discerning God's hand in what is happening." From ME, "I'm glad you have them figured out pastor Bill. My grandma once told me not to believe anything I hear and half of what I see. I think she meant the skeptics of the truth." AA writes: "Onward Christian Soldiers! Keep fighting the GOD fight!" SL says, "Thank you for speaking His truth. Keep speaking, keep standing, keep honoring the Lord." GL writes: "I totally love your Biblical perspective and relating Scripture to current events. You put things clearly and simply, and this makes it easy to share with family and friends. I agree that some Christian friends and family have a problem with Donald Trump, but gracious, look at the alternative! The Christian faith has, in very many ways, grown cold in America; hence, confusion and scoffers have arisen. But don't give up the Lord's cause! And we won't, either! May the Lord clothe us all in His strength-His armor!" And it is His whole armor that we must take on that we may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Thank you for being an Ephesians people in these prophetic times. Be encouraged! 
Daily Devotion: Taking the Gospel to the World - Greg Laurie - www.harvest.org
But He said to them, "Let us go into the next towns, that I may preach there also, because for this purpose I have come forth." -Mark 1:38 Jesus went and met the woman at the well in Samaria because she had an appointment with God. In Jesus' detour into enemy territory, we see two important concerns as we bring the message of the gospel today. First, we have to go to where people are. Jesus did not say that the whole world should go to church; He said the church should go into the whole world. As Mark's Gospel tells us, "And He said to them, 'Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature' " (Mark 16:15). When Harvest Ministries was doing an outreach in Disneyland a number of years ago, I was asked, "Why are you doing this in a place like Disneyland? Why would you come and hold an event in a place like this?" I said, "Because Jesus said, 'Go into all the world,' and He did not exempt Disneyland. There are people there. And we want to reach people." The glorious thing is that many people came into the kingdom through that outreach. We need to go to where people are. Second, we need to care about the people we speak to. Jesus needed to go to Samaria because He cared about this woman (see John 4:4). When the apostle Paul was in Athens, he saw the city that was given over to idolatry, and his spirit was stirred within him (see Acts 17:16-17). He felt righteous indignation as he saw so many turning to false gods. In the same way, any effective sharing of the gospel must always begin with a God-given burden. We have to care. Jesus cared. Do you? Do you want to reach out to perishing people? 
FROM THE HEART
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