Bill Johnson: Prosperity With A Purpose

Bill Johnson's November 16, 2014, sermon was one of the best I've ever heard on prosperity and our purpose in life.  I highly recommend listening to it.  This sermon was the final one of his series entitled "Prosperity with a Purpose".  They were all excellent, but if you only have time for one be sure to listen/watch this one.  I am posting the link for the podcast which is audio only. http://podcasts.ibethel.org/en/podcasts/prosperity-with-a-purpose-the-blessing-mandate

You can also download the podcasts free from the iTunes Store.

I think you can watch it on iBethelTV for the next couple of weeks.  I have subscribed to their broadcasts so I can't remember how long they are available for free but I think it is 4 weeks.  Here is the link to watch it.  http://www.bethel.tv/watch/2204/prosperity-with-a-purpose-the-blessing-mandate-sunday-am/2014/11/16

I would love it if you would post comments after you've heard the message.  It would be great to have a conversation about some of his ideas.

Francis Frangiapane on Thankfulness

Let us practice the attitude of gratitude until it becomes second nature.

A Thankful Man Is a Humble Man If you think you know God but do not live your life in gratitude before Him, it is doubtful that you really knew Him in the first place. A thankful heart honors God. Too often when we say we "know God," what we actually mean is we know facts about God. But we should ask ourselves, "Do I truly know Him?" Paul warns that just knowing doctrines about God is not enough to enter eternal life. He said, "For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened" (Rom. 1:20-21). Even though we may know God, if we do not "honor Him as God or give thanks" to Him in our daily walk, our minds darken. When we are in that hardened, ungrateful state of mind, every word we speak is a spark lit by hell, set to destroy the quality of our lives (James 3:6). H. W. Beecher said, "Pride slays thanksgiving . . . a proud man is seldom a grateful man, for he never thinks he gets as much as he deserves." We should be thankful that we do not get what we deserve! When God gives us less than we desire, it is not because He is teaching us poverty; what He is teaching us is thankfulness. You see, life -- real life -- is not based upon what we amass but on what we enjoy. Even in difficult circumstances God still gives us much to appreciate. We fail to see what the Lord has provided because our hearts are wrong. Someone once said, "When I see a poor man who is grateful, I know if he were rich, he would be generous." A thankful spirit is akin to a generous spirit, for both appreciate and receive the riches of God. When we are thankful with little, God can entrust us with much. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ The preceding excerpt is adapted from the book The Shelter of the Most High by Pastor Frangipane. This book with associated audio resources are currently on sale atwww.arrowbookstore.com.

A word through Connie Williams

I'm ready for this word to be fulfilled, aren't you?

God says, "I'm About to Make a Spectacle of Myself"

Dr. Connie Williams, Ball Ground, GA

This is a Wake-up Call

I hear the Word of the Lord saying, "This is not a season of judgment because I've finished judgment in Christ. So when you see the sinkholes, when you see the tsunamis, when you see the hurricanes, when you see the tornado, know," says the Lord,"that the earth is reacting to the manifestation of the sons of God. Never have there been a people on the earth such as these before. They're already here. All I am doing is awakening what I put in them when I knew them before the foundation.

"This is a wake-up call. Hear the alarm going off. It's time to wake up. For this is the season of discovery; this is the season of revelation knowledge. This is not a season of arguing and running to and fro. This is a season of that I will expose Myself as your God." I hear the word of the Lord saying, "Get ready, for this generation shall have their eyes anointed with eye salve again."(Photo via Wikimedia)

So don't think it's strange when you see something out of the corners of your eye. Don't think it's strange when you see a fog or a blur. "Don't think it strange," says the Lord, "because I'm going to begin to open your eyes to things from this day forward that even the prophets of old desired to look into but could not."

Undiscovered Wealth

I hear the word of the Lord saying, "This is the day of undiscovered wealth: undiscovered wealth in the backyard, in your front yard, in chests, in trunks, all kinds of stuff going down through your family's lineage. Stuff that past generations put up for you to discover." God said, "Get ready for the wealth to explode among My sons because My sons know what to do with wealth. They know they can have wealth and wealth not have them."

"Get ready," says the Lord, "for Me to show Myself in spite of you. And on your least day, watch Me heal the sick. On your day when you forgot to pray, watch Me raise the dead.Because in this season it's not about you, it's not about your shortcomings, it's not about your rights and wrongs and what you could or should have done, this is My day" says the Lord,"This is My Sabbath and I intend to rest, and the place for Me to rest is in you."

A Season of Discovery and Revolutionizing Science

There will be sinkholes and tsunamis affecting whole neighborhoods and whole communities but God said, "It's not judgment. The earth is reacting to the groaning, to the manifestation, to the placement of the sons of God. Unusual weather patterns and different kinds of clouds discovered in the sky and photographed in the sky and lines photographed in the sky, chemicals in the sky, different things in the sky photographed and documented," says the Lord, "this is the season of discovery because of My people."

I hear the word of the Lord saying, "Get ready for Me to revolutionize science as you have known it; even the science of astronomy as you have known it. Everything that has not reflected Me, get ready for Me to bring everything in line so that it reflects Me," says the Lord.

"This is the season I shall be seen on tape, on film; I shall be heard on audio, I shall be seen on pictures. For this is the day, from this day, all through 2019, this is the day that I will prove Myself, not just to My people, but I will prove Myself to creation. Get ready for some unusual happenings that are not going to be able to be explained away; you're just gonna have to say, 'It's God and that's all I know.'

"I'm About to Make a Spectacle of Myself"

"Get ready," says the Lord, "for people that have been out of time that willingly hid themselves to come upon the scene saying 'God said it's our season of exposure again.' Get ready for My anointing and My glory to rest upon them. And it's not because of them, it's about Me," says the Lord.

There are some photographs and some pictures about to come out in the newspaper; in USA Today there will be some photographs of God. I see a photograph of a hand, I see a photograph of this, but God said, "I'm about to display My glory in the clouds. I'm about to display Myself in the clouds," and pictures are gonna be taken that are gonna be in the secular newspaper and on the secular news. (Photo via Wikipedia)

For God said, "I'm about to make a spectacle of Myself. I'm about to show Myself. Get ready," says God, "cause it's My desire to show Myself through you. Through you," thus says the Lord.

Dr. Connie Williams
Connie Williams International
Email: mail@drconniewilliams.org
Website: DrConnieWilliams.org

We are being watched

     I'm not sure I want to know this but we can't keep our head in the sand forever.  Obviously, there is no privacy left in the world.

The Switch

#HappyTracksgiving : How your travels are tracked this holiday season 

By Craig Timberg November 26  

Someone is watching you (Bloomberg)

It’s that time again. We’re on the move -- feasting, sharing, shopping, giving thanks. And we are being tracked every step of the way. So here’s a quick guide to the state of the unblinking electronic eye, 2014 Holiday Edition.

Flying home? Every passenger on every flight is recorded on digital manifests. Every plane is tracked. And even before you board, airports are among the most intensively surveilled public spaces, full of cameras and other monitoring devices. Some airports even use tiny sensors hidden in lighting fixtures that, according to the New York Times, can spot long lines, read license plates and report “suspicious activity” to authorities.

Taking the train? All aboard for monitoring. Ticket transactions happen with computers – or online – typically with credit cards, making it easy to follow any passenger or all of them. Train stations, meanwhile, are nearly as camera-laden as airports.

Uber or Lyft? Smartphone-based car services collect massive amounts of precise data, including your name, cell number, starting point, ending point, pickup time, drop-off time and exact route. Plus, that same data is collected on every other rider as well, making it easy for those with access to the databases to analyze who is seeing whom, when, where and, with a bit of imagination, why.

Driving yourself? The web of surveillance is a bit looser here, but there arecountless license plates readers on our highways, both fixed and mounted on government vehicles. Databases collect such information for easy sharing. Those handy electronic toll payment systems, such as EZ Pass, are tracking you too. Highway rest areas are heavy on the video monitoring. And likely coming soon: facial recognition systems.

Walking? Both our big cities and small towns increasingly are thick with surveillance cameras, including newer generations that can see for miles, with amazing precision. Then there’s the rising use of overhead surveillance, from airplanes, drones, and aerostats, those blimp-like craft floating above some border areas.

What about a horse on backwoods trails? Hot air balloon? Offroad mountain bike? Well, even if you manage to avoid the ground cameras and the drones, there’s still that pesky phone in your pocket. If you’ve flipped on location services for your iPhone, maybe so Google Maps can keep you from getting lost, Apple and Google both are getting location data from you. So are the operators of many others apps.

Too paranoid to use a smartphone? Even the oldest, dumbest flip phone has to communicate with cell towers in order to work, meaning Verizon or AT&T – and potentially the government – know what cell tower your phone is using and in some situations can remotely activate GPS systems. Location technology initially developed for 911 calls also can estimate how close you are to various towers, making it easier to home in on your exact coordinates. Altitude measurements – revealing what floor you are on -- are next.

The U.S. Marshals Service, meanwhile, is flying airplanes with surveillance gear that collects nearby cell signals, helping track fugitives, drug dealers and – whether intentionally or not – everyone else at the same time,according to the Wall Street Journal.

Bear in mind that all these systems operate passively, continuously, even if nobody is looking for you. If you are an actual target of the authorities – be it your government or somebody else’s -- there are even more powerful tools available. Surveillance companies sell malicious software to install on smartphones for tracking locations, browsing your e-mail and activatingvideo cameras and microphones.

The latest cell phone tracking technology reportedly can find you in almost any country in the world, even without a court order or the help of the phone company.

And if you’re staying close to home, your local police may have an IMSI catcher – sometimes called a StringRay -- they can set up outside your home and business to collect your cell phone signals. With that, authoritiescan track all your communications and Internet traffic while getting a rough idea of your physical movements as well.

These are just the techniques that we know about. No doubt there are others in operation and still others in development.

So travel safe, smile for the cameras and enjoy a Happy Tracksgiving!

Or for the benefit of all those systems that now track the public mood on social media: #HappyTracksgiving! Please tweet out anything I’ve missed.

Craig Timberg Is A National Technology Reporter For The Post. 

Craig Timberg is a national technology reporter for The Post.

President Reagan's First Thanksgiving Proclamation

In his first Thanksgiving proclamation, President Ronald Reagan wrote: "As we celebrate Thanksgiving ... we should ask what we can do as individuals to demonstrate our gratitude to God for all He has done. Such reflection can only add to the significance of this precious day of remembrance. Let us recommit ourselves to that devotion to God and family that has played such an important role in making this a great Nation, and which will be needed as a source of strength if we are to remain a great people."

Roseann Salanitro's column on the Daily Rant

       Roseann Salanitro doesn't mince words!  President Obama does not have the best interests of our country in mind.  He wants to destroy the Constitution and thereby the America many remember and love--and he will use any means possible to do it.  Will we wake up?  Or are we going to allow darkness to rule?

The Spawn of Satan

by Roseann Salanitri on November 26, 2014 in Faith & Family 3

Since the Garden of Eden, the devil has done his best to corrupt man’s existence and his relationship with God. Over the course of time, he has not changed his tactics. Why should he when they are still as effective as they were over 6,000 years ago?

Back in the Garden the devil perverted the Word of God by taking the truth and twisting it a bit. It was true – Adam and Eve did not die immediately after they ate the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. However, when they did, they were banned from eating the fruit of the Tree of Life, which led to their eventual death. Consequently, they learned about good and evil in a most unfortunate way. But why would Eve believe the devil instead of God?

Eve saw that the fruit was “pleasant to the eyes” which made it a physical temptation but we frequently miss the next part of the verse that tells us she saw it was a tree that was desirable to make one wise (Genesis 3:4-6). This represented the lure of the knowledge of the world that the devil is able to twist and uses to challenge the veracity of God. This temptation is not as easily defined as physical temptations. It is a temptation of the mind that carries with it strong undertones of peer pressure and intellectual intimidation.   Fast forward to 2014 and not much has changed since the Garden – except that now the devil has more children to act on his behalf. And these children, like their father, are extremely skilled at what they do. In classrooms around the world, they use Evolution to intellectually discredit God and His Word. In the political world, global warming is used to replace recognition of end time prophecies dealing with climate catastrophes and intimidation is used by calling bearers of the truth racists and domestic terrorists.

Lying and intellectual intimidation, however, are not the only tricks in the devil’s bag of temptations and not the only tricks he passes along to his children. The passage in John 8:44 not only attributes lying to the devil, it calls him a murderer. When we recall that the man now occupying the White House voted to have babies born alive as a result of a botched abortion thrown into the trash, we should be asking who but a devil or his progeny would cast such a vote?

While there has been much talk about where Obama was born and who his earthly father might have been, one thing seems clear: he inherited from his spiritual father the spirit of a murderer, a liar, and a pervert. In this case “pervert” is not a reference to his sexual preference. It is a reference to his propensity to take the truth and either totally disregard it or twist it beyond recognition.

Just last week we saw his brilliant perversion televised worldwide. It was so brilliant and well executed that none of the political pundits seemed to understand what really transpired. They commented about the many lies he has told through the years and some even protested that he dared to quote Scripture, but the perversion of Scripture escaped their minds and commentaries. This is unfortunate because this perversion connects him to his father the devil in a most astounding way.

One of the best examples of a perversion is recorded in Matthew 4:1-10 when Jesus was in the desert being tempted by the devil. A casual read through seems pretty straight forward. Jesus was in a vulnerable position and Satan tried to use it to his advantage. Jesus responded by quoting Scripture. However, if you take the time to look up the verses that the devil was quoting in Psalm 91:11-12, you will find that the devil was accurately quoting the Scripture. HOWEVER, while the quote was accurate, the interpretation was skewed. This is what a perversion truly is: taking a truth and twisting it just a bit to make it seem like it’s actually saying something else. Jesus experienced it in the desert when the devil was trying to tempt him. Eve experienced it in the Garden when the devil successfully tempted her. And we experienced during Mr. Obama’s recent press conference. When Barack Obama quoted Scripture, he didn’t do it as eloquently as his father did in the desert, since he combined a number of Scriptures and rolled them into one. He stated: “We shall not oppress a stranger, for we know the heart of a stranger. We were strangers once too.” The combo verse that Obama quoted came from Deuteronomy 10:19, Leviticus 24:22, Exodus 23:9, Malachi 3:5, and Hebrews 13:2.

Here’s the heart of the perversion. These verses talk about treating strangers justly – the same as you would treat law-abiding citizens. In this case, the aliens and strangers Obama is defending are not traveling through our land legally. Furthermore, the great majority of them were criminals in their own countries before they came here and by virtue of the way they entered this country, they all became criminals. Criminals in biblical times as in present times do not deserve the protection of law. And if we desire to understand the hearts of these strangers, as Mr. Obama suggests, justice should be our first consideration. Additionally, we were not all strangers once too as these interlopers are. Again, these strangers that Obama is referring to are illegally here. Many of us are legal immigrants or the descendants of legal immigrants who are legally entitled to become American citizens and benefit from the many blessings that exist in this country. To those who fall into this legal category, they are the ones entitled to the protection of the law, while those who do not enter legally are entitled to prosecution under the law, which is distinctively different than persecution.

Some may argue that Christians should be merciful to strangers. That is true. However, mercy best exists when it is accompanied by justice and humility. Micah 6:8 says:

                 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you?                                              

To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

So where is the justice in what Mr. Obama is proposing? And where is the humility that these strangers in our land should be exhibiting? If they were humble, wouldn’t they be repenting of their lawlessness, which in this case would mean returning to whence they came? Perhaps I’m missing something but demanding rights from a country that you have illegally entered seems a bit arrogant to me. I argue that there is no justice in the mercy Obama is ordaining by Executive Order. There is no justice for the many Americans who will be losing their jobs to these interlopers. There is no justice for the college students who bumped American born students from enrollment or from receiving grants or scholarship monies. There is no justice for the American taxpayer who is struggling to make ends meet but has continued to foot the bill for the many expenses incurred as a result of the lawlessness of these illegals interlopers. And there is no justice for the would-be legal immigrants who respect this country enough to abide by our laws. In the case of amnesty, the quality of mercy is strained when it imposes injustice on law-abiding American citizens and would-be Americans.

And as for Mr. Obama: well if the character traits of the children of Satan are a murderous spirit, a lying tongue, and a perversion of the Holy Scriptures, the shoe seems to fit the man now occupying the White House. Perhaps Mr. Obama may be living the good life now, but according to the Book of Revelation, he will soon be joining other cowards, unbelievers, the abominable, murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone (Rev. 21:8).   Alas, we serve a merciful God, but He is also a just God – and no perversion of Scripture will change that, Mr. Obama. While you may attempt to deliver this country to the gates of hell, many of us will not be joining you there. 

Praying Daily with Dale Gentry

       Have you subscribed to Dale Gentry's daily prayer?  I thought today was especially appropriate with all the bad things happening in the world and all the 'must do' lists we have in our lives.  I'm posting it as a reminder to not get bogged down in the negativity, but through it all no matter what is happening--to be thankful!  And let's take time for some fun!

Faith Declarations-Wednesday by Dale Gentry Good Wednesday morning everybody. It's time to pray America!     "Father God................remind us again Lord  that each of us need some fun................that life can get so heavy and so many things to do and so many responsibilities to take care of.............that we can forget to take some time for ourselves.............to go to a friends house and ask his spouse if he or she can come out and play............and then go ride a bike, fly a kite, eat some ice cream without worrying about the calories.................Lord help us not to get broken in this system of stress and strain...............anxiety accompanied by high expectations.............long days and long nights of work............letting life pass us by until we don't feel good enough to go out and play..............Lord we ask today that You not only teach us to pray but teach us also to play...............we ask these things in Your name............amen and amen."   Dale Gentry is on the air right now atwww.bpnradio.com.  Broadcasting prayer 24 hours a day on your computer or cell phone. Praying for another spiritual awakening in this nation.

Anothr Leonardo da Vinci Quote

“I love those who can smile in trouble, who can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection. 'Tis the business of little minds to shrink, but they whose heart is firm, and whose conscience approves their conduct, will pursue their principles unto death”

― Leonardo da Vinci

FLASHBACK: The Myth of Ferguson and the Gentle Giant by Ben Shapiro

Here is an excellent article on the truth about Michael Brown & what is happening in Ferguson if you can stand another news report.

It is absolutely infuriating to hear the lies being told!  Why are those who are breaking the law being given airtime?  What is the motive here?  I believe there is a plot to stir up unrest and division in this country and the news media is playing a major part in making it happen.  If the people of Ferguson want respect then they need to begin to act respectful.  If they don't want to be treated like trash then stop acting like trash!  If there is any steriotyping or racial profiling going on they certainly are not helping matters.  Looting and destroying innocent people's property, shooting guns, screaming and calling people names to honor a local thug who broke the law, had drugs in his system, attacked a policeman and was shot because the officer feared for his life is not helping their image!

I am furious every time I see the news.  This is an absolute tragedy--and I'm not talking about Michael Brown's death!  Why would anyone want to be a policeman?  But then maybe that's the plan.  If the police go on strike Obama can declare Marshall law and bring in his troops.  He will then control the country as has been his plan from the beginning.

You might want to do some research before contributing to organizations

     This came to me as an email.  I don't know who put it together and I haven't checked the accuracy of each one, although I have seen some of these facts other places.  It goes to show that to be a good steward we need to research the companies/organizations to which we are planning to donate not blindly give to those who do the most advertising for name recognition.

As you open your pockets to do a good thing and make yourself
feel good, please keep the following facts in mind:

The American Red Cross President and CEO Marsha J. Evans' salary for the year was $651,957 plus expenses

MARCH OF DIMES It is called the March of Dimes because only a dime for every 1 dollar is given to the needy.

The United Way President Brian Gallagher receives a $375,000 base salary along with numerous expense benefits.

UNICEF CEO Caryl M. Stern receives $1,200,000 per year (100k per month) plus all expenses including a ROLLS ROYCE. Less than 5 cents of your donated dollar goes to the cause.

GOODWILL  CEO and owner Mark Curran profits $2.3 million a year. Goodwill is a very catchy name for his business. You donate to his business and then he sells the items for PROFIT.  He pays nothing for his products and pays his workers minimum wage! Nice Guy.  $0.00 goes to help anyone!  Stop giving to this man.

Instead, give it to ANY OF THE
FOLLOWING

GO "GREEN" AND
PUT YOUR MONEY WHERE IT WILL DO SOME GOOD:

The Salvation Army Commissioner, Todd Bassett receives a small salary of only $13,000 per year(plus housing) for managing this $2 billion dollar organization. 96 percent of donated dollars go to the cause.	The American Legion National Commander receives a $0.00 zero salary.  Your donations go to help Veterans and their families and youth!	The Veterans of Foreign Wars National Commander receives a $0.00 zero salary. Your donations go to help Veterans and their families and youth!	The Disabled American Veterans National Commander receives a  $0.00 zero salary. Your donations go to help Veterans and their families and youth!	The Military Order of Purple Hearts National Commander receives a $0.00 zero salary.  Your donations go to help Veterans and their families and youth!
The Vietnam Veterans Association National Commander receives a $0.00 zero salary. Your donations go to help Veterans and their families and youth!	Make a Wish: For children's last wishes. 100% goes to funding trips or special wishes for a dying child.	St. Jude Research Hospital 100% goes towards funding and helping Children with Cancer who have no insurance and cannot afford to pay.	Ronald McDonald Houses All monies go to running the houses for parents who have critically ill Children in the hospital. 100% goes to housing, and feeding the families.	Lions Club International 100% OF DONATIONS GO TO HELP THE BLIND, BUY HEARING AIDES, SUPPORT MEDICAL MISSIONS AROUND THE WORLD. THEIR LATEST UNDERTAKING IS MEASLES VACCINATIONS (ONLY $1.00 PER SHOT).

A Corrected Link to the CFO Tape Library

A reader of my blog contacted me with a question about J. Rufus Moseley.  In reply to the question I was going to include the link to Matt Leach's wonderful CFO Tape Library which has many talks by Rufus and lots of other great men & women of his era.  I had posted the link under the Resources page on my blog, but when I tested it I found it was no longer the correct address for Matt's website.  I searched for it, found the right address and corrected in on the Resources page.

I thought you might be interested in checking it out, too.  The webpage address is: http://www.cfoclassicslibrary.org/index.php

Many of these great men & women were pioneers of the faith.  When I listen to them I realize we are just now catching up to some of the wisdom & revelation they were sharing in the 30's, 40's & 50's.  Many of them have been mentors to me even though I never met most of them.  I love Rufus, Starr Daily, Tommy Tyson, Glenn Clark, Agnes Sanford, Estelle Carver, Francis MacNutt, Roland Brown and many others.  For a new perspective on kingdom living I would highly recommend you listen to some of these giants in the faith.

A Very Good Point!

Frank Viola on Discouragement

This is a good word from Frank Viola.  I, too, get discouraged sometimes and these are the things I also do to overcome it.  I like 'bullet points' so I'm posting his word.

"Hi Friends,

What's up?

Frank Viola here (a.k.a. Frankie V.)

In this update, I'm gonna get personal.

When I was in my early 20s, I remember hearing a preacher put everyone under a pile of guilt bewailing the sin of "discouragement."

He said that discouragement, and it's wicked cousin -- depression -- were akin to taking the mark of the beast.

According this preacher, if you ever get discouraged, you're pretty close to being exiled from the kingdom of God. "Christians are always to be joyful," he argued.

Well, back then I struggled with discouragement. And I will shamelessly admit that I still wrestle with it today. More than I'd like to.

Anyway, after I heard that sermon, I lived in terror for two weeks. I felt lower than a snake's belly in a west Texas canyon. No travel agent on the planet could handle the guilt trip I was on.

But then I stumbled across something in the New Testament that caused me to pick myself up off the ground.

I read that Paul of Tarsus had times of intense despair (2 Cor. 1:8). I mean flat-lined kinds of depression. He said he "despaired of life." Yikes!

Even Jesus experienced discouragement at times, as well as frustration (Luke 9:41). He wasn't exactly joyful at Gethsemane nor while He was put on trial. Not to mention the agonies of the cross.

So I don't get condemned when I face discouragement. Instead, I get on the mat and have a wrestling match with it whenever I feel its hand moving over my throat.

(In case you're wondering, the things I get discouraged about revolve around the pain and suffering I see all around me, the seeming triumph of evil over good in our world, the shallow things that countless Christians benightedly gravitate toward and make popular, etc.)

Anyway, here are 5 things I do to overcome discouragement when I feel it trying to take over my soul. I'm writing these out to ENcourage you. :-) They aren't in any particular order.

1. I review my gratitude list. In this list, I have written out the things that God has blessed me with. I review the list and "re-thank Him" for His many blessings. This is akin to looking at the full side of the glass. (It seems I'm naturally wired to first notice the empty side.)

2. I exercise. For me, this usually comes in the form of a walk outdoors. Sometimes it may include a short sprint (okay, sometimes I chase my cat around the house, but that still counts!). Exercising energizes our brains and balances out the neurotransmitters. It's a key to emotional well being as well as physical health, so I've learned.

3. I review my goals list. Each year, I write down 6 - 12 personal goals for the year, and I include the date when I desire to see each goal come to pass. Reviewing these goals gives me encouragement and hope for the future.

4. I encourage myself in the Lord. 1 Samuel 30:6 says,

"And David was greatly distressed; for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the LORD his God."

In the Psalms, David often speaks to himself with the words "oh my soul," encouraging himself to give thanks to God. Yep, David is speaking to his own soul and telling it good things. For example,

"Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God." (Psalm 42:5).

5. I call a friend. This is especially good medicine for extroverts -- which I am. Extroverts derive energy by communicating with people where introverts derive energy by being alone.

Frankly (to be frank), not that I'm not frank, but you know what I mean! -- I wish I was an introvert. And I'm sure introverts wish they were extroverts, but I digress."

Jonathan Turley on Obama's abuse of executive orders

Even liberal Democrats see President Obama as a threat to the foundation of our country as he goes beyond the laws of the Constitution to legislate his own agenda.

George Washington University constitutional scholar Jonathan Turley, a self-acknowledged liberal Obama supporter, has issued severe criticism of Obama's "über presidency" and his abuse of executive orders to bypass Congress. Turley notes: "What's emerging is an imperial presidency, an über presidency. ... When a president can govern alone, he can become a government unto himself, which is precisely the danger that the Framers sought to avoid in the establishment of our tripartite system of government. ... Obama has repeatedly violated this [separation of powers] doctrine in the circumvention of Congress in areas ranging from health care to immigration law to environmental law. ... What we are witnessing today is one of the greatest challenges to our constitutional system in the history of this country. We are in the midst of a constitutional crisis with sweeping implications for our system of government. ... I hope he does not get away with it."

Sir Nicholas Winton - BBC Programme "That's Life" aired in 1988

This is touching and a great testimony of what one person can do.

He saved 669 children during the Holocaust…and he doesn't know they're sitting next to him.

Sir Nicholas Winton is a humanitarian who organized a rescue operation that saved the lives of 669 Jewish Czechoslovakia children from Nazi death camps, and brought them to the safety of Great Britain between the years 1938-1939.

After the war, his efforts remained unknown. But in 1988, Winton’s wife Grete found the scrapbook from 1939 with the complete list of children’s names and photos. This video clip is of Sir Nicholas Winton when he discovers he is sitting in an audience of Jewish Czechoslovakian people he saved 50 years before.

Dennis Prager presents some facts to refute liberal brainwashing.

Poverty Causes Crime? 

by Dennis Prager

Tuesday, Nov 18, 2014

One of the first clues that this Columbia-educated, liberal, Democrat, New York Jew had that there was something wrong at the heart of progressive/left-wing thought was when I read and was taught over and over that “poverty causes crime.”

I knew from the first that this was dogma, not truth.

How did I know?

First, I thought about the world that I knew best — my own. My paternal grandparents were extremely poor immigrants from Russia. They lived in a small apartment in Brooklyn where they raised four children, none of whom, of course, ever had their own room. Moreover, my grandfather was a tailor, and as such made little during normal years, and next to nothing during the Great Depression.

They were considerably poorer than the vast majority of Americans who lived below the poverty line as it existed when I was in college and graduate school. And they would have regarded most of those designated poor today as middle class, if not rich by the standards of their day.

That is worth remembering whenever an American claims that violent crime in America is caused by poverty. The poor who commit murder, rape and robbery are not only not starving, they have far more material things than the word “poverty” suggests.

According to the U.S Department of Energy’s Residential Energy Consumption Survey for 2005 (the last year I could find in detail — but it doesn’t matter what year because those who say that poverty causes crime have said it for a hundred years and continue to say it), among all poor households:

Over 99 percent have a refrigerator, television, and stove or oven. Eighty-one percent have a microwave; 75 percent have air conditioning; 67 percent have a second TV; 64 percent have a clothes washer; 38 percent have a personal computer.

As for homelessness, one-half of one percent living under the poverty line have lost their homes and live in shelters.

Seventy-five percent of the poor have a car or truck. Only 10 percent live in mobile homes or trailers, half live in detached single-family houses or townhouses, and 40 percent live in apartments. Forty-two percent of all poor households own their home, the average of which is a three-bedroom house with one-and-a-half baths, a garage and a porch or patio.

According to a recent Census Bureau report, 80.9 percent of households below the poverty level have cellphones.

When the left talks about the poor, they don’t mention these statistics because what matters to the left is inequality, not poverty.

But that is another subject. Our subject is the question: Given these statistics, why do the poor who commit violent crime do so? Clearly it is not because they lack the basic necessities of life.

Now I didn’t know any of these statistics back in college and graduate school. So how did I know that “poverty causes crime” was a lie?

I thought about my grandparents, and I could not imagine my grandfather robbing anyone, let alone raping or murdering.

Why not? Because it was unimaginable. They were people whose values rendered such behaviors all but impossible.

But there was another reason.

I was as certain as one could be that if I were poor in America, I wouldn’t rob, rape or murder.

Which leads me to wonder about people who believe that “poverty causes crime.”

When people say this, there are only two possibilities. One is that, on some level of consciousness, they think that if they were poor, they would commit violent crimes. My hunch is that this is often the case. Just as the whites who say all whites are racist are obviously speaking about themselves, those who claim that poverty leads to violence may well be speaking about themselves, too.

The other possibility is that they are not speaking about themselves, in which case they would have to admit that poor Americans who rob, rape or murder are morally inferior to themselves.

Which, of course, happens to be true. People (of any income level) who rob, rape and murder do so because they lack a functioning conscience and moral self-control. It is not material poverty that causes violent crime, but poor character. But the “poverty causes crime” advocates refuse to acknowledge this because such an acknowledgment blames criminals — rather than American society — for poor peoples’ violent crimes.

And that they won’t admit. Because once they do, they will have begun the journey toward affirming conservatism and Judeo-Christian values, both of which are rooted in the belief that values, not economics, determine moral behavior.

This column was originally posted on Townhall.com.

Pew News IQ Test

This is an interesting quiz sent to me by a friend.  Try it and see how much you know about what's happening in the world.

This is a great test and it shows results in a number of ways. It indicates that the majority of Americans don't know what's going on.

There are no tricks here -- just a simple test to see if you are current on your information.

This is a good quiz but the results are somewhat shocking.

Test your knowledge with the challenge of 13 questions.

If you get less than half correct, please cancel your voter registration or start paying attention!

Click here: Test Your News IQ - Pew Research Center