Poll of 600 physicians shows frustration over insurer policies and delays that doctors say could be leaving patients in prolonged pain.
(Study Finds) Are health insurance policies creating nightmares for physicians and hazards for their patients? A new study finds that nearly nine in ten doctors believe barriers set by insurance plans have led to worsened conditions for patients in need of care. Continue reading
“The congressional swearing-in event introduces profound incoherence into the solemn ceremonies of investiture that seek to protect the nation from immoral subversion. Biblically-based law (the truth) and Sharia law (the lie) are irreconcilable. One cannot combine these competing “moral” systems without introducing at the highest level a totally chaotic and irrational basis for our nation’s governing principles.”
(Peter Jones – truthXchange) Last November’s elections brought into Congress some of the most extreme office holders ever seen. Recently defeated Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill said: “I’d be lying if I did not say I was worried about this place. It just does not work as well as it used to.”[1]Paul Kane of The Washington Post describes how in the early meetings of the new Congress “tensions flared and lawmakers walked toward each other in the well of the House. The chance of physical confrontation seemed to grow by the second… Shouting, near fisticuffs, emotions high…Today’s Washington could get worse.” Continue reading
In total, Vittert estimates that the shutdown cost the American public approximately $40 billion, which she notes would have paid for “the entire wall to be built and maintained for 40 years.”
(Ryan Saaveda – Daily Wire) A new report by a statistics professor at Washington University in St. Louis estimates that the 35-day partial government shutdown cost seven times more than the $5.7 billion that President Donald Trump requested for a border wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.
Liberty Vittert, who is also an ambassador for the Royal Statistical Society, writes that estimates for the cost of the shutdown per day range from $52 million to $360 million. Continue reading
1 In the third year of the reign of Belshazzar the king a vision appeared to me, Daniel, subsequent to the one which appeared to me previously. 2 I looked in the vision, and while I was looking I was in the citadel of Susa, which is in the province of Elam; and I looked in the vision and I myself was beside the Ulai Canal. Daniel 8:1-4 (NASB) Read verses 3 & 4 on the site.
Many of the Old Testament prophecies have already been fulfilled. For instance, Jesus Christ fulfilled every one of the prophecies that spoke of His first coming, His torture, His death, His burial, etc. We have now arrived at Daniel Chapter 8. Daniel switches from Aramaic, which he used from 2:4b through 7:28, back to Hebrew starting in 8:1 through the end of His book. In Chapter 8 we will look at some already fulfilled prophecies and also how one of the characters from those that have been fulfilled also prefigures another character that is still future to us.
1 And the dragon stood on the sand of the seashore.
Then I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns were ten diadems, and on his heads were blasphemous names. 2 And the beast which I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority. Revelation 13:1-4 (NASB) Read verses 3-4 on the site.
It is time to prayerfully step into the prophetic section of Daniel. I always have quite a bit of anxiety about tackling books that are deeply eschatological. Why? My method of Bible teaching is to simply expound scripture. I try to limit input into my analysis of passages to Biblical references for the most part. I do not believe I am wise enough or schooled enough in eschatology to do justice to this study. However, God is able to open up His word to our hearts. As we look at these sections in Daniel let us carefully let scripture speak. God will give us the truth as He sees fit. Perhaps God will give us insight into His Word that we have lacked until now. If so, then it is God doing this, not me.
“Mental health professionals who assist youth who may be struggling with temptations toward the same sex or who feel that they identify as the opposite sex will be considered to have engaged in “professional misconduct,” and may face penalties from their licensing entity that may include censure and reprimand, suspension of their license, the requirement to receive training and education, fines or a complete loss of their license.”
(Heather Clark – Christian News Network) Just days after enshrining in New York law the “right” for mothers to have their unborn children murdered, and in some cases, even up until birth, Gov. Andrew Cuomo has now signed two new bills into law: … Continue reading
William J. Seymour, leader of the Azusa Street Revival
“The leaders of the movement were convinced that speaking in tongues stood as proof that the Spirit was beginning to work in a fresh way that foretold the imminent return of Christ. This added an urgency to the movement that often overwhelmed reason and discernment. So missionaries were dispatched to foreign lands without preparation, without any view to biblical qualification, and without any thought as to when and how they would return.”
(Tim Challies) It is impossible to consider the modern history or contemporary state of Christianity without accounting for the sudden rise, the explosive spread, and the worldwide impact of Pentecostalism. To that end, I’ve been reading several books on the subject, focused especially on the Azusa Street Revival, which most historians consider the setting in which Pentecostalism began. Here are a few key points I’ve learned about the Azusa Street Revival and the Azusa Street Mission that housed it. Continue reading
“We are targeting Chick-Fil-A because it is a central corporation in GA’s economy and we think that it can do better if the people buying its products demand action. Chick-Fil-A has made some strides in sustainability, but the company is short-sighted at best. While they plan to transition to antibiotic-free chickens raised in barns rather than cages, this is little more than a cheap marketing ploy.”
(Peyton Dillberg – Campus Reform) An environmental group in Athens, Georgia is demanding that the University of Georgia ban Chick-Fil-A from campus, calling the fast food restaurant chain an “industrial, white supremacist, imperialist, capitalist cult.” Continue reading
10 Now you followed my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, perseverance, 11 persecutions, and sufferings, such as happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium and at Lystra; what persecutions I endured, and out of them all the Lord rescued me! 12 Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. 13 But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. 2 Timothy 3:10-13 (NASB)“Christians” in the United States and other “civilized” countries do not exist in a climate of a fear of persecution like those in China and India. Some would say that is because of our culture or that there are huge numbers of Christians here. However, the truth of the matter is that Christians who live in total obedience to their Lord will be persecuted. So, what does that say about Christians who live at peace with the world around them? The truth of the matter is this; the reason Christians are not persecuted in the US is that very few of them are walking in the level of obedience to their Lord that would draw attention to them from those who hate the real Jesus and the Word of God. However, if they were living holy lives, sharing their faith, actively making disciples, and preaching the whole Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ the wrath of Satan and his seed would come upon them.
“The issue at hand here is that Anyabwile has used his platform at a Southern Baptist Seminary to not promote biblical theology and a right understanding of biblical justice and mercy, but to push a cultural man-centered ideology that creates an entitlement sentiment among minorities through an intersectional approach that is not only unbiblical, but racist at its core.”
(Jeff Maples – Reformation Charlotte) On January 24, Thabiti Anyabwile was invited to deliver the chapel service at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary.
Anyabwile began the sermon with a historical comparison of abortion to various other holocausts such as the African slave trade and the Jewish holocaust, rightly marginalizing abortion as having a far greater death toll than any of these events. Further, he rightly acknowledges that abortions have impacted African Americans at an inordinate rate. Continue reading
“Late-term abortion is never necessary to protect a woman’s life or health. No late-term abortion has ever been committed for the sake of saving a woman’s life. It has never happened and will never happen…It could be necessary, in the case of some kind of cataclysmic complication, to remove the child from his mother’s womb. But it is never necessary to kill the child before removing him. There is no medical reason to take that extra step of preemptively killing the child.”
(Matt Walsh – Daily Wire) As The Daily Wire reported, New York is set to legalize abortion through every stage of pregnancy. Once the bill is signed into law, it will be legal to kill a fully developed, pain-capable infant up to the very moment of birth. Continue reading
YouTube screenshot
“Initiatives like this one are meant to help Planned Parenthood give information to hard-to-reach audiences like teenagers who don’t receive sex education or are receiving abstinence-only education. In recent years Planned Parenthood has been on the offensive about the breadth of resources they provide as conservative lawmakers and anti-abortion groups have sought to defund the organization.”
Planned Parenthood Sexualizing Teens
(Megan Graham – AdAge) Planned Parenthood knows teenagers have a lot of questions about sexual health they may not want to ask their parents.
It’s hoping Roo, its new chatbot, will have the answers. Continue reading
5 Suddenly the fingers of a man’s hand emerged and began writing opposite the lampstand on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace, and the king saw the back of the hand that did the writing. 6 Then the king’s face grew pale and his thoughts alarmed him, and his hip joints went slack and his knees began knocking together. Daniel 5:5-6 (NASB)
God used Nebuchadnezzar to bring an end to the Judean kingdom. The kingdom of Babylon under Nebuchadnezzar was glorious. God blessed him and, as we saw in yesterday’s post, humbled him when he took credit for it all. After his death in October 562 BC, having reigned 43 years, he was succeeded by his son Amel-Marduk (or Evil-merodach 2 Kings 25:27-30). Amel-Marduk, who, after a reign of two years, was succeeded by Neriglissar (559 – 555). Neriglissar was succeeded by Nabonidus (555 – 538). …
The title to this piece by Greg Koukl is actually “One Way Or Another Way? – Part One.” In part one of the two-part series, Koukl tackles the “confused confession” that many Christians make regarding Christ as savior. Their confused confession is putting the gospel itself in jeopardy, worries Koukl. The confusion Christians are experiencing is caused by people who don’t like what the Bible teaches, “so they wrangle about words and twist the text trying to get the verses to say the opposite of what they clearly mean.” As a result, “have-your-cake-and-eat-it-too Christianity.”
In this month’s issue of Solid Ground, Greg Koukl offers his view of why so many people reject biblical historic orthodox Christianity and are instead adopting different forms of “inclusivism,” including what he terms “radical inclusivism.” He writes: Continue reading
“Calling the issue a matter of women’s “equality,” he was joined on stage by Sarah Ragle Weddington, the attorney who had represented the Roe of Roe v. Wade before the Supreme Court, and presented her with an award for her “public service” prior to the signing. The signing was filled with smiles and laughter.”
(Heather Clark – Christian News Network) One World Trade Center, the site where nearly 3,000 Americans were killed by terrorists in 2001, was ordered by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to be lit pink on Tuesday night to celebrate the passage and signing of a bill that not only codifies, but also expands abortion access in the state. New York law will now allow for the murder of the unborn until birth if the child is not expected to survive or if the pregnancy is deemed a threat to the health or life of the mother. Continue reading
“The policy provides that so-called transgender individuals may continue to serve in the military, and it allows recruits who are not transitioning to the opposite sex to serve.”
(Martin M. Barillas – LifeSiteNews) The U.S. Supreme Court ruled this morning that the Trump administration may temporarily enforce restrictions on transgender people serving in the military.
However, the high court declined to review whether the administration’s new policy is legal until a ruling emerges from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The court split 5-4 on the issue, with the liberal justices in the minority. Continue reading
1 Nebuchadnezzar the king to all the peoples, nations, and men of every language that live in all the earth: “May your peace abound! 2 It has seemed good to me to declare the signs and wonders which the Most High God has done for me.
3 “How great are His signs
And how mighty are His wonders!
His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom
And His dominion is from generation to generation. Daniel 4:1-3 (NASB)
The deepest, widest blind spot that most professing Christians have is that they are convinced their religion pleases God. Pride disguises itself in many different ways. One that I have noticed in most professing Christians is a form of self-righteousness that sees their religion as making them so well-pleasing to God that anyone who is not part of their denomination or church could not possibly be right with God. Pragmatism springs from a desire by spiritually blind Christian leaders to mimic what other “successful” preachers or pastors do to grow their congregations or baptize huge numbers of converts. …
“These Catholic boys rode a bus 500 miles from Kentucky to participate in the March for Life, a pro-life event that liberal journalists usually pretend never happened. ABC, CBS and NBC gave Friday’s march just 58 seconds, but by Monday morning, they’d devoted over 19 minutes to the allegedly racist aftermath. Everyone knows that if these teens hadn’t worn MAGA hats, this viral video cesspool (complete with hate speech and death threats) would have never been created.”
(Brent Bozell & Tim Graham – CNSNews) The last few days have been absolutely terrible for the reputation of the badly named “mainstream media.” Continue reading
“We’re a Catholic school, and it’s not tolerated. They don’t tolerate racism, and none of my classmates are racist people. I never heard anyone say ‘build the wall’ and I don’t think I’ve seen it in any of the videos.”
WATCH THE VIDEO CLIPS
(Leah Barkoukis – Townhall) Nick Sandmann, the high school student at the center of the media frenzy over his interaction with Native American activist Nathan Phillips in Washington, D.C. last week, said he does not believe his actions that day were disrespectful. Continue reading
Since New York Republicans lost control of the Senate in November, the bill is expected to pass with Democrat support. Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D-NY), a Catholic, is expected to sign the legislation.
(Amanda Prestigiacomo – Daily Wire) The womb will become an even less safe place for unborn babies in New York come Tuesday. Democrat legislators are set to legalize abortion up to birth and remove the fatal procedure from the state’s criminal code altogether with the passing of the euphemistically named Reproductive Health Act. Continue reading
16 “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves. 17 But beware of men, for they will hand you over to the courts and scourge you in their synagogues; 18 and you will even be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. 19 But when they hand you over, do not worry about how or what you are to say; for it will be given you in that hour what you are to say. Matthew 10:16-19 (NASB)
If we listen to the common message from the vast majority of “Christian” leaders these days we will not receive one of eternal focus, power, or value. Instead, if we hear a message that tells us that God desires for all of His people to have it their way, to have their best life now, to live any way they choose all the while seeing that the point of Christianity is to be blessed here and now. Along with that it insinuates that if we suffer then we must have sin in our lives that we have not confessed. Is the point of Christianity the believer’s health, wealth and prosperity? Is the focus of our faith primarily on this life now?
How could a good God let so many good people perish? The idea of Jesus being the only way sounds very offensive to some people. Won’t God accept someone who is sincerely trying to do good to others, even if he never hears about Jesus Christ or refuses to believe in him? Won’t God understand and be sympathetic?
(Nicholas Davis – Core Christianity) According to the recent study, “The State of Theology” by Ligonier Ministries and Lifeway Research, 46 percent of self-identified evangelicals in America believe that “God accepts the worship of all religions, including Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.” So the question, “Does a person really have to go through Jesus to get into heaven?” is clearly a divisive one within evangelical Christianity today. Some might wonder, “Why is Christianity so exclusive?” This is a good question, but there is an even better question to ask. Continue reading
“It is unclear if some of the alternative spiritual practices young adults are attracted to can have the same benefits as traditional religious beliefs and practices. For instance, in a new study our lab hopes to publish soon, we find evidence suggesting that these alternative beliefs are not doing a good job of actually providing meaning,”
(Toni Airaksinen – PJ Media) It’s a Monday afternoon in January and in an ironic twist of fate, it’s my boyfriend who’s dragging me to the local shopping mall. While he’s here to find new athletic wear (he teaches tennis), I’m left meandering through gaggles of teens and clearance aisles. Continue reading
“According to Fox 19, the school had readied additional security at Covington Catholic High School for when students return Tuesday following threats of violence issued against the school and its students since the weekend. The American Indian Movement Chapter of Indiana and Kentucky are scheduled to protest at the Diocese of Covington at 10:00 a.m. local time.”
(Joshua Caplan – Breitbart) Covington Catholic High School, the Kentucky school at the center of a national controversy over a viral video of an encounter between some of its students and a Native American activist at Friday’s March for Life in Washington, D.C., has canceled classes Tuesday due to safety concerns. Continue reading
20 Daniel said,
“Let the name of God be blessed forever and ever,
For wisdom and power belong to Him.
21 “It is He who changes the times and the epochs;
He removes kings and establishes kings;
He gives wisdom to wise men
And knowledge to men of understanding.
22 “It is He who reveals the profound and hidden things;
He knows what is in the darkness,
And the light dwells with Him.
23 “To You, O God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise,
For You have given me wisdom and power;
Even now You have made known to me what we requested of You,
For You have made known to us the king’s matter.” Daniel 2:20-23 (NASB)
Over time, Daniel became a very important person in the Kingdom of Babylon. However, as we look at Chapter 2 we find Daniel still a young man among the King’s counselors. The events in this chapter take place shortly after the promotion of Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah from the ranks of the trainees that we looked at in yesterday’s post. In this chapter God uses a pagan King and a faithful servant to give us a prophetic picture of world kingdoms and a glimpse into the coming Kingdom of God.