Remember North Korea
We continue to be very concerned about the thousands of people who have been living in flimsy shelters provided by the Red Cross after losing their homes in the flooding of the Tumen river the end of August. A close friend of mine shared with me recently that his mother and older sister lost everything when the flood washed away their home late at night. They have been living in a plastic shelter ever since. The authorities have promised to get everyone into new homes within weeks--a promise received with skepticsm. There are also rumours that people will be given new color television sets. However, the prevailing sentiment is that people are not interested in new TVs but want food and homes that won't fall down around them. The Army was sent into the area to rebuild but has become a threat to the very people they are supposed to help. In the meantime, the residents, themselves, are carrying the greater burden. Even the greater crackdown on crime is backfiring because of increased bribery. People are also upset that most of the funds, supplies and manpower allocated for rebuilding are going to the new showpiece Ryomyong Street in Pyongyang. Traders bringing in goods from China are also under pressure to provide "loyalty gifts" to help with that project.
Still life must go on in every sphere. The vaunted central planning of the Communist North Korean system has virtually capitulated as most state-run factories across the nation are operating in a de facto market economy. The market is also functioning in the area of news and entertainment as illegal make-shift media rooms are popping up all over. And, of course, the propaganda departments are going all out to paint a glowing picture of the North. Here is a an hour-plus-long propaganda video on YouTube exalting the Leader's accomplishments and his prowess as a commander and even a jet pilot. Meanwhile life for those who have come south--while not as dire as that which they left behind in the North--is not easy.
All in all, a lot for us to be praying for.
Remembering Our Brothers in Prison
It was a great honor for me to spend time with former NK prisoner, Kenneth Bae, last week. His first words to me were, "Thank you!" He said his mother had made him promise to thank me as soon as we had a chance to meet. He expressed deep appreciation to all of us who prayed so earnestly for him throughout his long imprisonment. He also shared with me about his new work in the US and South Korea with North Korean resettlers helping them adapt to life in the South and to work with others wanting to minister to them. We should continue to keep him in our prayers that the Lord strengthen and guide him in this new work and heal any lingering effects of his time in North Korean prisons.
We continue to pray for the pastors who are still imprisoned in North Korea. We pray for Pastor Hyeon Soo Lim of the Light Korean Church in Toronto, especially as we have received recent word that he has been hospitalized for deteriorating health. We also remember South Korean pastors Jeong Wook Kim, Kook Ki Kim and Choon Gil Choi and American Pastor Dong-chul Kim. We also lift up in our prayers University of Virginia student Otto Warmbier. Pray with us that they be released to their homes and families soon.
Ben Torrey
Director, The Fourth River Project, Inc.
China: Please pray for Christ-followers in the midst of a growing clampdown on Christianity
Christian Persecution: China launches 'RELIGIOUS WINTER' in bid to DESTROY Christianity
“Christians in China face yet more restrictions. The communist party is attempting to silence the voices and movement of Christians throughout China. The restrictions begin next month, and any and all unauthorized religious activity will be suppressed, making house churches disband.
The ruling Chinese Communist Party is officially atheist with more than half of China’s 1.4 billion people not associated with any religion or belief.
One of the new rules says it will be an offense to “organize citizens to attend religious training, conferences and activities abroad,” “preaching, organizing religious activities, and establishing religious institutions or religious sites at schools,” and “providing religious services through the internet.”
In a bid for the new rules to be accepted, Xi Jinping’s government claims some of the restrictions are in the interest of state security. There will also be limits on accepting teaching posts in foreign countries and organizing religious activities in unapproved religious sites – allowing the government to monitor state-controlled churches and stamp out any underground movements.
There are five officially recognized religions allowed in China, and they are – Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Catholicism, and Protestantism. But, Christianity is not recognized, even though Catholicism and Protestantism are mentioned. Thereby proving the purpose of separating Church and State.
Please organize and pray for China, that the Democratic attempt to bring about the new rules is overruled by the people! The World can attack the Word all they want, but according to scripture:
Isaiah 40:8 GNV
8 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand forever.
Setting the Precedent for the New World Order
China is an excellent example of the United Nation’s new agenda, titled the new global human order. Adopted September 16th, 2016, the United Nations officially announced it’s plan to build a New World Order and lead the world directly to communism.
Under the beginnings of a New World Order, with China as a leading example, the movement of Christians will be monitored, and house churches will be disbanded. Under the beginnings of the NWO, Christians will only be allowed to attend state-sanctioned churches, and state-funded pastors; all of which house the doctrine of the state before God.
The ideology is not new; it has been around for centuries but somewhere along the line – Christians forgot a leg of the true fight ongoing throughout the world, the silencing of Christianity.
At the beginning of the New World Order, it is entirely plausible to believe that the Holy Bible will not be considered state-sponsored unless the text is modified to meet the state’s requirements. Previous attempts can be seen in history when King James ‘authorized’ a single version of the Bible because it was a political and social necessity. King James issued over a dozen rules that the translators had to follow. King James disliked the Geneva Bible, the Bible used by the Puritans, because he believed that some of the commentaries in the margin notes did not show enough respect for kings. James’ new translation was to have no commentary in the margins…
https://freedomfightertimes.com/end-times/prophecy/china-religious-winter-destroy-christianity/
Pray for the strengthening of the Body of Christ in China and that the persecution they are experiencing will enable the church to grow even more and spread out throughout the various dialect groups and ethnic groups. Pray that government officials will also hear the Gospel and turn to the Lord
WW3 WARNING Planet closer to catastrophic World War III than at any time for SIXTY years, experts warn…
Several flashpoints could erupt into a global conflict involving the US, China and Russia, it is claimed.EXCLUSIVE
BY COREY CHARLTON 7th September 2016, The Sun, UK Edition
THE world is closer to a catastrophic and bloody World War III than at any other point in the past 60 years, experts have warned. Russia and China, both of which are pumping vast amounts of money into their militaries, could soon rival the US in terms of power and prestige. Potential WWIII triggers are located in Poland, Syria and the South China Sea.
Experts believe there a re a number of trigger points that could set off WWIII
All three nations want to remain a global superpower – if not the only one – and are preparing for war, it is claimed. But they oppose each other on a swathe of issues across the globe, creating a delicate political balance that could collapse and engulf nuclear states and alliances such as NATO. A range of experts have identified several flashpoints across the globe which are today the most likely triggers for such a war…
The proximity of NATO and Russian bombers flying over Syria, Vladimir Putin’s aggression in eastern Europe, and China’s movements in the South China Sea are among them.
Experts have also raised concerns about the instability of nuclear-power Pakistan as extremist factions and terrorist groups within the country grow in power. Adding to this is these groups’ sworn opposition to neighbouring India – which holds its own much-coveted nuclear arsenal.
Britain’s Admiral Lord West told The Sun Online: “Basically none of us know what is going to happen but we are in a more dangerous, chaotic and unpredictable time than any other in my 50 years in the force. 14
“I believe that because of Brexit, I think Europe is very flaky, I think it is unfortunate that we didn’t stay in, because they actually need our military expertise.
“I can see bits of Europe breaking up and when Europe gets into a mess, twice in the past we’ve had to go in there and clear it up with immense loss of blood and lives.”
He warned that Britain was not sufficiently investing in its defense – and in particular, its Royal Navy.
The investment required to maintain its strength had not materialised in the years since the Falklands War, he said, leaving Britain in a precarious place.
RUSSIA AND THE BALTIC STATES
In July, a 25-page report by the US-based think tank Atlantic Council warned of Russia’s growing threat to NATO. NATO has been Europe’s primary military alliance since WWII – all 28 member states have sworn to respond as a group if a single member is attacked. The council’s report warned that Russia was an “existential threat to the Baltic states and Poland” and an annexation could be implemented “with great speed”.
It continued: “This might come at a time NATO and the EU are distracted by another crisis, or it might relate to some particular high profile event, the outcomes of which Moscow wants to shape.
Russia’s Vladimir Putin is becoming increasingly aggressive towards the NATO-aligned Baltic states
“It might also result from a misperception of NATO’s activities and a miscalculation of the Alliance’s resolve.”
Admiral Lord West also said: “Russia under Putin is becoming quite aggressive, it’s spending a large amount of money on its military capabilities.
“Putin has said he believes in using tactical nuclear weapons if there is a war. That is highly dangerous.
“There’s little debate that he thinks of the Baltic states and possibly Poland as a Russian sphere of influence. They are NATO countries – I find that extremely dangerous.”
“I think people like Putin understand robust responses, they understand military power. I think he thinks he’ll pick (the Baltic states) off one-by-one.”
CLASHES OVER SYRIA
Another point of simmering tensions is Syria, where US and Russia are both carrying out airstrikes in support of opposing groups. While they share a common foe in ISIS, the US has backed Kurdish and moderate Syrian rebel groups against President Bashar al-Assad. Russia, on the other hand, is backing al-Assad against the rebels. With both countries carrying out air raids across the relatively small area, the chances of accidental clashes and misperceptions is high.
Peter W. Singer, a leading expert on future war, wrote in The Daily Telegraph last year: “As in the past, it is perfectly possible that a third world war could start with a small event, or even by accident.
“One of the many Russian bomber planes now probing NATO’s borders could collide with an RAF Typhoon, prompting an aerial skirmish the likes of which the world has not seen for decades. A Russian fighter jet was shot down by Turkey last year in a frightening example of how small incidents can quickly escalate
The downing of the jet triggered a massive diplomatic fallout between the two countries
“Indeed, the skies over Syria are starting to get dangerously crowded, with Russian jets flying near US planes on bombing runs, and sparring with NATO air defences in neighbouring Turkey.”
Such an incident – albeit on a much smaller scale – was seen in November when Turkey downed a Russian jet it claimed it had encroached on its airspace during raids in Syria. The incident led to a collapse in diplomatic relations between the two countries and sparked weeks of mudslinging between Ankara and Moscow.
With neither side prepared to lose face, their military posturing only came back from the brink after a Russian soldier was photographed travelling through the Bosphorus Strait brandishing a rocket launcher.
THE SOUTH CHINA SEA
In the past few years China has moved aggressively to dominate the South China Sea with the construction of artificial islands containing fighter jet bunkers. The move has alarmed countries such as Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines who dispute its territorial claims in the region. Futhermore, it has aggravated Japan and South Korea – two key members of a Pacific bloc the US has sworn to protect.
China has aggressively built artificial islands, such as this one pictured, where it will base fleets of jet planes
Peter W. Singer is also among those to suggest World War III could be triggered when “a Japanese or American ship scrapes paint with its Chinese Navy counterpart amid the reefs in the Pacific that are being militarized as part of Asia’s current arms race”. Indeed, Chinese military commanders – who are pushing ahead with new submarine deployments into the US’s Pacific sphere – believe this to be a genuine and legitimate scenario.
After a close call last year, China’s naval commander Admiral Wu Shengli warned his US counterpart: “If the United States continues with these kinds of dangerous, provocative acts, there could well be a seriously pressing situation between frontline forces from both sides on the sea and in the air, or even a minor incident that sparks war.”
THE COLLAPSE OF NUCLEAR PAKISTAN
Experts have long feared the collapse of nuclear-armed Pakistan – a country rife with instability, terror groups and with a sworn hatred of neighbour India. The concern is that its nuclear arsenal could fall into the hands of non-state groups ready to use it against the West, or other proxy groups. It is feared nuclear-armed Pakistan is too unstable to keep its atomic bombs secure from extremists. Notably, Pakistan was the birthplace of the Taliban – a fundamentalist Islamic group that spread into Afghanistan and ran the country following its war with the Soviet Union.
A British Ministry of Defence report released in January earmarked the region as one that will continue to generate threats to the UK. It also warned that “inter-state conflict and internal instability” were possible.
A March report by Harvard Kennedy School stated the “risk of nuclear theft in Pakistan appears to be high”.
The authors wrote: “The trend seems to be toward increasing risk, as Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal expands and shifts toward tactical nuclear weapons, while adversary capabilities remain extremely high.
“Over the longer term, the possibilities of state collapse or extremist takeover cannot be entirely ruled out.”
WARNING
George Friedman, the founder of geopolitical forecaster STRATFOR, has warned: “Be ready for war.”
Mr Friedman has written extensively about emerging trends and international affairs. He recently told Business Insider that interstate war – such as that seen during World War I and II, is a recurring characteristic of politics.
“There has never been a century that has not had a systemic war — a systemic war, meaning when the entire system convulses.
“Do you want to bet this will be the only century that doesn’t have one? I’ll take that bet.
“When you have the countries like Germany, China, and Russia decline, and be replaced by others, that’s when systemic wars start.
“That’s when it gets dangerous, because they haven’t yet reached a balance. So Germany united in 1871 and all hell broke loose.
“Japan rose in the early 20th century, and then you had chaos.
“So we’re looking at a systemic shift. Be ready for war.” (italics and bold are ours)
Please pray about these potential flash points for World War III for His peace and goodwill to influence the relationships between these nations.
All Tribes D.C. Gathering
Another assembly that was very significant spiritually for the USA happened on October 21 in Washington, D.C. at the foot of the Washington Monument.
“Some prophetic voices believe the nation shifted, spiritually, Oct. 21, 2016, on what may go down as one of the most important days in American history. Largely unnoticed, 1,000 Native American Indian tribes from the United States and Canada collectively forgave the U.S. government for breaking treaties with their ancestors during a public ceremony on the National Mall.
The National Day of Prayer for First Nations, held near the Washington Monument, included intercessory petitions, proclamations and declarations of forgiveness by leaders from All Tribes D.C., a fellowship of Christians representing 1,000 American Indians from the U.S. and Canada.
A full-blooded Euchee (Yuchi) Indian, Negiel Bigpond coordinated the first-ever national prayer gathering of Native Americans in the nation's capital. Like the annual May observance of the National Day of Prayer, signed into law by President Harry S. Truman in 1952, First Nations intercessors will convene again in 2017 during the third week of October.
Dr. Billy Graham, whose son and daughter have served on the National Day of Prayer Task Force, is a prophetic voice who believes that forgiveness by Native Americans might be part of a spiritual awakening within the nation. "The Native American has been a sleeping giant," Graham writes. "He is awakening. The original Americans could become the evangelists who will help win America for Christ. Remember the forgotten people."
Bigpond agrees that Native Americans have taken a good first step toward aiding national awakening by extending forgiveness to the nation. "We chose to forgive the U.S., whether it asked for it or not," said Bigpond, a fourth-generation pastor who offered forgiveness and spoke blessings over the nation alongside other tribal prayer warriors. Bigpond, who has evangelized on 143 reservations, believes the U.S. has suffered spiritual consequences for breaking treaties with Native Americans.
In Scripture, breaking a vow or treaty brings a curse on the land, and the U.S. government broke every treaty it made with the Native American tribes, according to prophetic voice Rick Joyner, who called the prayer event one of the most important in the nation's history from his ministry headquarters in North and South Carolina. "This is very real," Joyner said. "National injustices are a major issue we're facing now, whether we want to or not, and this is a big one."…"We believe this has shifted the nation and we are already feeling the effects of what was accomplished in D.C.," said Faus, who is the director of a house of prayer in Pennsylvania and lead intercessor with husband Jon at Hope of Nations Christian Center.
Joyner agrees that forgiveness and love are major weapons in waging spiritual warfare on behalf of the nation.
"This is one of the most noble acts of true Christian charity I have ever heard of by any people group," Joyner said. "Very few may even know that anything special happened. "Some of the greatest things happen that way, and only a very few who have their eyes open looking in the right direction, see them," Joyner said.
Portions of a proclamation posted on the All Tribes D.C. website were read by tribal leaders gathered on the National Mall.
The proclamation reads in part, "We forgive every atrocity and broken covenant ever designed to destroy us as a race of people. We break every curse and renounce every lie purposed to decimate us as human beings. "We forgive the government, the church and the educational system for the use of residential schools that attempted to destroy our culture and silence our voice as people by stealing our language.
"We stand in the gap for those who are unable or unwilling to forgive, and call upon the Master of Life, to forgive us for harboring unforgiveness, resentment, hatred, bitterness and rage.
"We repent of every curse spoken over America by our ancestors and we release the power of forgiveness to bring healing and the peace of Creator God to this land.
"We declare and decree that our voice will no longer be silenced and that this nation and the world will hear our voice as we speak life and blessings over the Americas and the world.
"We stand in faith believing that our citizenship lies in heaven, and we too, all await the return of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.
"Being all of one mind and heart, having compassion for one another, we declare our love as brothers; not returning evil for the evil perpetuated against us, but on the contrary we choose to release a blessing, knowing that the Father of us all has called us as his children to bless and not curse, that we may inherit a blessing. Amen."
AllTribesDC.org
