America’s Financial Freefall, Ramadan and Jerusalem

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has discussed with the Palestinians transferring to them 98.1 percent of the West Bank, according to a Jerusalem Post story out just a few days ago.  The report on the ongoing negotiations was broadcast in advance of a planned meeting between Olmert and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.  The Prime Minister’s Office declined to comment on the news item and said only that many such media reports had been published in the last months regarding the talks.

Earlier in the day, during what could be his last cabinet meeting before he becomes the head of a transitional government, Olmert addressed Israel’s relationship to the West Bank when he spoke of a voluntary evacuation bill to help relocate settlers living east of the security barrier.  “The vision of a greater Israel no longer exists. Those who speak of it are delusional,” the prime minister said. No vote was taken on the measure.

According to reports, Olmert is considering concessions far beyond land east of the barrier and could transfer 98.1% of the West Bank to the PA. That is significantly more than the 94% to 96% that had been discussed in previous negotiations.  The report states that Abbas has asked that Israel cede the Jerusalem area settlements of Ma’aleh Adumim and Givat Ze’ev, but is willing to negotiate the status of the Jerusalem neighborhoods of Gilo and French Hill, which are over the Green Line.

In the past the Palestinians have demanded that Israel fully withdraw to the pre-1967 borders, including from eastern Jerusalem. Israel has insisted it plans to keep the larger settlements blocs including Ma’aleh Adumim and Givat Ze’ev as well as the Jewish neighborhoods of east Jerusalem.

The future of Jerusalem was being negotiated between Olmert and Abbas, and not by the team led by Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni.  Olmert has also agreed that 5,000 Palestinian refugees would return to Israel – a thousand refugees every year for five years, according to the report. This is the Right of Return issue that has undergirded many a peace negotiations in years past that Israel seems to be caving in as well.

Abbas allegedly rejected the proposal and was demanding the return of many more refugees.  According to the report, the Palestinians were also interested in access not only to the Dead Sea but also to the Kinneret, as they claimed they deserved some rights over the water flowing into the lake because the Jordan River runs through Palestinian territory.  Also Sunday, Olmert met with visiting Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos, a former Middle East envoy for the European Union.  The two men spoke of the two-state solution and Olmert’s voluntary evacuation plan.

Both Abbas in an interview with Haaretz over the weekend, and Vice Premier Haim Ramon in briefing reporters on Sunday, expressed skepticism as to the success of the negotiations.  Ramon said he was not optimistic that a final-status agreement would be reached, “not at the end of this year and not at the end of next year.”  But what was clear, he said, was that in the future, “settlements east of the barrier won’t be under Israeli sovereignty.”

 

Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni warned that the Palestinians would view the measure as a unilateral step. She added that Israel should not take steps to determine a border while it was in the midst of negotiating one with the Palestinians.  Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz said that such a law would embolden the Palestinians to increase their demands.  Public Security Minister Avi Dichter said the proposal would be impossible to implement. More to the point, it would make any future evacuations harder to carry out because the net effect of the bill would be to replace less ideological settlers with more determined ones.

In Samaria, where a new citizens’ protest movement has already started, its leader, former Samaria Regional Council head Benny Katzover, said they were collecting signatures of residents who had pledged not to leave. The regional council had received many calls from people who wanted to move there to protest against the Ramon bill, he said.

Speaking in defense of the voluntary evacuation bill at the cabinet meeting, Olmert said that for the 40 years since it acquired the West Bank during the Six Day War, Israel had been making excuses as to why it could not do anything.  This, he said, did not help Israel. It was important Israel showed it had taken initiative in the peace process.  “We have to advance the voluntary evacuation compensation bill and to bring it to the cabinet [for a vote],” the prime minister said.  Olmert said he had not always supported territorial concessions and that he had initially felt that then-prime minister Ehud Barak had offered the Palestinians too much at Camp David in 2000.

“I thought that the land between the Jordan River and the sea was ours,” he said.  In the end, he said he came to the conclusion that we had to reach an agreement with the Palestinians if we did not want to see Israel become a binational state.  There was no time to waste, Olmert said. adding: “We can argue about every small detail and find that when we are ready for an agreement there is no partner and no international support.”  In the not too distant future, there would come a day when “we will want those same solutions that we are rejecting today,” he said. Israel had to reach a final peace agreement with the Palestinians and the Syrians. If this happened, then relations with other Arab nations would follow suit, he said.

Olmert’s thinking is both dangerous for Israel and the world itself. Nothing Israel offers the Arab World during this process will be enough. Behind all this “good will” Olhmert is offering however is the strong arm of the United States and the Bush Administration. Condi Rice has been in Jerusalem for weeks now orchestrating the division of Jerusalem and pressuring Israel to give and cave into the demands Olmert basically stated in his accessment this past week.

America has experienced two devastating hurricanes the last two weeks that have cost our nation billions of dollars in damage; our financial markets have went into a trillion dollar freefall the last few days as three of our nation’s largest banking and mortgage institutions have went under as well as one of the nation’s largest insurance agencies. And that may just be the beginning. Let the politicans posture themselves as America’s “saviour” from this mess but friend let me assure you there is not going to be a “saviour” who can save us from the debacle this nation is going to face if we keep pressuring Israel to divide Jerusalem! The only hope for America is Jesus Christ and a Holy Ghost revival that must begin soon or this wonderful nation is going to face destruction.

I don’t say these things with glee or happiness but a heavy heart.

On a related yet different issue, we’re in the middle of the Islamic celebration of Ramadan, which will continue for 30 days until Tuesday, the 30th of September.

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Muslim calendar. The Month of Ramadan is also when it is believed the Holy Quran “was sent down from heaven, a guidance unto men, a declaration of direction, and a means of Salvation” It is duriig this month that Muslims fast. It is called the Fast of Ramadan and lasts the entire month. Ramadan is a time when Muslims concentrate on their faith and spend less time on the concerns of their everyday lives. It is a time of worship and contemplation.

During the Fast of Ramadan strict restraints are placed on the daily lives of Muslims. They are not allowed to eat or drink during the daylight hours. Smoking and sexual relations are also forbidden during fasting. At the end of the day the fast is broken with prayer and a meal called the iftar. In the evening following the iftar it is customary for Muslims to go out visiting family and friends. The fast is resumed the next morning.

According to the Muslim Koran, the good that is acquired through the fast can be destroyed by five things -

the telling of a lie

slander

denouncing someone behind his back

a false oath

greed or covetousness

 

These are considered offensive at all times, but are most offensive during the Fast of Ramadan. President Bush is the first American President to bring the celebration of Ramadan to a level of having the White House honor it. It just adds fuel to an already burning fire over our nation right now that is not bringing good tidings peace on earth and good will to all men.

Keep your eyes on America’s markets the next few days into the coming weeks; while you’re watching America’s financial frefall, keep your eyes on Jerusalem and the processes that are taking place over God’s Holy City as we write this. We need to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. We need to pray for the peace and prosperity of our nation and God’s blessings to return.

Remembering 9-11-2001

Our heart felt prayers and thoughts go out today to those families who lost loved ones 9-11-2001 on America’s darkest day. We also send our thoughts to the ones who lost sons and daughters in the subsequent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. “WE WILL NEVER FORGET”! On this seventh annivesary it’s appropriate to put down our partianship and realize that seven years ago on that fateful day none of us were Democrats, none of us were Republicans, we were ALL Americans. There were no red states or blue states that day; there were no whites, blacks, Hispanics or Asians – we all were one albeit for a short time.

I’m writing this at 8:34, about 10 minutes prior to when the first plane hit the first tower at the WTC at 8:46. My wife and I had actually sat in Logan Airport on Monday, September 10,2001; I was working in New England at the time selling portraits; she had joined me for a mini-vacation and I was waiting with her till her plane flew out later in the day. We had been on the phone the night before begging the airlines to change her ticket so she could leave a day later but was not allowed to. I see that now as God’s providence and protection on our lives. Had she flown out a day later we would have been affected directly by this terrible tragedy.

The day of 9-11 I was in Manchester, New Hampshire; I had went to a local bookstore about 8 that morning; got back to the hotel room about 8:50 when I noticed a message to call my wife asap. When she came on the phone she was in tears and said calmly, “turn on the TV.” It was then I saw where the first plane had hit; then witnessed in horror as other Americans the second plane hitting at 9:15. We both cried on the phone knowing we were 24 hours removed from the airport where the planes flew out of and how close we had come to being more involved in the affects. It was and will be a day this writer will never forget even if he lives to be 100 years old.

What I am about to say next may sound political, but it is not; it is from the heart of someone who loves this nation and is proud to be an American citizen. The people who attacked America on 9-11-2001 attacked America not because of our ‘foreign’ policy or any other reason than simple religious hatred; hatred for Israel; hatred for Christianity; hatred for democracy; hatred for anyone who did not embrace the jihadism of Islam, the religion that was behind the attitudes that caused the loss of nearly 3,000 on 9-11 and now another 4,000 of our young men and women who were sent into harms way to defend the nation from further terrorism.

When I hear people insinuate America or George Bush orchestrated these events on 9-11 as to perform some kind of sick political stunt it makes my blood run red. That is the highest form of offensive and stupid talk I think one could engage in. When people think such they are as deluded as an individual can be. Enough said on that but let this writer be clear. The morons who think such do not love their country and are not patriots and to be blunt about it don’t deserve the freedoms this nation has provided them to spouse such stupidity. The nations controlled by the same religious framework of those who perpetrated 9-11 would not allow them to speak such; if they did, most of them would have had their heads lopped off. Only in a free society like America can people spouse their opinions freely no matter how far out those opinions are.

Islam hates Israel; because America supports Israel (AND RIGHTLY SO) Islam thus hates America. These acts were not planned overnight; the events of 9-11 were planned years out by all viewpoints and were not done as a response to the election of George W. Bush as some believe. I actually read one article on the Internet a few days ago that insinuated such saying that America’s enemies had reason to attack us when Bush took office because of his policies. Bush had not been in office but nine months when these events took place; Clinton had been in office 8 years and had not responded to the warning shots fired across the bow in 1993 at the first World Trade Center bombings and then the subsequent bombings in 1998 of the U.S. Cole and American Embassy in Kenya. That is not to be taken as this writer is blaming Bill Clinton; he is not. 9-11 was going to take place no matter the external circumstances in our nation’s politics.

It’s 8:46 now as we observe with a local program here in town a moment of silence for the victims.

In looking back it makes us know that for just a short time this nation showed what can be done when it comes together. You cannot negotiate with men like the ones who did these acts of terror. There is evil in the world that goes beyond American foreign policy or who is in the White House.

I plan to write a blog tommorow about the two different viewpoints of the world by both John McCain and Barrack Obama as it pertains to terrorism; today is not the day for that; we’ll get back to politics then.

For today, our hearts go out to the numerous families in this nation who lost loved ones seven years ago on that infamous and dark day that will remain engrained on this writer’s heart till the day he dies. We must never forget what happened; sadly, many have. Others have remembered and instead of humbling themselves and looking at the greater good spiritually for the nation, they have hardened their heart and became more cynical, more biased, more racist, and more jaded than ever before.

We cannot afford as a nation to become such. America the Beautiful is beautiful because of the PEOPLE in this great nation; we’re not perfect; but if we don’t come together as a nation soon then should God forbid another act of terrorism take place as took place on 9-11, we will be destroyed.

May God bless America today and beyond but more importantly, may America bless God in these troubled times.

“WE WILL NEVER FORGET”

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Terror and The Time of the End

As we go deeper into the political season, the issue of terrorism and how each candidate will handle national security is going to become more pronounced. The combination of radical Islam and terror is the great new threat to the world. The question is what does the Bible say about the prophetic implications of this new menance? The rise of Islamic terror is actually setting the stage for the end times, the rise of the Antichrist and the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Here are a few things to consider. One, time is simply running out. There’s a storm coming friend; dark clouds hover over an already violatile world where rogue nations such as Iran, N. Korea and now the reemergence of Russia has signaled that the coming of Jesus is very near. Stop and think about this. End-time events predicted by prophets 3,500 yearse ago have never been so easy to imagine or been so consistent with the movement of world history as they are right now.

The Bible predicts that God, not man, will bring the period of the Gentiles to an abrubpt halt during the Battle of Armageddon when Christ returns to judge the world. God, not man, will control the events that lead to the reign of Christ on earth, when the Jewish people will finally be ushered into their hour of glory and peac predicted by the prophets. The lion will lie down with the lamb. The earth will be saved for the predicted millenial reign of CHrist. According to the Scriptures, at the end of that reign, God, not man, will dismantle the earth and create a new heaven and new Earth. If rogue nations or terrorists begin to use WMD, the whole world will be thrown into chaos and confusion. Just think, what would happen if one of these weapons, even a dirty bomb, were detonated in a major city in the United States, Europe, or Jerusalem. While something catastrophic could happen to destablilize the world prior to the Rapture of the Church, it seems much more likely that these kinds of international convulsions will be part of the post-Rapture scenario that catapults the Group of Ten nations known as the Revised Roman Empire and eventually the coming man of Sin, or Antichrist, to power.

God could delay or turn back the timetable for these end-time events. He could certainly prevent terroristsor rogue nations from getting their hands on WMDs and pushing the world to the brink of chaos. But right now it looks like the stage is set for end-time events to begin, though no one on earth knows the day or the hour of Christ’s coming – either for the church – or with the church.

Secondly, the nations of the earth are gathering daily in place for a predicted end time invasion and attack of Israel. The rise of Islamic terror is setting the stage for events in Ezekiel 38 and 39, which prophesy an invasion of Israel in the end times by a vast coalition of nations, all of whom are Islamic today except Russia. Israel has asid that a new “axis of terror” – Iran, Syria, and the Hamas-run Palestinian government – is sowing the seeds of thefirst world war of the 21rst Century. The rise of Islam, and especially radical Islamic terrorism, strikingly foreshadows Ezekiel’s great prophecy.

Thirdly, the conditions are in place for the world, especially Israel, to accept peace at any price. The world is more at risk today for nuclear detonations, biological warfare, and chemical warfare than ever before. Pakisan and India have the bomb. So do China and North Korea. Iran is working feverishly to join the “nuclear clubb,” and it’s only a matter of time until rogue states, terrorists, or fanatics get their hands on these weapons of mass destruction. The unrest in key Islamic nations could easily erupt into an explosive call for widespread jihad or holy war. Neigbor, we’re on the precipice of that daily.

The Middle East is the only region in the world whose reserves are large enough to meet rising U.S. and international demands for oil. The deadly combination of oil and terror in the Middle East leaves the West especially vulnerable. In this climate of terror and uncertainty, the world yearns for some way to make the unrest stop. People the world over, even here in America, are clamoring for peace and safety. The world has become obsessed with security at any cost yet we have never felt more unsafe, more exposed or more vulnerable than we do right now.

This “cry” for peace of Safety is taken right out of the pages of the Bible as the Apostle Paul decried in 1 Thessalonians 5:1-3 that when men say “peace and safety,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as travail upon a woman. In light of this, if a “man” comes on the world scene promising such safety and can deliver, then the world will readily accept him – including the nation of Israel. That too is a scenario not taken from the pages of Fox News but from the pages of God’s Word.

Fourthly, the power of globalism and the threat of global terror has served to bring the world toegether. After the flood of the earth recorded in Genesis, the Bible says that all the people of the world congregated at one location under the leadership of one man, Nimrod, to build a great tower to the heavens (Genesis 10:8-10; 11:1-9) The whole world was one community in global rebellion against its Creator. God cam dow and confounded the language of man, dispersing the rebel race over the face of the earth.

Ever since, Satan has tried in vain to again bring the world under the control of one man through whom he could rule the world. The pharoahs,Nebuchadnezzar, Alexander the Great, the caesars, Napolean, Hitler and Stalen have entered and left the stage of world history. Yet there is one still yet to come whom the Bible predicts will come in the spirit of a one-world economy, government, and religion to shake its collective fist in the face of the Creator. The Antichrist will lead this global union against God. (Revelation 13:3-18). Until recently that may have seemed impossible. Not any more. With the power of the Internet and computer networking now in place globally, the possibilities for one ruler to communicate with the entire world and control the world economy is no longer a pipe dream; it’s a reality.

The 1990s were called the decade of globalization. Incredible developments occurred that advanced globalization at warp speed. These included the end of the Cold War; the creation of the World Trade Organization; the advance of the Internet; the creation of CNN and other instant global news agencies; the need for global cooperation on environmental issues; the threat of terror worldwide and the global need for oil.

In the face of these threats, nations can no longer afford to go it alone. Isolation is a thing of the past and more than ever nation coalitions are becoming a greater reality. Just recently a new Middle East conglomeration called the Union of the Mediterrean was introduced in 2007 and is gaining momentum everyday. More on this later. This latest coalition is quite different from the European Union which had no members from the Middle East area of Turkey, Syria, Iraq, Iran and Israel – the main stage for the coming Tribulation period. This new coalition does. The Antichrist will take full advantage of this opportunity created by fear and will seize control of the global network of nations to rule the world. WIll it be this new “Union of the Mediterrean?” Not in its current state of close to 40 members. The coalition Daniel saw in his prophetic writings had TEN. A reshaping of this union could take place quickly or over time depending on how quick the HOLY SPIRIT deems fit to orchestrate last days events.

Either way, the threat of terrorism is not just an election issue this year – it’s a prophetic issue for the stage of the end times.

TRUE PEACE is coming to Planet Earth. God will allow even that which is evil to advance His prophetic program even if it is the false peace that will be offered and accepted by the Antichrist. This false peace will be shattered, followed by the catastropiic judgements that end the period of the Gentiles. Bottom line: GOD, not man, will bring true peace to the earth. Not Barrack Obama, not John McCain, not the United Nations, Not Bill Clinton and not the Pope in Rome. It’s hard to imagine world peace in these troubled times but neighbor it’s coming in the form of a MAN. False peace comes to earth in the form of the Antichrist; true peace is coming in the Second Coming of the PRINCE OF PEACE, the LORD JESUS CHRIST and He and He alone will come and rule over the earth one day; when He does, the lion will lay down with lamb! Praise God.

It’s getting late neighbor. I pray you have made your calling and election sure in these last hours before Jesus returns. Shalom, and Maranatha – even so come quickly, Lord Jesus.

The Region Known Now As The Newly Formed “Union of the Mediterannean” This region closely resembles Daniel’s vision of a coming “Revised Roman Empire,” – the seventh kingdom from which the Antichrist will spring (10 nations at first, 3 destroyed, then out of the seven remaining, he will be revealed and form the EIGHTH kingdom, the REVISED GRECIAN EMPIRE or the KINGDOM OF THE BEAST)

Gustav Ashore, Hannah Coming, Ike Too

Our thoughts and prayers go out tonight to the folks in Louisiana, Texas and Mississippi tonight as Gustav moves inland producing flooding, wind damage and death. Some 7 people have died so far as of 10 PM Monday night; that toll may or may not go up depending on search and rescue efforts that are to begin in earnest on Tuesday. Thankfully Gustav lost a bit of punch right before it hit land but with winds of 115 mph as it hit land, Gustav was no Katrina certainly, but he was not a push over either. As we wrote in our previous blog the timing of this storm, as well as two other storms looming in the Atlantic, is just days after our Secretary of State Condi Rice has been in Jerusalem pressuring Israel to divide Jerusalem. Draw what conclusions you will but this same basic thing was going on days prior to Katrina in 2005. It was God’s mercy today to the city of New Orleans once again that caused the storm to jog a bit more west and its winds decrease right before landfall that may have spared the city the fate it suffered in 2005. In addition to Gustav not being as severe a storm as Katrina, the government on all levels, state, federal and local, worked much better together this go around without a doubt. Republican governors Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, Haley Barbour of Mississippi, Charlie Crist of Florida, Rick Perry of Texas should all be commended on their mobilization of evacuations in their respective states ahead of the storm that certainly saved lives as well. Gustav will move west tommorow and produce flooding rains in Texas without a doubt but Gustav will be a distant memory in a few days as our attention will turn to Hannah. Hannah, a Category 1 storm in the SE Bahammas tonight is expected to turn NW, strengthen into monster status and become a Hugo-like storm to hit the Carolinas sometime later this week into the early part of the weekend. One forecaster said late tonight forecast models are once again predicting a Category 3 or 4 storm by Wednesday and quoting the forecaster from Accuweather, “Hannah has the potential to be a historically strong storm like we used to see in the 1940s and 1950s.” Another storm IKE, is right behind Hannah churning westward that is likely to hit the U.S. next week as well; Ike’s path is more uncertain but once again predicted to become a major hurricane before it makes landfall next week. Why are we seeing such convulsions in the Earth? New Orleans was spared, thank God, and we can only hope this space of mercy will cause those living in the Big Easy to look upward; what Gustav did not produce, Hannah might in terms of distruction; If America continues to press Israel to divide Jerusalem trust me, the response from heaven will not be one we will want to hear. Gustav was a warning; Hannah may be more. Continue to pray for America, the peace of Jerusalem and the entire Middle East situation in days ahead. More on this as the week plays out.

Gustav, Katrina’s Anniversary, Jerusalem and Judgement

Related: http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=73705

“That doesn’t mean that everything will be totally smooth,” White House press secretary Dana Perino said. “We’re facing what could be a very strong hurricane, possibly one of the largest and strongest to hit America since records began.”—Dana Perino – White House Spokesperson With Bush

From World Net Daily on August 30, 2008 – Headline: Palestinian Media: Rice Urging Division of Jerusalem; “Secret Negotians” Underway For Peace Deal of September.

JERUSALEM – In her visit here earlier this week, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice pressed Israel to sign a document by the end of the year that would divide Jerusalem by offering the Palestinians a state in Israel’s capital city as well as in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, according to multiple reports yesterday in major official Palestinian Authority media outlets. The information, verified by top diplomatic sources, first was reported Tuesday by WND. Al Ayam, an official PA newspaper, quoted top Palestinian sources stating Rice asked the Israeli and Palestinian negotiating teams to meet at the highest levels on a daily basis and to keep the meetings private. The newspaper claimed Rice spoke to PA officials about eastern Jerusalem becoming part of a Palestinian state as well as sections of the Jordan Valley. Al Ayam’s editor-in-chief, Akram Heniyeh, is one of PA President Mahmoud Abbas’ closest advisers. Official PA television yesterday quoted sources close to Abbas stating Rice’s short-term goal is to produce an interim Israeli-Palestinian paper before a meeting of the United Nations General Assembly next month. WND reported exclusively Aug. 1 that Olmert told the PA he intends to accelerate negotiations to reach some understanding on paper as soon as September. Also in the official Palestinian media yesterday, a high-level Palestinian source told the Al Quds daily that Rice for the first time discussed with Abbas the need to create a Palestinian state alongside the 1967 borders, meaning an Israeli evacuation of the Gaza Strip, West Bank and eastern Jerusalem. Israel recaptured eastern Jerusalem, including the Temple Mount – Judaism’s holiest site – during the 1967 Six Day War. The Palestinians have claimed eastern Jerusalem as a future capital. About 244,000 Arabs live in Jerusalem, mostly in eastern neighborhoods. Jerusalem has an estimated total population of 724,000, the majority Jewish. Top diplomatic sources involved in the Israeli-Palestinian talks confirmed to WND the goal is to create a Palestinian state on paper by January. The Israeli team, led by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, has been negotiating the division of Jerusalem – despite claims to the contrary – but would rather conclude an agreement on paper by the end of the year that would give the Palestinians a state in the West Bank, Gaza and some Israeli territory, leaving conclusions on Jerusalem for a later date, the informed diplomatic sources told WND. The sources said the Palestinian team has been pushing to conclude a deal by January on all core issues, including Jerusalem, and has been petitioning the U.S. to pressure Israel into signing an agreement on paper that offers the Palestinians eastern Jerusalem

Blog: I sit numb late Saturday night looking at the models from the National Hurricane Center in Miami concerning a monster storm that has been forecast to slam into the U.S. Gulf Coast sometime early this coming week; Gustav is that storm. With winds already packing a 150 MPH punch, the dangerous Category 4 storm is headed on a scary and prophetic path that Hurricane Katrina took almost 3 years to the day in 2005. New Oreleans has not been the same since Katrina hit 8/29/2005 and not only caused billions of dollars in property damage in Lousiana, Alabama, Mississippi and Texas, but killed thousands of lives and basically ended George Bush’s political career as the result of the perceived terrible response to the storm by the Federal Government and the White House. This blog does not want to revisit those issues from 2005 because in reality when something as big as Katrina was happens to a nation, blame is the only thing that is certain to follow in hurting hearts looking for answers. In that regards, one entity of government cannot be singled out as to failing to respond. The entire system of government failed our nation in 2005 from the federal level all the way to the local level with the ineptness of New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin and then Louisana Governor Kathleen Blanco; America was overwhelmed by the magnitude of Katrina and three years later we’re facing the mother of all storms named Gustav. An interesting prophetic footnote to 2005 is that just three days prior to Hurricane Katrina, Israel was strong armed into giving up the Gaza Strip to the Palestinians; a historic act of appeasement and continued carving up of Israel’s land in hopes for peace that sent prophetic shockwaves through the Spirit realm and in this writer’s opinion set the stage for what happened 36 hours later in America. Ariel Sharon, Israel’s PM at the time, would suffer a stroke 5 months later in January 2006, a stroke from which he has not recovered and returned and hangs on for dear life at this very moment. Let’s run the clock ahead 3 years to 2008. Just last week Condi Rice was in Jerusalem telling Israel that it had to divide Jerusalem with the Palestinians if any reasonable peace deal would be struck this September before President Bush left office. The idea of Bush sealing a deal before he left office in 2009 seemed to be Rice’s bigger concern than Israel’s security or the importance of Jerusalem in the plans of God . Rice was not alone in her efforts as now Israeli PM Ehud Olhmert, whose Kadima Party has done nothing but concede land deal after land deal to the Palestinians in hopes of Israeli security, agreed to Rice’s sentiments without desent and thus in this writer’s opinion has set the stage it seems for another terrible tragedy. Dana Perino, White House Spokesperson, said 24 hours ago that the White House has been informed that this storm may become potentially one of the strongest and worst to ever hit the US Mainland since weather records have begun to be kept. Folks, those records begun to be kept in the late  1800s which would mean close to 200 years. (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,413906,00.html, see comment about 5 paragraphs down) How can we not expect anything less than this when we tinker with a city whose foundations scream that it belongs to the Creator Himself? The Psalmist wrote that God has chosen to “put His name” upon Jerusalem and further more prayed that if he forgot Jerusalem that his right hand cease to work. That is how important Jerusalem is to the Jewish people, the nation of Israel, the world and to the plans of God for Planet Earth. Can we intelligently see what is going on and not believe there is anything but conincidence to this? I remember reading one so-called “prophetic” writer a few years back declaring that there was absolutely no connection to America’s pressure on Jerusalem and Israel to give up land for peace and the warning judgements God has brought on America. In John McTernan’s tremendous book “Israel, the Blessing and the Curse,” as well as Bill Koenig’s book “Eye to Eye,” where both writers outline events since 1991 that occured within 36-48 hours each time when American pushed Israel into dividing Jerusalem or carving up land for peace that bascially were either natural disasters or financial breakdowns in our economy. In 2004 and 2005 we had a record setting year for hurricanes before having a record setting silence and absence of these same storms in 2006 and 2007. The difference? In 2004 and 2005 America was actively involved in seeking to carve out and settle the “ROAP MAP” on Israel; in 2006 and 2007 little effort was done, at least publically, to force Israel to give up her land for a false peace treaty with the Palestinians. Now in 2008, the hurricanes are back as well as an already record setting year for both tornadoes and tornado deaths here in America. Folks, something is going on in the heavenlies whether we want to recognize it or not; the earth is convulsing like never before certainly (Romans but it seems to be convulsing more during these seasons where America interacts to force Israel into doing such things as it is doing at the present time. These disasters and economic meltdowns were termed “warning” judgements by McTernan, who correctly said, that the term “warning” is appropriate because if God actually judged America, America would not exist. These warning echos are part of an overall bigger warning to America to cease from her insanity in pushing Israel to this end. Dividing Jerusalem will NOT bring Middle East peace; Dividing Jerusalem WILL put America on a collision course with Jerusalem’s founder and archetict – the God of heaven, the Almighty Jehovah. Gustav is not the only concern for our nation weather wise. Hurricane Hannah waits right behind Gustav and two other systems are almost in a perpendicular line waiting to form that may affect the U.S. Coastline in the coming days and week ahead.  Hannah seems to have her sights on Florida at some point after Gustav hits late Monday into Tuesday. Draw your own conclusions; this is America and we live in a free society to express our opinion; this is mine; you’re entitled to yours. I’m not writing these words with glee, but with tears and a solemn understanding and realization that we’re seeing 2005 played out again and with the very same fundamental issue at the root of yet another “warning” judgement from heaven – ISRAEL and JERUSALEM. Gustav, is a Russian name, and means “a royal staff of the Gods” which signals even more to this writer that the prophetic nature of this storm cannot be understated. Russia itself threatened the US on Friday saying military options were on the table if the U.S. deployed a missile shield into Poland as expected. That is another blog for another time; Back to Gustav and Katrina. Did we not learn our lessons from Katrina? It seems that while on a natural level, both state, federal and local authorities are better prepared this go around, spritiually speaking, we are just as dense. We need to pray for President Bush, the Governor of Louisaina Bobby Jindall, the cities of New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Alexandria and Lafayette, which are all in the storm’s path, New Orelans Ray Nagin and the entire citizenry along our beautiful Gulf Coast. I say it again; I sit numb tonight watching this storm grow and tracking the path it’s scheduled to take. This is serious business and in merit of our prayers and deep intercession for our nation and the lives of our fellow citizens in Lousiana; the reality is that should this storm hit in its predicted strength and power on Monday night that lives are going to be lost in this storm; as a result, scores will go into eternity before it’s all over sometime late Tuesday; that’s how serious this is; that’s why I weep for New Orleans; that’s why I weep for America; that’s why I weep for Jerusalem; that’s why I weep and pray for mercy during a time it seems God is speaking once again to our nation.  Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Pray for America.

Related Links: http://www.state.gov/secretary/rm/2008/08/108910.htm

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1219572134882&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FPrinter

The “Blow Of Roe V. Wade,” Barrack, The Dems and November

The “Blow” of Roe V. Wade January 22, 1973

 

This coming January of 2009 will mark the 36^th anniversary of one of the most darkest days in American history – the day the U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling in a landmark case called Roe V. Wade. In what researchers call “a historic decision,” the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that women, as part of their constitutional right to privacy, can terminate a pregnancy during its first two trimesters. Only during the last trimester, when the fetus can survive outside the womb, would states be permitted to regulate abortion of a healthy pregnancy. The controversial ruling, essentially reversing a century of anti-abortion legislation in the United States, was the result of a call by many American women for control over their own reproductive processes. Although defended by the Supreme Court on several occasions, the legalization of abortion became a divisive and intensely emotional public issue. The debate intensified during the 1980s, and both pro-choice and pro-life organizations strengthened their membership and political influence. Republican presidents Ronald Reagan and George Bush used their executive authority to legislate abortion clinic guidelines that restricted free practice of the procedure. However, in 1986, and again in 1989 and 1992, the Supreme Court narrowly reaffirmed the decision, and in 1993 President Bill Clinton, a Democrat, overturned his predecessors’ anti-abortion legislation within days of taking office. In 2005, the retirement of Supreme Court justice Sandra Day O’Connor, who though conservative had helped block efforts to overturn Roe v. Wade, has led to fears from those seeking to protect this damnable law that the legislation might be vulnerable to reversal. Since 1973, nearly 49 million babies have been aborted since this law’s passage. According to the Roe decision, most laws against abortion in the United States violated a constitutional right to privacy under the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The decision overturned all state and federal laws outlawing or restricting abortion that were inconsistent with its holdings. Roe v. Wade is one of the most controversial and politically significant cases in U.S. Supreme Court history. Its lesser-known companion case, Doe v. Bolton, was decided at the same time.  The central holding of Roe v. Wade was that abortions are permissible for any reason a woman chooses, up until the “point at which the fetus becomes ‘viable,’ that is, potentially able to live outside the mother’s womb, albeit with artificial aid. Viability is usually placed at about seven months (28 weeks) but may occur earlier, even at 24 weeks.” The Court also held that abortion after viability must be available when needed to protect a woman’s health, which the Court defined broadly in the companion case of Doe v. Bolton. These court rulings affected laws in 46 states. The Roe v. Wade decision has sunk into a political debate while God views it as a Spiritual issue and a nation’s statement of rebellion against the Creator who forbids the shedding of innocent blood. It is interesting to note that today (1-22-2008) has been one of the most volatile days in recent history on the world’s global financial markets. The Dow Jones Industrial has lost nearly 600 points in 3 days here in America while other markets have struck fear the world’s economy may be headed for recession. I am not going to speculate there is any connection but I will say this. If we keep shedding innocent blood in this land and doing it with under the guise of legal abortion, words cannot describe the accountability we will face as a nation before God. In 2005 Democratic Presidential nominee Hilary Clinton said this at a luncheon in New York City: “Thank you all very much for having me. I am so pleased to be here two days after the 32nd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, a landmark decision that struck a blow for freedom and equality for women. Today Roe is in more jeopardy than ever, and I look forward to working with all of you as we fight to defend it in the coming years.”  (Hilary Clinton, speaking in 2005 at the NYS Family Planning Provide Source: http://clinton.senate.gov/~clinton/speeches/2005125A05.html  Roe V. Wade stuck a blow alright, but NOT for freedom and equality for women as Mrs. Clinton so wickedly proclaimed just 3 years ago but made it legal for the innocent slaughter of nearly 50 million babies since 1973. Their blood is crying from the ground of America’s soil as we have literally become a “valley of slaughter.” I ask a question as I close this post. With 48,589,993 abortions (reported by CDC) since 1973 – Is this the blow that Roe v. Wade “struck” for freedom and equality for women Mrs. Clinton? Read our Journal: http://spiritjournals.com/Journals/Journals%202008/Messages/bloodcrying.htm