Happy Tuesday

Help for the Hurting
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. - James 5:16

When we hear about someone who has been brought low, either through his own sin or through no fault of his own, do we weep over it? Or are we quick to condemn--quick to pass on gossip? It's easy to snicker and to take on a holier-than-thou attitude. But it's more profitable to pray.

In today's passage, we find Job's friends doing everything but comforting him. They try to expose some hidden transgression. They cast doubt on the integrity of his family. They bring his honesty into question and imply that he obtained his wealth by dishonest means.
Finally, Job cries out, "My friends scorn me, but mine eye poureth out tears unto God. Oh, that one might plead for a man with God, as a man pleadeth for his neighbor!" (16:20-21, KJV). That's the need. Rather than punishing people with words that are as sharp as knives, we need to pray for them with words that are directed by the spirit of truth. It is through prayer that we can help hurting people focus their eyes on Christ.
The Bible challenges us to run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. And during the painful process, the Bible tells us to "consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart" (Hebrews 12:3). Is there a person you know who is suffering right now? Will you take a few minutes and pray for that individual?
Prayer
Lord, just as You have showed mercy to me, give me a heart of compassion for the frailty of others and a passion to pray for them. Amen.

It is through prayer that we can help hurting people focus their eyes on Christ.


Daily Smile: Kid's Joke of The Day


Doctor: "Good news you passed your hearing test!" 

Patient: "HUH"


In The News:


Coptic Children Arrested for Defiling Quran in Egypt
Two Coptic Christian boys in Egypt, ages 9 and 10, were arrested on Sunday for allegedly desecrating pages of a Quran, International Christian Concern reports. Mina Nady Farag, 9, and Nabil Nagy Rizk, 10, were detained Sept. 30 when a local imam from their home village of Ezbet Marco in Beni Suef province accused them of tearing pages of a Quran. They are being held in a juvenile detention center until their scheduled court appearance on Sunday. Accusations of insulting Islam have increased since violent protests swept the Middle East last month over a U.S.-produced film that ridicules Islam; at least 17 people in Egypt have been charged with blasphemy following the release of the film. "However, it is not the film that should be blamed for the influx of blasphemy cases," said Aidan Clay, ICC regional manager for the Middle East. "Rather, it is extremists who have used the film as an excuse to press their Islamic agenda, arguing that banning blasphemy means standing up for Islam. The battle is being waged by Islamists who want their interpretation of religion to be declared as the only acceptable version. Sadly, the Islamists are getting their way, and blasphemy charges, like those filed against the two young boys, will inevitably increase."

Chick-fil-A President Dan Cathy: 'We Support Biblical Families'
Chick-fil-A president Dan Cathy voiced his support for "biblical families" in one of his first interviews since this summer's controversy over his comments in support of traditional marriage, Yahoo! News reports. Cathy told Atlanta TV station WXIA in an interview released Wednesday that families were important to "those of us who are concerned about being able to hang on to our heritage. ... We support biblical families, and they've always been a part of that."

India: Hindu Extremists Break Up Prayer Meeting, Detain Four Christians
A mob of about 50 Hindu extremists broke up a prayer meeting held for the HIV-positive and the blind in Karnataka, India, on September 18, according to the Karnataka Legal Aid Cell, Open Doors News reports. Led by the president of the local Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, the attackers destroyed the dinner prepared for the worshippers and attempted to capture the pastor, identified as Raju. They forced four worshippers, at least one of them blind, to the local police station, and filed a complaint accusing the pastor of forcible conversions to Christianity. The four Christians were detained through the night. Christian leaders in the area have intervened to defend the believers.

Venezuela's Hugo Chavez Says He'd Vote for Obama
Hugo Chavez, the socialist dictator of Venezuela, has given President Obama his seal of approval, WORLD News Service reports. Last weekend Chavez said, "If I was from the United States, I'd vote for Obama." He went on to say: "Obama is a good guy. I think that if Obama was from Barlovento or some Caracas neighborhood, he'd vote for Chavez." Conservative pundits had a field day with this statement. Gary Bauer, for example, said: "It's obvious why Hugo Chavez supports Obama and thinks Obama would support him. Chavez certainly knows a fellow socialist when he sees one, and he also knows a weak-kneed American president when he sees one."

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