It’s Easter Monday, April 18th, A.D. 2022. Matthew 28:5-6 says, “The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; He has risen, just as He said. Come and see the place where He lay.’” This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard at www.TheWorldview.com. I’m Adam McManus.
By Adam McManus (Adam@TheWorldview.com)
100 Christians in India locked in church on Maundy Thursday
A congregation of 100 Christians celebrating a Maundy Thursday service in India’s Uttar Pradesh’s District were threatened by a radical Hindu mob who surrounded the church and subsequently locked the doors, reports International Christian Concern.
The Hindu mob’s leader, Himanshu Dikshit, complained to the sympathetic police that the church was working to convert Hindus to the Christian faith.
While most of the congregation has been freed from the locked church, 36 remain in jail on forced conversion charges while the wider Christian community works to raise their bail.
One of the Christians in the congregation said, “This is a perfect portrayal of Jesus’ suffering 2,000 years ago. We know Jesus endured, and we will.”
Jesus said, “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated Me first.” (John 15:18)
Zelenskyy’s concern about a Russian nuclear attack
On Friday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told CNN’s Jake Tapper that “all of the countries of the world” should be prepared for the possibility that Russian President Vladimir Putin could use tactical nuclear weapons in his war on Ukraine.
Listen.
TAPPER: “The director of the CIA warned that he’s worried Putin might use a tactical nuclear weapon in this fight. Are you worried?”
ZELENSKY: “And not only me. I think all of the world, all the countries have to be worried because, you know that it can be not real information, but it can be truth. When they began to speak about nuclear weapons, or chemical weapons, they could do it. For them, life of the people [it means] nothing. That’s why we should think, ‘Don’t be afraid; be ready.’ But that is not the question, not only for the Ukraine, but for all the world. I think so.”
CIA Director: We can’t take lightly Putin’s nuclear threats
U.S. officials have warned about the possibility that Russian President Vladimir Putin, if backed into a corner, could turn to the use of tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine, reports Radio Free Europe.
Last Thursday, in a question-and-answer session following a speech at Georgia Tech University, CIA Director Bill Burns said this.
BURNS: “Given the potential desperation of President Putin and the Russian leadership, given the setbacks that they’ve faced so far, militarily, none of us can take lightly the threat posed by a potential resort to tactical nuclear weapons or low-yield nuclear weapons.
“While we’ve seen some rhetorical posturing on the part of the Kremlin about moving to higher nuclear alert levels, so far, we haven’t seen a lot of practical evidence of the kind of deployments or military dispositions that would reinforce that concern. But we watch for that very intently. It’s one of our most important responsibilities at the CIA.”
DeSantis signs ban on abortions after 15 weeks gestation
Last Thursday, Florida’s pro-life Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law a bill prohibiting abortions in the Sunshine State after 15 weeks gestation, reports LifeSiteNews.com.
DESANTIS: “We’re here today to protect life. We are here today to defend those who can’t defend themselves. (Applause and cheers)
“And in just a minute, I will be signing House Bill 5 which protects the rights of unborn children starting at 15 weeks.
“This is a time where these babies have beating hearts. They can move, they can taste, they can see, they can feel pain, they can suck their thumbs, and they have brain waves. And so, this will represent the most significant protections for life that have been enacted in this state in a generation.” (applause)
Expected to save thousands of Floridian babies every year, House Bill 5, or the “Mortality Reduction Act,” is slated to take effect July 1, 2022.
Michael W. Smith’s haunting song for Ukraine, “Cry for Hope”
And finally, when Michael W. Smith, the 64-year-old Grammy Award-winning artist, was first made aware of the devastation occurring in Ukraine, he was horrified, reports The Christian Post.
SMITH: “I just can’t comprehend how somebody can just go in and just start killing people. You see the pictures, you know what’s going on, and it just moves me. And a lot of times, I don’t know what to say, I end up crying. The best thing I can do is to put my fingers on the piano.”
“It kind of fell out of the sky. It’s really different than anything I think I’ve ever written, inspired by John Williams, probably Schindler’s List, a little bit. I don’t think I’ve ever written a melody that haunting. And it has a little hope in it.”
The result was “Cry For Hope,” a new instrumental single recorded with the Nashville Recording Orchestra.
Listen.
(audio clip of “Cry for Hope.”)
Through a Ukrainian contact, Smith’s new song is being shared with the Ukrainian soldiers, who have even created a video with the melody.
SMITH: “I’m finding out that the troops on the ground in Ukraine have heard the song and it’s starting to make its way around that country. Music is a healer. It always has been. And I’m just praying that this song will give these people some hope, they’ll be able to come back stronger than ever, and that this war will end.”
Part of the proceeds from the song will fund Samaritan’s Purse, which is operating a field hospital for the injured, and providing food for the Ukrainian refugees.
Matthew 9:36 says, “Seeing the people, [Jesus] felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd.”
Close
And that’s The Worldview in 5 Minutes on this Easter Monday, April 18th, in the year of our Lord 2022. Subscribe by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com. Or get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I’m Adam McManus (Adam@TheWorldview.com). Seize the day for Jesus Christ.
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Acts of kindness improves brain health
Doing an act of kindness can make you feel good about yourself, and a new study suggests it also benefits the brains of everyone living under one roof, reports BrainTomorrow.com.
Researchers from The University of Texas at Dallas report that teaching and practicing kindness at home improved parents’ resilience and children’s empathy.
Dr. Julie Fratantoni, a cognitive neuroscientist and head of operations for The BrainHealth Project, said, “In times of stress, taking a moment to practice kindness for yourself and model it for your children can boost your own resilience and improve your child’s prosocial behaviors. Do not underestimate the power of kindness, because it can ultimately change and shape brain health.”
Ephesians 4:32 says, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”