Wednesday, August 23rd, in the year of our Lord 2017
By Adam McManus
The United States Commits to War in Afghanistan
President Donald Trump committed U.S. troops to an open-ended war in Afghanistan yesterday, a decision the Afghan government welcomed but which Taliban insurgents warned would make the country a “graveyard for the American empire.”
“As we know, in 2011, America hastily and mistakenly withdrew from Iraq. As a result, our hard-won gains slipped back into the hands of terrorist enemies. Our soldiers watched as cities they had fought for, and bled to liberate, and won, were occupied by a terrorist group called ISIS. The vacuum we created by leaving too soon gave safe haven for ISIS to spread, to grow, recruit, and launch attacks. We cannot repeat in Afghanistan the mistake our leaders made in Iraq.”
Defense Secretary James Mattis plans to send 4,000 more troops to Afghanistan.
Pastor A. R. Bernard Steps Down for President Trump’s Advisory Council
Some members of President Donald Trump’s evangelical advisory council have been considering stepping down, reports Christian Headlines.
Pastor A. R. Bernard, one of Trump’s Christian advisors, actually did step down on Friday August 18th, after the president came under intense criticism for remarks about a white supremacist march in Charlottesville the previous weekend.
In his sermon last Sunday, Bernard said, “Speaking in absolute terms, I would love to be a Christian first. But America has created an environment that forces me to be first aware of the color of my skin, then, the content of my character, and my Christian conscription.”
But Christian talk show host Michael Brown urged the Christian leaders to continue to influence the president.
In a column for Charisma News, Brown wrote, “Now is when President Trump needs them most, and it is very wrong to assume that their public silence reflects their private silence. To the contrary, they are doing what faith leaders are supposed to do: praying for the president and doing their best to speak into his life, calling him to do what is right in God’s sight and is best for the nation.”
1 Timothy 2:1 says, “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all who are in authority.”
Americans Give Thanks to God
Americans continue to call out to God in prayer, according to a new Barna Group poll.
In results that were published yesterday, Barna researchers surveyed 1,015 American adults ages 18 and older during the first week of June, 888 of whom identified as Christians and past Christians, reports The Christian Post.
62 percent of respondents who pray regularly most commonly “offer ‘gratitude and thanksgiving.’” Expressing gratitude in prayer is highest among Baby Boomers at 71 percent and is lowest among millennials at 53 percent.
61 percent pray for the “needs of their family and community” and 49 percent pray out of a need for “personal guidance in crisis.”
Philippians 4:6 says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.”
Museum of the Bible Opening Soon in Washington, DC
The $509 million Museum of the Bible is set to open its doors this November just off the National Mall in Washington, DC, reports PBS.org.
It will display thousands of biblical texts and artifacts from the private collection of Steve Green, the evangelical founder of the $3 billion Hobby Lobby success story.
Coming from a family of preachers, Green’s appreciation for the Bible’s wisdom runs deep. Within a few years, he had amassed some 40,000 biblical artifacts and texts.
By 2013, in an acceptance speech for the faith-based Templeton Prize, Green bemoaned that too few Americans today were exposed to the Bible. The nation was “in danger because of its ignorance of what God has taught.”
Train Wreck in Philadelphia Injures over 30 People
A high-speed train in Philadelphia barreled into a parked train at one of the busiest terminals overnight, injuring more than 30 people and causing what one passenger described as a bloody scene, reports NBC Philadelphia.
Apple Donates One Million Dollars to Pro-Abortion Organization
Fox Business reports that Apple Computer is making a $1 million donation to a pro-abortion organization, the Southern Poverty Law Center.
However, the organization not only supports abortion, but was also linked to a liberal activist who shot up the office of the pro-life group Family Research Council in 2012.
Special Report on Medical Waste Disposal Company Cutting Ties with Planned Parenthood After the Newscast
Stay tuned for a Special Report immediately following today’s newscast about a medical waste disposal company which severed ties with Planned Parenthood.
Veteran Sells His War Medals to Help Fund Little Girl’s Cancer Treatment
A former Royal Marine who served in the Iraq War is selling his war medals to help pay for a little girl’s $256,000 cancer treatment, reports SunnySkyz.com.
2-year-old Lottie Woods-John was diagnosed with Stage 4 Neuroblastoma on June 30, 2016.
Despite never meeting Lottie, 35-year-old veteran Matthew Goodman read about Lottie’s battle with the rare cancer and listed his three service medals on eBay.
Goodman told The Sun, “As a father myself, I couldn’t imagine seeing my baby daughter, Freya, suffering like that and I knew I had to help in some way.”
After being diagnosed, Lottie immediately underwent chemotherapy and, in October last year, had a 13-hour operation to remove 95 percent of the tumor.
Special Report: Medical Waste Disposal Company Stops Picking Up Remains of Aborted Babies
Now, as promised, a Special Report from Emily Swanson.
A medical waste disposal company called Stericycle is severing ties with Planned Parenthood, according to a report from Created Equal. Created Equal put pressure on Stericycle last year after it was discovered that they were involved in disposing the remains of aborted babies, something that went directly against their company policy.
The World View spoke to Mark Harrington of Created Equal who said they have confirmed that Stericycle is no longer picking up at a large number of abortion mills.
“Sidewalk counselors and those who are routinely at abortion clinics around the country are reporting that Stericycle is no longer showing up. And also by the court case that was brought against us Stericycle was forced to disclose that they had cancelled contracts with over 400 Planned Parenthoods and abortion facilities in the last several years.”
The World View asked Harrington why Stericycle would cancel the contracts if they denied disposing of baby remains in the first place.
“They’ve been forced to enforce their contracts that had always prohibited the picking up of fetal remains. It’s just they were looking the other way or just didn’t care enough to enforce them. So now because of the pressure that was brought on them by our organization and by the Attorney General Mike Dewine here in Ohio, they were forced to look at these contracts again and also require supplemental assurances from the abortion facilities that they were no longer going to be picking up fetal remains.”
Harrington said that they are continuing to pressure medical waste companies to cut ties with the abortion industry. He considered this a victory in the right direction.
Indeed, the Lord hears the cries of the innocent, and He is overturning the wicked works against these unborn children.
This has been a Special Report. I’m Adam McManus.
Chinese Human Rights Lawyer Gao Zhisheng Disappears
Chinese human rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng has disappeared from his home in the northern province of Shaanxi, where he was under house arrest, according to family members in exile in the United States, reports World Magazine.
In 2006, Chinese security forces arrested Gao, a Christian lawyer who was honored as World Magazine’s Daniel of the Year in 2012.
Christian Teenager in Pakistan Imprisoned on Charges of Blasphemy
A 16-year-old Christian in Pakistan has been arrested and imprisoned for allegedly burning pages of the Quran, the Islamic holy book, and could potentially face the death penalty under the country’s strict blasphemy laws.
Al Jazeera reported on Sunday that police in Jam Kayk Chattha village in central Punjab province arrested Asif Stephen on the night of August 12 on blasphemy charges.
Local police official Pervaiz Iqbal told AFP news agency: “When the police took the suspect into custody and brought him to a police check-post, a crowd of around 200 men gathered outside … demanding the culprit be handed over to them.”
Syrian Orthodox Church Inaugurates New Bishop
A new Syrian Orthodox bishop named Maurice Amseeh was inaugurated this past weekend and has ushered in hope for Syrian Christians persecuted by ISIS, reports The Christian Post
Amseeh’s inauguration marks the first time since four years ago that the community will have a bishop to lead them. The previous bishop fled when Islamic State militants took control of the area.
The Syrian people, and particularly Christians and other religious minorities, have been subject to genocide carried out by the Islamic State. In addition, over 330,000 people have been killed in Syria’s Civil War. Millions of people have fled the country due to the violence and turmoil.
Baby in New Zealand Undergoes Spinal Surgery in the Womb
A New Zealand couple has shared the incredible story of how they rejected abortion and chose life for their son, after he was diagnosed with spina bifida, reports Christian.org.
At 20 weeks of pregnancy, Catherine and Paul Harper were told that their son Benjamin was unlikely to be able to walk, and may be born with his head deformed to twice its normal size.
They refused to have an abortion and Benjamin was born after doctors carried out ground-breaking spinal surgery at 24 weeks of pregnancy in the womb to stitch up the opening on his back.
Catherine said that she now uses her story to encourage prospective mothers to choose life.
President Trump Attends Rally in Arizona
Last night, President Donald Trump appeared at a campaign rally at the Phoenix Convention Center, while protestors lined the streets outside, reports TheHill.com.
Despite the fact that Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton, a Democrat, urged him to stay away and Republican Governor Doug Ducey refused to attend, the president came anyway.
Jeff DeWit, Arizona’s State Treasurer, emceed the event last night.
“We elected our president to drain the swamp. And drain the swamp he’s been doing. We’ve seen the stock market hit all-time highs. We’ve seen over a million new jobs come back to this country. We’ve seen 16 regulations disappear for every new one that Washington sends through. The president went down to Yuma today to see what we can do about building that wall.” (crowd chants: “Build that wall, build that wall, build that wall!”)
Google Secretly Records Conversations of Smartphone Users
Did you know that Google has been recording you without your knowledge?
The technology giant has effectively turned millions of its users’ smartphones into listening devices that can capture intimate conversations – even when they aren’t in the room, reports The Sun.
If you own an Android phone, it’s likely that you’ve used Google’s Assistant, which is similar to Apple’s Siri.
Google says it only turns on and begins recording when you utter the words “OK Google”.
But a Sun investigation has found that in some cases, just saying “OK” in conversation prompted it to switch on your phone and record around 20 seconds of audio.
It regularly switches on the microphone as you go about your day-to-day activities, none the wiser.
Once Google is done recording, it uploads the audio files to its computer servers – often dubbed “the cloud”.
And that’s the World View in Five Minutes.