Day: November 1, 2019

Intercession for a Great Not-So-Perfect President

Written by Larry Spargimino on November 1, 2019. Posted in Prophetic Observer. No Comments on Intercession for a Great Not-So-Perfect President

One of my mentors of long ago, Pastor Ernest C. Reisinger, liked to say, “Call no man master.” He also said, “The best of men are but men at best.” “Ernie,” as we all called him, was reminding us that final authority rests with God. He alone is not attracted to fads, new and exciting ideas without merit, and the flamboyant personality of some leaders.

I write with Ernie’s sound admonition in mind, fully aware of the fact that my deepest admiration for President Trump might lead someone to charge me with violating Ernie’s wise words. But remember the title.

I consider the presidency of Donald Trump to be God’s blessing upon us. Has not God used imperfect individuals to bring blessings to all? Mr. Trump has done a good job in keeping his promises. I am pro-life, and pro-Israel. I consider the Second Amendment a fundamental right. The police are not supposed to be our personal bodyguards. American citizens need to be able to protect themselves and their families.

In his 2019 speech before the U.N., the president said: “That is why this year I announce that we will never ratify the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty, which would threaten the liberties of law abiding American citizens. The United States will always uphold our constitutional right to keep and bear arms. We will always uphold our second amendment.”

President Trump’s U.N. Speech—September 2019

At the opening of the speech, the president spoke about “the essential divide that runs all around the world and throughout history. … It is the divide between those whose thirst for control deludes them into thinking they are destined to rule over others—and the people and nations who want only to rule themselves.”

This, I believe, is the driving factor in all that President Trump does. Some of Mr. Trump’s supporters don’t understand it, and all of his fierce detractors don’t want to understand it. The president’s perceptive insight into the controlling nature of evil goes against their globalist/totalitarian expectations.

That belief that there are those who are destined to rule the world is seen in radical, jihadist Islam. They want a worldwide Islamic caliphate ruled under the authority of sharia law.

The delusion that their group is destined to rule the world is also true of communism. Millions of people who would not submit to an iron-fisted Stalinist rule were imprisoned or executed. Multiplied thousands of dissenters were placed in gulags—forced labor camps—that were hellholes of human misery and suffering.

This madness spread from Moscow to Beijing, where Chairman Mao picked it up and used it to spread death and destruction to his own country. This rascal killed more Chinese than anyone else! And Russia supplied China with weapons, so that Chinese soldiers could back the Kim family in Korea, which finally led to the division of the Korean peninsula. Those poor people are still languishing under this madness to this day. “Rocket Man” is a megalomaniac who has come up with a number of gruesome (and creative) ways to execute his opponents. He starves his own people while growing rotund like the fatted calf. He detonates nuclear weapons near the Chinese border and alarms the Chinese government because of the radiation leaks. And the madness has moved into Southeast Asia—Cambodia, Vietnam and environs.

In his U.N. speech, the president said: “Today I repeat a message for the world that I have delivered at home. America will never be a socialist country. In the last century, socialism and communism killed 100 million people.”

In his speech, President Trump went on to point out that these oppressive regimes now have the added benefit of modern technology. They “have the power to exercise new and disturbing forms of suppression and domination.” Just look at China’s social credit system and the struggle of the Hong Kong protesters. They know too well what “suppression and domination” means. President Xi Jin-ping is furious that dissenters picture him in a cartoon walking arm-in-arm with Winnie the Pooh! God bless the dissenters!

The president is right when he says that we live in a world where others see “conquest and domination” as their destiny. Because of this, the president said that since his election “the United States has spent over $2.5 trillion to completely rebuild our great military.”

Democratic presidents would rather spend money on social programs than on the military. It was true in the Clinton and Obama administrations. Obviously, there are others who seem to think war is never an option. As I drive down the highways in central Oklahoma, I see billboards that state in bold letters: “Tell Congress—No War With Iran.”

These billboards are in the Oklahoma City metro area. They are sponsored by Americans Against The Next War. May I make a suggestion? They need to put up signs in Iran stating: “Tell President Hassan Rouhani—No War With Israel.”

Are these people living on a moonbeam? Iran is the world’s number one sponsor of state terrorism. Iran’s bellicose leaders are fueling the tragic wars in both Syria and Yemen, and are supplying Hezbollah and Hamas with rockets to lob at Israel. Iran’s venomous leaders vomit hatred against Israel and America. Last year, Iran’s leaders issued a joint statement that Israel is a “malignant cancerous tumor that has to be removed and eradicated.” Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., said “Peace is not just the absence of violence, but the presence of justice.”

“I’m Not a Democrat or a Republican”

I have a pet peeve. I’ve often heard well-meaning Christians say, “I am not a Democrat or a Republican. I am just standing for what’s right.” I understand why they say that. It takes the focus off of political squabbles and puts the focus on the issues. However, the Democratic Party has a long history of standing against all that is good. Carol Swain, professor of political science and law at Vanderbilt University, asks, “Did you know that the Democratic Party defended slavery, started the Civil War, founded the KKK, and fought against every major civil rights act in U.S. history?”

She points out that in contrast, the Republican Party (founded in 1854) was the anti-slavery party. Their attempt to stop slavery was dealt a major blow by the Supreme Court in the 1857 Dred v. Sandford decision. The court ruled that slaves aren’t citizens, just property. The seven justices who voted in favor of slavery were Democrats. The two justices who dissented? Both Republicans. Today, the Democratic Party favors everything that is bizarre, freakish, anti-God, and anti-family. The Democrats falsely claim that the Republican Party, and in particular, Donald Trump, is the villain when, in reality, it is the failed policies of the Democratic Party that are destroying the cities of America with an unchecked homeless population, filth, and contagion. America, get ready for an outbreak of bubonic plague! Democratic mayors and governors are failing to comply with federal law and deliberately hindering the work of law enforcement in protecting their populations from illegal aliens and criminals.

The Democrat’s vicious hatred of Donald Trump is really a vicious hatred of you, me, and all the other Americans who put him into office and want to keep him there. The subterfuge, constitutional violations, and bitter hostility that has been levelled at President Trump is levelled at you and me. Democrats exhibit the moral restraints of a runaway train. They will show more civility to MS-13 butchers than they will to God-fearing Americans.

Donald Trump is only a man, and he needs our prayers. America needs our prayers. I don’t think it was a good idea for the president to pull American troops out of Syria and betray the Kurds who bravely helped to remove the scourge of ISIS. I am willing to admit, however, that maybe President Trump was juggling some other considerations of which I am not aware. Let’s all humble ourselves and pray for America’s future.

A Call to Intercessory Prayer

The Apostle Paul exhorts believers to pray for all men, “For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty” (1 Tim. 2:1–2). If a Democrat is elected to the office of president in 2020 we will not lead “a quiet and peaceable life.” America will be forever changed and will never recover from the devastating effects of Democratic leadership.

There are many calls for intercessory prayer in the Bible (Rom. 15:30–31; Phil. 1:19; 2 Thess. 3:1–2). Jesus makes intercession for us (Rom. 8:34; Heb. 7:25), and so does the Holy Spirit (Rom. 8:26–27). The apostle says we are to pray “for kings, and for all that are in authority.” God has created government for the purpose of restraining evil and for punishing those who do evil. Without government, there would be anarchy. Some have said a bad government is better than no government at all. That may be true, but bad governments have taken the lives of 100 million people in the 20th century.

One of the things a Democratic president will do for sure is take away religious liberty. All of the Democratic candidates have given expression to ideas that will outlaw Christian standards. Chuck Colson said, “Our founding fathers believed that without freedom of religion and freedom of conscience, all of our other freedoms aren’t worth the paper they are written on. If government can dictate what we may or may not believe, or how we may or may not live out our beliefs, then we are no longer a free people.” That means, if America elects a Democratic president, we will no longer be a free people (breakpoint). Please pray for our great not-so-perfect president, and for the country that has given us so much!

Quid Pro Quo

Written by Bob Glaze on November 1, 2019. Posted in Prophetic Observer. No Comments on Quid Pro Quo

The term quid pro quo has lain beyond earshot for the most part for many years. According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary it means, “something given or received for something else.” Suddenly, any association with Ukraine must also be accompanied by that term. In politics, this is significant because no one does anything for nothing; it is always something for something. As someone once said, “The guilty dog barks first,” or it could be just to throw the other dogs off track. In any case, the collateral damage to the barking dogs could be significant. This term could also be in the negative: “If you do it to me, I will do it to you,” not “Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do unto you, do ye even so the them” (Matt. 7:12). In this case, the barking dog is the Democratic Party that seems to have no leadership but has many barking at the same time.

In any case we should never be afraid of the truth, unless it uncovers our sin. When we speak the truth, we never have to remember what we said, whereas when we lie, we often tell a different version the second time. Judgment by man is often accompanied by a lie: “Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things. But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things. And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God?” (Rom. 2:1–3). That’s like confessing your own faults without realizing it.

Since much of the sounds of the barking dog are not based on firsthand knowledge, it must depend on the barks of a neighborhood dog. When my dog Angus hears another dog barking, he rushes outside and begins barking. He doesn’t know what he is barking about because it is secondhand. He did not see the reason for the barking; he just took the word of another dog. In this case, the barking came from the lips of a secondhand whistleblower: the testimony of the whistleblower by the anti-Trump individual on supposed improprieties by the president during a telephone conversation with the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The identity of the barking dog in this case has not been released. But, doesn’t the accused have the right to face his accuser? In order to overcome the rules of engagement, the rules were changed to fit the supposed crime. The scenario came down like this:

In tense testimony before the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) on Friday, the inspector general for federal spy agencies refused to disclose why his office backdated secret changes to key whistleblower forms and rules in the wake of an anti-Trump whistleblower complaint filed in August, sources told The Federalist.

As The Federalist reported and the Intelligence Community Inspector General (ICIG) confirmed, the spy watchdog secretly changed its whistleblower forms and internal rules in September to eliminate a requirement that whistleblowers provide first-hand evidence to support any allegations of wrongdoing (www.thefederalist.com).

Is this not ex post facto, changing the law after the fact? Yes!

Adam Schiff and his unscrupulous mob will do anything to get rid of President Trump—to the point of changing the law and defiling the Constitution. Why? It appears that he and his cronies are guilty of exactly what they are accusing the president of and wish to get rid of him before their sins are uncovered. It seems unreasonable to believe that career politicians get rich so quickly once in office while they entered with nothing. President Trump was already rich when he entered office. Case in point!

Prior to becoming president, Mr. Trump said, “If I’m elected president, I’m not accepting a salary.” According to www.politifact.com, he is keeping his promise.

In August, a White House spokesman announced that Trump donated $100,000, his second-quarter salary, to the U.S. Surgeon General’s office. … Trump donated his third quarter salary for 2018 to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. … The president donated his 2018 fourth quarter salary to the Department of Homeland Security and has donated to various federal entities during his time in office, including the National Park Service, the Department of Education and the Veterans Administration. … President Donald Trump donated his second-quarter salary for 2018 to the Small Business Administration, reaffirming his promise to forgo a presidential paycheck.

Most Americans are not jealous of those that are rich. However, they are especially disturbed by how politicians have gained absurd wealth after becoming a public servant. In accumulating this wealth, some have compromised their oath to the American people by promising or threatening to take action either for or against an individual or even a country. In this case, a presidential phone call to a leader of another sovereign country seemed to threaten to uncover a quid pro quo by a previous national leader, then vice president Joe Biden and his son Hunter—an attempt to shift the attention to the president and off the ex-vice president and son. Maybe it should be the president of vice and his son. This scenario added fuel to the impeachment movement.

The phone call began with congratulations to newly elected Ukrainian President Zelensky then moved on to the subject of Biden’s son, Hunter. “‘The other thing: There’s a lot of talk about Biden’s son, that Biden stopped the prosecution and a lot of people want to find out about that so whatever you can do with the Attorney General would be great. Biden went around bragging that he stopped the prosecution so if you can look into it. … It sounds horrible to me,’ Trump added.”

The leak came from inside the White House circle. “George Conway, a conservative lawyer and husband of White House counsellor Kellyanne Conway, said Wednesday that a memo of President Trump’s phone call with the president of Ukraine includes evidence of an attempted quid pro quo” (www.thehill.com). George Conway has always been a critic of President Trump, although Kellyanne works for the president and is a staunch supporter. Maybe the leak came from George, who may have overheard Kellyanne. That would make it secondhand. The transcript of the phone call proves “there is no there there.”

So where is the smoking gun? What is the connection of the Bidens to Ukraine, and what did Hunter have to do with Burisma Oil Company? “WHY did the Ukrainian oil company Burisma hire Hunter Biden in the first place? Burisma is tightly tied to the government there, and not only does Hunter have NO experience in the oil industry there, but he has a pretty shady past with substance abuse—and not just alcohol, but crack too. Glenn and Stu walk through Hunter’s rehab timeline, and it’s extensive. So WHY did Burisma hire him?” (www.iheart.com, written by Glenn Beck).

Two years after leaving office, Joe Biden couldn’t resist the temptation last year to brag to an audience of foreign policy specialists about the time as vice president that he strong-armed Ukraine into firing its top prosecutor.

In his own words, with video cameras rolling, Biden described how he threatened Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in March 2016 that the Obama administration would pull $1 billion in U.S. loan guarantees, sending the former Soviet republic toward insolvency, if it didn’t immediately fire Prosecutor General Viktor Shokin (www.thehill.com).

He then insisted that then-President Obama was in on the threat. The prosecutor was leading a corruption probe into Burisma Holdings, a natural gas company where Hunter was employed as a board member. The article goes on to describe how Hunter Biden’s firm, Rosemont Seneca Partners LLC, received payments of $166,000 per month from 2014 to 2015.

In 2013, Hunter along with his father, went to China for an official visit. Two weeks later, his company, Rosemont Seneca, became a partner with a company owned by the Bank of China. “Exceeding their initial fundraising goal, the partners at BHR raised their target to $1.5 billion for the new fund. The company’s website now brags that it manages “over RMB 15 billion” in assets—the equivalent of about $2.1 billion in today’s dollars” (www.nypost.com) The deal included investors China Development Bank and China’s social security fund.

Under the terms of the deal, BHR (in which Hunter’s firm held an equity stake) would be a lead investor in the fund. The Biden family has denied any connection between the vice president’s visit and Hunter’s business. However, BHR (Bohai Harvest RST) told The New Yorker that the visit was used to introduce Joe to Chinese private equity executive Jonathan Li, who became CEO after the deal’s conclusion.

Accordingly, Hunter Biden has decided to step down from his position at BHR and has denied receiving any money from the venture. However, the cat is out of the bag and can’t be put back in. The vice president and his son are only the most visible of inquiries that may backfire on the accusers of the president. Both parties have their secrets, and hopefully telling on each other will produce ammunition to help “drain the swamp.” “But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the Lord: and be sure your sin will find you out” (Num. 32:23).

The quid pro quo between the American people and politicians is, “Do your job and we will re-elect you!”