1. Grim Reports from Drought Stricken Areas
2.National Day of Prayer – Canberra – Sunday 2 March 2014
3. Forty days of Prayer & Fasting 5 March/13 April 2014
4. Testimony of women conceived in rape
5. U.S. Abortions Fall to Lowest Rate Since Roe v. Wade
6. The Existential Elephant in the ‘Christian Persecution’ Room
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1. Grim Reports from Drought Stricken Areas |
Stories are finally trickling into the news of the desperate plight of farmers affected by the drought such as the farmer who brought his last lot of stock into the markets to sell, didn’t get one bidder, took the stock home, shot them all, then himself.
Please pray that the Cyclones will bring rain to the outback.
One of the Christian groups coming alongside families is Care Outreach
With the New Year well underway the Qld drought situation is finally making headlines in the media. In the office we are getting reports on a regular basis of individual situations in the bush from lack of water, to no feed, to pressure from banks with many of our families being stretched to breaking point. There is such a cry coming from the people of the Outback and we know that our job this year is bigger than we would have originally comprehended. The need to get aid in the way of food hampers and toiletries to these families or even a voucher to use at their local stores is greater than ever.
Please pray that the Lord will provide every financial, physical and spiritual need that Care has to do the work this year.
The scripture this week is in the section below. It is from a thank you note received from one of our families after their Christmas for the Bush visit and is so appropriate.
· Once again our family has been given hope and prayers by your volunteers. The gifts given to us from Care Outreach and the many supporters have made our Christmas and New Year so much better. Thank you seems inadequate for what you have done for us. The last two years have been struggle without rain. The cost of living has become depressing as we receive relentless low livestock prices. At times we wonder why we chose to produce food. We continue in the hope that consumers will support Australian products, something my husband is adamant about. We thank you from the bottom of our heart for your support, love and prayers.
· We can only hope this will be a better year but so far it’s no different, just stretched even further into starvation and desperation. We’re running out of bought feed once again and don’t have funds for another round…. I hope it stops before it’s too late for us all out here. On a lighter note, thank you so much for the Christmas food and gifts, the food was just wonderful and the gifts put something under the tree to help it feel more like Christmas. We ran out of water on Christmas Ever so spent 2 days walking our cattle to the bore. It took most of the two days for the 3 boys to move the tanks, troughs and pumps and set up the water while we girls drove the cattle about 12kms. We had cows bogging in muddy puddles, once dams, and had to call for the ute to pull them out. We pushed another lot of Mulga for them as there is nothing else to eat. We finally got to eat our Christmas lunch at 6pm. I guess there was a plus that we saved on one meal that day. We did enjoy our 1 hour around the table. Please pass on our thanks to all involved in the donations – gratefully received.
· Thank you for the hamper you gave us and all the bits and pieces which are a huge help to us all. May God bless you for the incredible work you do out here. It is so appreciated. Thank you for all your care, love and support throughout this year. Thank you for the shining light you are that bring Gods love and care to all.
Matt 25:35-40
‘For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’’
Cunnamulla
The 10kg bags of rice & catering size cans of peach/apple pie filling etc have been gratefully received beyond our expectations. Because the difficult financial situations many are experiencing this donation could not have come a better time. The costs involved in purchasing hay, cotton seed etc to keep stock alive are almost unbelievable with amounts of $20-40,000 monthly commonly stated. Even those that in the past have said “We are doing OK, there are others far worse off than us. Give it to them” have readily accepted goods. They have all expressed surprise at the size of the containers, and asked how we came by these goods and are very surprised when we say it was as a result of a casual comment at a church meeting.
What an eye opener and a heart string puller we experienced whilst visiting some of the properties in the Cunnamulla area. Some of the comments spoken to us include:
· “I`ve been raising cattle for 50 years and if there isn`t rain then I am going to have to make some very hard decisions.”
· “Just recently I was within a hairsbreadth of giving up“
· “The Warrego River has broken the record for the length of time it is since there has been a flow in the river. The water that is left is unsuitable for irrigation and causing problems for our crop of grapes“
· ” I have never lost so many sheep in a drought as I have this time”
Some excerpt from messages received after Christmas for the Bush visits
· Thank you to all at Care Outreach for your generosity with Christmas gifts, your time and dedication to the bush is very much appreciated. Please pray for rain as things are so desperate for those that have not received any.
· A special Thank you to all the volunteers at Care Outreach for blessing us once again. We really appreciate you love and thoughtfulness. It’s been a tough year weatherwise and we pray for wide-spread soaking rains soon to relieve the stress and work load of families and communities in our region.
· Thank you so much for the hamper. It is people like you who care about others who are going through a difficult time with the drought that makes you feel you are not forgotten
· Thank you for the parcel you dropped off. It was a lovely surprise and so nice to know that there are people out there who understand the complexities of living on the land. Dave was not here when you called as everyday he is up early to push mulga to feed the cattle. As you could see things are pretty grim, but nothing that a good fall of rain can’t fix.
Heart-felt cry for pray from a family in the St George region –
Wish this was a pleasant email to pass the time of day but you did say if we needed a prayer to let you know.
Things are pretty ordinary out here- as with everyone west of the divide at this point. Prayer ‘fixed’ Charlotte’s horse and now her faith is being attacked regarding her dog.
Charlotte had her special dog who died shortly after having pups and we allowed her to raise one tiny pup herself who became the most special being in her life and now 5 years on Lolli is not good.
We don’t know if it is heat, dehydration, virus or what. With things as bad as they are and being the weekend to boot we just can’t afford the trip to the vet from out here.
Can you pray for both of them please. With the amount of things dying all around us this would be about the final straw. We lost one of our better work dogs in the heat the other week. That heat impacted everything and the down side is we have no idea if the dogs will be any good for work when we take them out again. Once overheated they can’t take being heated at all, but God can and does work.
On a lighter note, Mark & Donna from Orange who help farmers in the Condobolin area:
Care Outreach want to congratulate Donna’s son Jared Porter on being named the Toyota Starmaker last Friday night at the Tamworth Country Music Festival. In his bio that was shown not only at the awards ceremony but also streamed online, he mentions his involvement with Care Outreach. Here is the YouTube video
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2. National Day of Prayer – Canberra – Sunday 2 March 2014 |
If you can help financially, we are in need of paying for the Great Hall by this week. The cost is $10,000 to hire it for the day. Any donations small or large would be greatly appreciated, you can make a donation through the website above, or call or email me if you require any further information.
Please encourage your local churches to participate in this National Day of Prayer event in any way that they feel is appropriate.
National Day of Prayer – Queensland – Saturday 1 March 2014
Being held on the Saturday 1 March at Parliament House in Queensland, this will give an opportunity for those in South East Queensland to gather together and pray not only for our nation, but our state. We have booked the Parliamentary Annex for prayer, which is a fantastic opportunity to pray right at the heart of where the key decisions are made that affect our state on a day by day basis. I’ve always dreamed of being able to circle our Parliament House here in prayer, wouldn’t that be a fantastic sign to those in parliament, the media and the state that as Christians we care for and pray regularly for those who make the decisions and who live in our fantastic state.
In the past we haven’t required you to register for this event, but this year due to heightened security at Parliament we need you to register. To do so go to: www.ndopqld.eventbrite.com.au
Wes Leake
Business Blessings
wesleyl@businessblessings.com.au
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3. Forty Days of Prayer & Fasting |
40 Day Prayer Plan: to Activate the Promises of God for Revival in Our Nation
God’s promises are sure! We will receive the abundant life of Jesus’ kingdom in our spheres of influence when we each become strong spiritual gatekeepers in all aspects of our lives. Numbers 23:19, Luke 11:21, Revelation 1:6
- Week 1:Receive the Abundance of Jesus’ Kingdom in your Personal Life.
- Week 2:Receive the Abundance of Jesus’ Kingdom in Family Life.
- Week 3:Receive the Abundance of Jesus’ Kingdom in Church Life.
- Week 4:Receive the Abundance of Jesus’ Kingdom in Marketplace Life.
- Week 5:Receive the Abundance of Jesus’ Kingdom: Revival in your Territory.
- Week 6:Receive the Abundance of Jesus’ Kingdom: Revival in your Nation.
Further details at http://40daysofprayer.com.au/
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4. Testimony of women conceived in rape |
January 30, 2014
Because of the circumstances concerning my conception–by RAPE–I, and all those who will be conceived in the same manner have been marked for death by a great number of people. We are called the “demon seed,” who are unable to contribute to our society, unable to bring our mother’s joy.
Unprotected, sadly, even by some individuals and organizations who refer to themselves as “pro-life”. How sad that so many who purport to champion the cause of the unborn, consider me “an exception”. But I’m NOT an exception…I am a human being, just like any other preborn human being.
I am here today, because my mother–despite the fact that she was mentally ill AND raped, on her way home from work one night–decided my life had value, that no matter how I was conceived, I was valuable and worth protecting. I am far from “demon seed”. I am a beautiful licensed minister who volunteers to help the homeless, a wife, mother and friend. Yet, like so many minorities in America, I am the target of hate. My people group (those conceived by rape) are not protected by law like many other minority people groups. Instead, every time a law is passed with a rape exception, a clear message is broadcast that my life has no value. (Current bill being debated with a rape exception is the No Taxpayer Funding For Abortion Act)
What if a certain amount of the population were a specific racial group, and some claimed they were “demon seed?” Wouldn’t there be outrage!? What if a law was proposed to limit abortions for everyone except the 1% of those minority, would you support it? Because 99% would be saved, or would you see the prejudice against that 1%?
For someone who was conceived in rape-like me, I see this as a prejudice issue. Similar to a hate crime, we are called “demon seed.” I have received hate mail stating my mother made the wrong choice and should have aborted me. I have friends who, because they were conceived in rape, were spit on…
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5. U.S. Abortions Fall to Lowest Rate Since Roe v. Wade |
Do latest numbers signal success for pro-life movement and surge of state restrictions?
Christianity Today Kate Tracy 3/2/2014
Courtesy of Guttmacher Institute
Add one more striking statistic to the debate over the pro-life movement’s impact on America after four decadesof advocacy.
With abortion clinics closing at record ratesas abortions hit near-record lowsand state restrictions hit near-record highs, a respected report released today reveals that U.S. abortions have dropped to their lowest rate since 1973—the year the U.S. Supreme Court decided Roe v. Wade.
In 2011, U.S. abortions dropped to 16.9 per 1,000 women between the ages of 15 and 44, according to the latest reportby the Guttmacher Institute. The 2011 rate (the most recent year for which data is available) is the lowest since 1973, when America’s abortion rate was 16.3. By comparison, the highest rate was 29.3 in 1981.
The abortion rate declined in every state except six, reportsReligion News Service (amid widespread coverage). Guttmacher also reports a 13 percent decline in the number of abortions between 2008 and 2011, when it estimates 1.1 million abortions were performed…
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5. The Existential Elephant in the ‘Christian Persecution’ Room |
CBN News
January 17, 2014
Open Doors USArecently released its widely cited 2014 World Watch List—a report that highlights and ranks the 50 worst nations around the globe persecuting Christians.
The one glaring fact that emerges from this report is that the overwhelming majority of Christian persecution around the world today is being committed at the hands of Muslims of all races, languages, cultures, and socio-political circumstances: Muslims from among America’s allies (Saudi Arabia) and its enemies (Iran); Muslims from economically rich nations (Qatar) and from poor nations (Somalia and Yemen); Muslims from “Islamic republic” nations (Afghanistan) and from “moderate” nations (Malaysia and Indonesia); Muslims from nations rescued by America (Kuwait) and Muslims claiming “grievances” against America (fill in the blank __).
A common denominator, a pattern, exists, one that is even more extensive than Open Doors implies. Accordingto that organization’s communications director, Emily Fuentes, “of the 50 worst nations for persecution, 37 of them are Muslim,” or 74%.
In fact, while this number suggests that the other 13 countries making the top 50 are not Muslim—for example Kenya and Ethiopia—those doing the persecution there are.
In other words, those persecuting Christians in 41 of 50 nations are Muslims; that is, a whopping 82% of all persecution around the globe is being committed by the adherents of Islam—sometimes in Christian majority nations; for example, the Central African Republic which, after the 2013 Islamic takeover, now ranks #16, “severe persecution” (the Christian-majority nation did not even appear in the previous year’s top 50).
As for the top ten absolute worst nations, where, according to the 2014 World Watch List, Christians suffer “extreme persecution,” nine—that is, 90%—are Muslim. (Indeed, Open Doors’ global map of Christian persecutioncan easily be confused with a global map of the Islamic world, with the exception of China (ranked 37, “moderate persecution”) and some sporadic countries dominated by crime and godless tyranny, Columbia, North Korea, etc.)
Similarly, a recent Morning Star News report listing2013’s ten most horrific anecdotes of Christian persecution around the world finds that nine out of ten—again, 90%—were committed at the hands of those professing Islam.
Still, considering that the 2014 World Watch List ranks North Korea—non-Islamic, communist—as the number one worst persecutor of Christians, why belabor the religious identity of Muslims?
Here we come to some critically important but blurred distinctions. While Christians are indeed suffering extreme persecution in North Korea, these fall into the realm of the temporal, the aberrant, even. Something as simple as overthrowing the North Korean regime would likely end persecution there almost overnight—just as the fall of Communist Soviet Union saw religious persecution come to a quick close.
In the Islamic world, however, a similar scenario would not alleviate the sufferings of Christians by an iota. Quite the opposite; where dictators fall—Saddam in Iraq, Mubarak in Egypt, Qaddafi in Libya, and ongoing attempts to oust Assad in Syria—Christian persecution rises…