The Awakening….

"When the crisis hit the Episcopal Church in 2003, The Falls Church responded by planting a church among the poor in Washington, D.C. When The Falls Church left the Episcopal Church in 2006 and was sued, they responded by . . . planting another church. Millions of dollars were drained away in litigation before they received a first-round victory in court. Their response . . . was to plant two more churches. Then the positive ruling was reversed on appeal and they were sent back for another trial. They responded by planting another church. This time they lost at trial and they were forced out of their buildings this spring. Their response—you guessed it—has been to prepare to plant another church this summer."

Read all: It Happened to George Washington’s Church

"Awake you that sleeps, and arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light." Ephesians 5:14

The Awakening of Washington's Church: J.B. Simmons: 9781530686919: Amazon.com: Books

Check these videos out….

A must see movie directed by Mel Gibson on the courage of Desmond  Doss. Hacksaw Ridge: Official Trailer . Here's the award winning  documentary on Desmond Doss - The Conscientious Objector - YouTube

Here's a message by Tim Keller on How to Cultivate Friendship with God “Through prayer we receive friendship with God.” Tim Keller

Here are John Piper's thoughts on St. Augustine. 
The Swan Is Not Silent | Desiring God 

“If you should ask me what are the ways of God, I would tell you that the first is humility, the second is humility, and the third is humility. Not that there are no other precepts to give, but if humility does not precede all that we do, our efforts our meaningless.” St. Augustine

Christianity in Iran, in the U.S.A.

Christianity in Iran and their government. 5 Ways Persecution in Iran Has Backfired A few years ago, an interrogator admitted to an imprisoned pastor, “We know we cannot stop the church. We can only try to slow it down.”

Christianity in the U.S.A. and Trump. 
・Civility in the public square - Redeemer Report, 
・Speak Truth to Trump | Christianity Today, 
・Evangelical magazines decry Trump: ‘Someone who violates all that is sacred to us’ - The Washington Post 
・Max Lucado's Hope for This Election Season, by The Calling
・Refusing to Play the Game, Profaning the Idol of Presidential Politics | The Exchange | A Blog by Ed Stetzer

Some questions. Shouldn't Christians be willing to say NO to Trump and lose the present battle of the 2016 election in order to win the war of our witness for years to come? And who really is our KIng, Christ or Cesar? Is Christianity healthier in in Iran or the U.S.A.?

Acts 5:29-32, Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings! The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead—whom you killed by hanging him on a cross. God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might bring Israel to repentance and forgive their sins. We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”

Counter-intuitive

Five encouraging articles, though what is said or written will most likely be quite counter-intuitive.

・Vimeo “Russell Moore on the Most Encouraging Thing about Today's Evangelical Landscape”, 
・How Christianity Flourishes | TGC, 
・Why the Whole Church Needs Psalm 137, Violent Imagery and All | Christianity Today, 
・Christianity, the Friend of Liberalism, 
・Nurse Says Baby Who Survived Abortion Cried While Left Alone in a Steel Pan to Die | LifeNews.com

Mrs. L.M., a former anesthetic nurse, describes what took place when a 28-week-old baby was born alive during an abortion in France. The abortion took place in 1987. The mother was HIV positive. L.M. says: It was in a maternity of Paris suburbs (South) in 1987. I was an anesthetic nurse at the time and I intervened in monitoring the epidural composed by the Anesthetist…Gynecologists convinced [the mother] to abort but the baby was born alive. Midwives simply put it in an empty box, naked in a stainless steel tub, cold, without any care. His mother was conscious during labor and delivery of the baby; she was crying and wanted to see her little one but the doctors decided that this child should die. They did not give the child to the mother to spare her. This baby was viable, he was breathing on his own and cried vigorously. I honestly think it was just left to die of cold … it was horrible…! We were harnessed in our gloves, overshirts, headwear, masks, “overshoes” because we were afraid of getting AIDS, and the baby, naked, abandoned by all, and so vulnerable. He took a long time to stop whining.