Worthy Brief - 7/5/2023

[WorthyNewsBot]

Friend, don't worry about the critics!

Hebrews 12:1-3 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,  looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.

When I spoke in London a few years ago, it was on the very same street that William Booth had launched the Salvation Army, a movement that continues to impact the world around us today. However, in the early days of the movement a renowned biologist and skeptic Thomas Huxley known as “Darwin’s bulldog” wrote a scathing article in the Times accusing Booth of ‘religious fanaticism, prostitution of the mind, and exacting blind obedience to unlimited authority.’

This was retribution by Huxley as Booth preached against the theory of evolution which was just beginning to take root in society. When this attack was launched Booth’s son Bramwell was greatly grieved by the hit piece. However, William Booth told his son that he wasn’t going to waste his time-fighting critics else he would be distracted from the Lord’s calling on his life!

“Bramwell,” said William, “fifty years from now, it will matter a great deal how we dealt with the work of God.”

William Booth and his Salvation Army continue to this day to serve and bless the world...proof that a genuine calling on the life of a disciple will bear enduring fruit.

Friend, virtual proof of a genuine calling is that it will face (sometimes vicious) attacks from critics. If you are the target don't be short-sighted; take William Booth's wise advice and stay focused on the work, not allowing your detractors to distract you. The fruit of your labor will endure, even forever.

Your family in the Lord with much agape love,

George, Baht Rivka, Obadiah and Elianna (Dallas, TX)
(Mechanicsburg, PA)

Editor's Note: We are planning our Summer and Fall Tour so if you would like us to minister at your congregation, home fellowship, or Israel focused event, be sure to let us know ASAP. You can send an email to george [ @ ] worthyministries.com for more information.

Around the World
Russia, Syria to hold six-day military drills
Joint Russian-Syrian air force and air defense exercises will begin in Syria on July 5 and last six days, Rear Admiral Oleg Gurinov, head of the Russian Reconciliation Centre for Syria, was quoted as telling Russian news agencies on Tuesday.
Russia Threatens Europe’s Largest Nuclear Plant After Missiles Injure Dozens
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has warned that Russia may be planning to “simulate an attack” on Europe’s largest nuclear power plant after Russian missiles injured dozens earlier on Tuesday.

Israel-Palestinian Conflict
Israeli Forces Conclude Major Operation in Jenin Amid Tensions
Israeli forces initiated their withdrawal from the Palestinian city of Jenin on Tuesday, marking an end to one of the largest military operations in the occupied West Bank in recent years, according to defense sources and witnesses. The operation aimed to dismantle the infrastructure and weaponry of armed Palestinian groups in the Jenin refugee camp. Since its start on Monday, over 1,000 troops had been deployed, resulting in the death of at least 12 people, according to Palestinian officials.
Hamas Claims Tel Aviv Terror Attack Injuring Nine
Islamist terror group Hamas said Tuesday it was responsible for a car ramming and knife attack in Israel’s coastal city of Tel Aviv that injured at least nine civilians.
Israeli cancer research scientists make breakthrough in finding safer alternative to chemotherapy
In a groundbreaking study that may offer cancer patients a much safer alternative to chemotherapy, scientists at Israel’s Tel Aviv University were able to permanently eliminate 44% to 60% of melanoma cancer cells in mice by encoding a toxin produced by bacteria into mRNA molecules and injecting it directly into the animals’ tumor bed, the Jerusalem Post reports.
All but 10 terror targets eliminated in Jenin operation, IDF spokesperson says
IDF Spokesperson Brig. Gen. Daniel Hagari said Tuesday with regard to the IDF anti-terrorism operation in Jenin that all but 10 terror targets were eliminated on the first day of the campaign.

Inside the United States
Judge bars Biden administration from working with social media companies on ‘protected speech’
A judge on Tuesday prohibited several federal agencies and officials of the Biden administration from working with social media companies about “protected speech,” a decision called “a blow to censorship” by one of the Republican officials whose lawsuit prompted the ruling.
Biden Decries Mass Shootings Overshadowing Independence Day
U.S. President Joe Biden decried escalating gun violence after several mass shootings killed and injured dozens of people overshadowing the nation’s long Independence Day holiday weekend.
Federal courts lift bans on gender-affirming treatment for minors in Kentucky, Tennessee
Transgender minors have continued access to gender-affirming hormonal treatment in Tennessee and Kentucky after federal judges last week lifted the bans imposed by each state on such treatments for youth, UPI reports.
US: Increasing number of college campuses have vending machines for morning-after pill
Following last year’s decision by the US Supreme Court to revoke the right to abortion up to viability, an increasing number of American universities are installing vending machines stocked not only with pregnancy tests and contraceptives but also with Plan B and generic forms of the morning-after pill, the Associated Press reports.

Christian News
Nigeria: Jihadist slaughter of Christians continues; “We enjoin all Christians to cry for God’s mercy”
Leaders from the Church of Christ in Nations (CAN) denomination in Nigeria have called for all Christians to beseech God for His mercy on their land as Fulani Islamic jihadists murdered 11 more Christians in Nigeria’s Plateau state and 20 Christians in neighboring Taraba state in attacks on June 27 and June 25 respectively, Morning Star News (MSN) reports.
Niger: A generation of children is growing up surrounded by Jihadist death and destruction, Amnesty International reports
A generation of children in Niger in the Sahel region of Africa is growing up surrounded and targeted by the murder, violence, and destruction inflicted on them by Islamic Jihadists in the Sahel region of Africa, International Christian Concern (ICC) reports, quoting a newly released statement from Amnesty International.

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