~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ NOTES FROM THE VALLEY - Special Edition "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for you are with me." Psalm 23. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dear Friends and Family, What follows is just a few more items that have come in from sources Monday. The Start of a Charles Colson series on Islam, an update on the Presidential Prayer focus, and a brief exchange of opinions between a brother and myself. The primary focus on my heart continues to be prayer. Whatever God puts on your heart, please be before Him in prayer about it each day this week. The list of needs is great. But it will never be greater than the one to whom we pray. Always with His love - I remain your brother in Christ, Steve Hall ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ BreakPoint with Charles Colson Commentary #011015 - 10/15/2001 A View from the Afghan Border: Islam Series 1 After the September 11 terrorist attacks, I dismissed those responsible as simply anarchists. Serious Muslims, I argued, don't frequent strip joints and bars. I was wrong. My eyes were opened in a conversation at the Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary board meeting with fellow board member Christie Wilson, III. Christie grew up in Afghanistan where his parents were missionaries and he continues to be active in ministry to Muslims. On September 11, Christie was on the Afghanistan/Pakistan border. He heard about the attacks in the home of a Muslim friend who was watching the television coverage. Christie saw and heard the reactions of Afghans and Pakistanis firsthand. Some were deeply sympathetic. Others danced for joy in the streets. We are seeing, said Christie, a major power struggle within Islam with serious implications for the entire world. There are, he said, two main sects within Islam -- the Sunnis (the 90 percent majority), and the Shi'ites. After the death of Muhammad in A.D. 632, four rulers, or caliphs, divided the leadership of Muhammad's religious state. Sunnis believe that all four were legitimate. Shi'ites believe that only one, Ali, was the legitimate successor. The result is a deep schism within the Muslim world over Islamic law and spiritual authority. Radical Sunnis -- including bin Laden, the Taliban, and the terrorist network -- are now stirring up unrest in the Arab world and beyond. Bin Laden is not engaged in terror for terror's sake, but is cultivating his role as the leader of the radical Sunnis. Bin Laden's plan is to arouse anti-Western passions and bring radical elements to leadership throughout the Muslim world. In an October 7 broadcast, bin Laden said, "I tell them that these events have divided the world into two camps, the camp of the faithful and the camp of infidels. . . . Every Muslim must rise to defend his religion." The moderate Sunnis in places like Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, and Kuwait could be deposed by an uprising of radical groups who buy into bin Laden's utopian vision of a single, unified Islamic state. If bin Laden can stir up firebrands in those countries, he can topple them. He will then consolidate power among radical Sunnis which will be the next step to an all-out Muslim jihad against the West. The Islamic worldview denies the sinfulness of man, which gives rise to utopian visions: If man is corrupted by society, then those who come to power can create the perfect society by strictly enforcing Islamic law. I hasten to add this is not a view most Muslims hold, but make no mistake, bin Laden is seeking to change that. If bin Laden succeeds, the consequences for the world would be catastrophic. This is, as President Bush said, a war with very high stakes. And this is why the president has built a coalition of support for the U.S., including moderate Muslims. The stage is being set by bin Laden, however, for a major confrontation between the West and Islam. He must not be allowed to succeed. Christians need to understand these issues, which is why I'll be talking about them over the next several days. And we need to pray that our sovereign God will protect the cause of liberty and freedom, that we will triumph over these new tyrants just as freedom and liberty triumphed over Hitler, Stalin, and the other tyrants of the twentieth century. For further reading: http://www.nytimes.com/2001/10/07/international/07LAD EN-TEXT.html Copyright notice: BreakPoint may be copied and re-transmitted by electronic mail, and individual copies of a particular BreakPoint e-mail transcript may be printed, provided that such copying, re-transmission, printing, or other use is not for profit or other commercial purpose. Any copying, re-transmission, distribution, printing, or other use of BreakPoint must set forth the following credit line, in full, at the conclusion of the portion of BreakPoint that is used: Copyright (c) 2001 Prison Fellowship Ministries. Reprinted with permission. "BreakPoint with Chuck Colson" is a radio ministry of Prison Fellowship Ministries. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ THIS WEEK'S PRESIDENTIAL PRAYER TEAM PRAYER FOCUS: >>Clarity of mind for the President and the safety of the First Family.<< Franklin Graham and Max Lucado, members of the Presidential Prayer Team Honorary Committee, recently visited with President Bush. In the meeting at the White House, the President relayed two prayer requests. He asked for prayer for clarity of mind throughout the current crisis and he requested prayer for the safety of his family. These two items will be our prayer focus for this week. The President went on to thank those who are already praying for him, saying, "I'm feeling stronger now than I've ever been in my life. And the reason is because every person in America is praying for me. When I stay on my knees, that's when I have power." ------------------------ THIS WEEK'S QUOTE: "It is written large in history that no nation, no empire, no kingdom was ever able to perpetuate itself by depending on military might. Our nation is no exception. On our coins we profess 'In God we trust.' When we begin to take seriously that profession, we can begin to look forward to the fruits of peace." --Richard C. Halverson, Chaplain of the United States Senate. ---------------------- THE 5-FINGER PRAYER REMINDER--THE PRESIDENT IN THE MIDDLE: Discovering that she had trouble remembering to pray for the needs of others, we can learn from this woman who devised a five-finger prayer memory trick: The woman explained: "Before I pray, I hold my hand up in front of my face, with my thumb pointing back toward me. The thumb reminds me to pray for those closest to me--my family, my friends, my neighbors." Wiggling her index finger, she continued: "Teachers used to point at us in school, so as I come to this finger, I pray for those who have been my teachers and spiritual leaders. My middle finger is the largest one. This brings to mind the leaders of our country and our President. So I pray for them. The next finger is called the weak finger. When I come to it, I think of the weak, the sick, those who are poor and need help." Coming to the last finger-the little finger-she concluded: "Last is my little finger, which stands for me. That's when I finish praying for myself and my needs." (Source: Anonymous) --------------------- WEBSITE UPDATES: See our new website www.presidentialprayerteam.org with daily updates and more information about the President, all focused on prayer. -------------------- TELL A FRIEND: If every current member would tell just 5 others, our goal of 2.8 million members (1% of the U.S. population) would be met. To tell someone else, either forward this update to them or go to www.presidentialprayerteam.org and select "Tell A Friend." --------------------- BECOME A MEMBER: To become a member and receive a free membership decal and updates, go to www.presidentialprayerteam.org and select "Free Sign-up." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ From: "Blessing Makwangwaidze" Sent: Monday, October 15, 2001 7:10 AM Subject: WHAT HAS OUR LORD SAID? Brother Steve, To be a christian to me means you ought to be like Jesus. What would our lord Jesus who we claim to follow have said about the September 11th attacks on America? l am certain that he would not have came to the same conclusions as the ones l have heard from a whole host of hell bound bible twisting people. Number one make on mistake of assuming that Americans are more equal than others, no not even Bin Laden for Jesus died for such kind. l have seem first hand the evil that your nation wroughts on others and l believe God is just now, l have heard a lot of American christians likening the September 11th attacks to the ones in the OT. If everyone else was going to seek vengeance from the good Lord will he not surely destroy the world. If your are going to judge the TERROIST as such is your nation going to be spared? Just because your President is a christian that doesn't mean he is a sword against evil. If you read the good word about JOB AND HIS FATE that doesn't make you JOB - you will still be you. Be careful not bow down before the GOOD LORD in prayer when you do not seek answers but a clean conscience - I have always told the people l preach to that GOD doesn't change for people but we have to change in order to suite his disires. Often we cling to verses that suite our situation the way we want things to be, l believe in times like these as christians we need to hear from God - l worship a Jesus who has a mouth which can talk because he created everything. l beleive what might be vital for you as the body of Christ is to assemble as christians and humble yourselves before the LORD ask him what is and what isn't. Beleiving is good but knowledge is better for even the Taliban believe they are under the most high's leadership. We can spend the whole day quoting verses that support us and our views for different reasons. My Jesus speaks - he spoke to Paul when he was still Saul the sinner, surely he will talk to his poeple when they trust in him enough. Why should christians of all the people believe Bin Ladden is the scam of the earth when he who was crucified, Yes the one we call Lord Jesus believes otherwise and died for him most of all. ---------------------- Dear Blessing, God's command to Saul, delivered by His prophet Samuel, was to wipe out the Amalekites. The Amalekites were NOT innocent people, but people who served evil and wanted to wipe God's chosen people, the nation of Israel, from the face of the earth. The Taliban and Bin Laden are the same. Certainly Christ died for them. Certainly He desires their salvation. But they have rejected His offer and instead twist the OT foundation of Islam as a call to eliminate all Christians (infidels) from the face of the earth. Will a just God allow that to happen? Would the God of Abraham, Samuel, Saul, and David have us submit to that elimination. You are placing yourself in a position of saying that, if Samuel had given you that order to wipe out the Amalekites, you wouldn't have carried it out. Why? Because you believe God (Jesus) wouldn't do such an unjust thing. According to your logic, either Samuel lied or God is unjust. Jesus came as the Lamb of God, as a sacrifice for our sins. But that does not mean He gave up His position as the Lion of Judah. He set it aside until His Father's purpose was "complete" upon the cross. When He returns in the Book of Revelation, is He a Lamb or a Lion? Does He submit to evil, or wage a war for it's elimination? You're right, God will never call His children to kill innocent people. But who decides or defines who the "innocent people" are in this matter - you or God? I believe God is the answer. That's why all my posts have asked us to be on our knees before God in prayer seeking His wisdom and guidance in this situation and to lift up our leadership to that wisdom and guidance. This nation, through our President's actions (which I believe are motivated by his faith and very real desire to carry out his office as God's bearer of the sword against evil), is NOT trying to kill innocent people. If you ignore the content of Romans because it isn't convenient to your theology in this matter, who is "twisting" the Bible? We, the United States, are trying to bring the guilty to justice as carefully and methodically as we can. Like the Amalekites, these are people who dedicate their lives to the killing of innocent men, women, and children as an integral part of their radical beliefs. If left free to continue, the immensity of their senseless killings will only grow and become ever more horrific until they achieve their clearly stated goal, the removal of all Christians and others who do not believe as they do from the face of this planet. God has given the call in the past for His children to oppose such evil in this world at the risk of their very lives. I believe He is giving that call now. You can't ignore the possibility of that call just because it is discomforting to your theology. If the OT had no validity, no lessons for our edification, why is it in the Bible? If Romans has no validity, why did Paul write it? If Revelation does not show the path that lies ahead for God's church, why did He reveal it to John and command him to write it for the churches? I hate war as much as any man. I want, most fervently, to be like Christ. But NOT the Christ you seem to have placed in a box to fit your selective theology. I want to be like the Christ who forgave; who sacrificed; but who also forcefully cleared the Temple of those who were corrupting it; and the Christ who will lead us in the battle for the final defeat of evil in all it's sinister forms. Christ the Lamb and Christ the Lion. I appreciate the time and effort you took to express your opinions and thank you for what you've shared. I pray you will take the time to prayerfully consider my response. We are most certainly in agreement on one thing. Christ is the answer - the only answer. Each of us must truly seek Him in this troubling matter. We must be obedient to His calling. His servant and your brother in Christ, Steve ________________________________________________ Copyright © 1998-2001 by Stephen J. Hall - Weekly letters of encouragement to Christians written by Stephen J. Hall unless otherwise indicated. Notes from the Valley and Humor from the Valley are meant to brighten your day and encourage you along the way. Most of "Notes" and "Humor" are a collection of items provided to me by subscribers and friends. Credit is given to both the contributor and to the true author, where known. If you are blessed by them, please feel free to make copies and pass them along to others. If you have something you'd like to contribute to a future edition or would like to ask us a question or make a comment, please contact us at: sossteve@... ________________________________________________ Your love, God, is my song, and I'll sing it! I'm forever telling everyone how faithful you are. I'll never quit telling the story of your love - how you built the cosmos and guaranteed everything in it. Your love has always been our lives foundation, your fidelity has been the roof over our world. (Psalm 89:1-3 The Message)