The Daily Brief: Tuesday, May 9, 2017

The Daily Brief: Tuesday, May 9, 2017

1. North Korea detains another American over alleged hostile acts - Fox News

North Korea announced Sunday that it detained a fourth American citizen over unspecified hostile acts against the country and amid worsening tensions with the U.S. North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency said that Kim Hak Song had worked for the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology before he was held on Saturday.

North Korea on Wednesday announced the detention of an accounting instructor at the same university, Kim Sang Dok, for "acts of hostility aimed at overthrowing the country." Kim was detained in April at the airport in Pyongyang.

The KCNA report didn't say whether the two cases are connected.

Kim Hak Song is among at least four Americans being detained in North Korea. The others are Otto Warmbier, serving a 15-year prison term with hard labor for alleged anti-state acts, and Kim Dong Chul, serving a 10-year term with hard labor for alleged espionage. (Read more)
- Lord, we know that the North Korean leader has been known to murder prisoners for even listening to a Christian CD. We ask that You set these 4 men free, and protect them from harm. If they do not know You, then we ask that You visit them.

- "Give us help from trouble, for vain is the help of man." (Psalm 108:12)

2. South Koreans vote for new leader after months of political vacuum - Reuters

South Koreans began voting on Tuesday to elect a new leader, looking to move on from a corruption scandal that brought down former President Park Geun-hye and shook the political and business elite to the core.

Unless there is a major upset, liberal Moon Jae-in - who calls for a moderate approach on North Korea, wants to reform powerful family-run conglomerates and boost fiscal spending to create jobs - will be elected president.

The vote will end months of leadership vacuum. Park was ousted on charges of bribery and abuse of power in March to become South Korea's first democratically elected president to be forced from office. She is in jail, on trial. (Read more)
- Lord, we ask on behalf of our brothers and sisters in South Korea, that You protect their country from harm. We pray also that You will grant President Trump wisdom in dealing with the winner of this election.

- "Do not grant, O Lord, the desires of the wicked." (Psalm 140:8)

3. Russia puts Europe on alert as Putin's warships enter waters after US destroyer swoops - Express UK

Three Russian warships have challenged Nato by entering Latvia's exclusive economic zone in the Baltic Sea, according to armed forces officials in Riga. The corvettes - Liven 551, Serpukhov 603 and Morshansk 824 - were detected only four nautical miles from Latvian territorial waters. It was the latest in a series of moves by Vladimir Putin's naval forces seen as testing the response of the small Baltic state, a NATO and EU member.

The move on Sunday was linked today to the arrival in the Baltic Sea of US warship, USS Carney, with cruise missiles on board.

The three Russian vessels had been deployed to St Petersburg ahead of the country's annual war commemoration on 9 May, known as Victory Day. But they suddenly left again for deployment in the Baltic, according to news agency Fontanko.ru (Read more)
- Lord, we pray that any action planned by Russia against the United States would fall to the ground and be dispersed by Your angelic host and by Your Holy Spirit.

- "For behold, Your enemies shall perish; all the workers of iniquity shall be scattered." (Psalm 92:9)

4. FBI chief warns Russia is 'greatest threat of ANY nation on Earth' - Express UK

The 56-year-old made the claim during a Senate hearing where he discussed the ongoing investigation into possible Russian influence on the US presidential election in 2016.

The head of the bureau told the Senate Judiciary Committee that Russia had been meddling in US politics and they had continued to do so until recently.

He said: "One of the biggest lessons learned is that Russia will do this again. Because of 2016 election, they know it worked." (Read more)
- Lord God, You do warn us in Your Word that, in the latter days, we would be living in "perilous times." In this hour, You have raised up a leader in our nation who will now need to guide us through these treacherous days. We thank You, Lord God, that as we ask for wisdom to be granted to President Trump "from above," he will receive this. In Your Name, amen.

- If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. (James 1:5)

5. House oversight panel to investigate Iran deal - Politico

Citing a POLITICO investigation, Republican leaders of the House oversight committee said Friday they have launched a sweeping investigation into whether the Obama administration, in trying to win support for a nuclear deal and prisoner swap with Tehran last year, undermined an ambitious U.S. counterproliferation effort to thwart Iranian weapons trafficking networks.

Also in response to the POLITICO investigation, 13 Republican senators have demanded answers about whether the Obama administration jeopardized U.S. national security as a result of its protracted top-secret negotiations with Tehran, and then misled the American public when disclosing the terms of the two deals in January 2016. (Read more)
- Lord, You alone know the underhanded actions that went on in Washington DC, and still do. We pray that all hidden things be revealed and that no man get away with the evil that is perpetrated.

- "For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known." (Matthew 10:26)

6. FBI Arrest 900 Members Of 'Dark Web' Pedophile Ring In Largest Bust To-Date - yournewswire

The FBI has arrested over 900 members of a 'dark web' pedophile ring the sprawls Europe and America, following a two year investigation. In one of the largest busts of its kind, pedophile ring investigators from the FBI and Europol apprehended the website's founder, who was given a 30-year jail sentence.

The dark web (also referred to as the 'Deep Web') contains content that cannot be accessed through a normal browser, and cannot be indexed and searched via traditional search engines such as Google or Bing. Yet, according to researchers, a staggering 99.97% of what exists on the internet, exists on the dark web - unseen by the public at large.

According to the FBI, 350 of the 900 arrests were made in the U.S. alone - highlighting that a large portion of the world's pedophile networks operate and exist in America. The arrests come after President Trump vowed to tackle America's pedophile crisis which he claims is organized from the highest echelons of government.

Rt.com reports: The arrests and other law enforcement actions related to the investigation were carried out "in countries far and near", including Turkey, Peru, Chile, Ukraine, Israel and Malaysia, according to the FBI. Europe accounts for the major share of arrests and convictions with 368 suspects being charged. A total of 870 arrests were made in connection with the case, according to Europol.

Over 300 children who had suffered sexual abuse at the hands of Playpen members have been identified or rescued. (Read more)
- Lord, this appalling number of arrests is only the tip of a very large iceberg. With the sexual sin raging across our nation at this time, we know that even many of our leaders have been ensnared by it. We ask for deliverance, for the removal of the demonic realm from among us, and a cleansing of hearts.

- "I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them." (Ezekiel 36:27)

7. Bill Allowing Adopting Agencies to Refuse Gay Couples Becomes Law - LawNewz.com

Alabama Governor Kay Ivey signed a bill on Wednesday that would allow adoption agencies in the state to turn away gay couples who want to adopt a child. The law purports to support religious freedom by not forcing faith-based organizations to potentially close down or face penalties as a result of acting in accordance with religious beliefs. Like many religious freedom bills that have been passed in various states, House Bill 24's language frames the issue as preventing discrimination against religious people or institutions.

"This bill would prohibit the state from discriminating against child placing agencies on the basis that the provider declines to provide a child placement that conflicts with the religious beliefs of the provider," the text of the bill says. "The bill is not to discriminate against anyone," Rep. Rich Wingo, who sponsored the bill, said to AL.com. "Nowhere in the bill does it say anything like that or lead you to believe that." (Read more)


- Father, we thank you for this legislation and ask that You preserve it from being destroyed by the courts. We ask Your forgiveness for the sin we have allowed in our land, and pray that You will grant us mercy in the midst of these issues that continually crop up.

- "Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the hearts." (Proverbs 21:2)

8. Belle Plaine Veterans Park To Include Satanic Monument - Southern Minnesota News

A veterans' memorial park in Minnesota will soon include a satanic monument among its tributes. It's an unintended consequence of a free speech debate in the city of Belle Plaine. The city is allowing the monument in its Veterans Memorial Park after the Freedom from Religion Foundation threatened to sue over another statue that features a soldier praying over a grave marked with a cross. The cross was removed once the issue was raised, but residents rallied to put it back. City Administrator Mike Votca says the city knew it had to include everyone, so it created a free speech area for all, as long as the tributes honor veterans. The memorial from the Satanic Temple in Salem, Massachusetts, will likely be installed next month. (Read more)

- Father, we take authority over this planned "memorial" and ask You to destroy the works of the enemy.

- "Because your rage against me and your tumult have come up to My ears, therefore I will put My hook in your nose and My bridle in your lips and I will turn you back by the way which you came." (2 Kings 19:28)

9. Groups clash over removal of New Orleans Confederate monuments - USA Today

A day of tense protests culminated Sunday as both sides of the debate over removal of Confederate monuments here gathered at the monument to Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.

The day began as Take Em Down NOLA, an anti-monument group, traveled through the streets of the city. The protests come as the city plans to remove three remaining Confederate monuments - to Lee, Confederate Gen. P.G.T Beauregard and Confederate States of America President Jefferson Davis. Take Em Down NOLA said the statues are symbols of white supremacy. (Read more)
- Father, we pray that You would find a way to stop the removal of our history. Whether or not there were things in our past that were wrong, history must be our lessons for the future.

- "But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him, and His righteousness to children's children." (Psalm 103:17)

10. OIG Report: More Than 100 Veterans Died While Waiting for Care at Los Angeles VA - Free Beacon

More than 100 veterans died while waiting for care at a Veterans Affairs hospital in Los Angeles, Calif., over a nine-month span ending in August 2015, according to a new government report.

The VA Office of Inspector General found in a recent healthcare inspection that 225 veterans at the VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System facility died with open or pending consults between Oct. 1, 2015 and Aug. 9, 2015. Nearly half-117-of those patients died while experiencing delays in receiving care.

The inspector general reported that 43 percent of the 371 consults scheduled for patients who ended up dying were not timely because of a failure by VA employees to follow proper procedure. The report was unable to substantiate claims that patients died as a result of the delayed consults. (Read more)

- Lord, even though there is a new person in charge, and he is making an effort to fix the problems, we ask that You move across the entire veterans community to bring healing and life. We pray for Your touch for them, and Your touch for those who are supposed to care for them.

- "But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed." (Isaiah 53:5)

11. Persecution of Christians isn't rare: Franklin Graham - USA Today

It's shocking to our Western eyes.

As I walked through the burned-out shell of a church near Mosul, Iraq, just a few weeks ago, our translator told me that the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria graffiti scrawled on the walls read, "You love life, we love death." Members of ISIS had painted their flag and written, "We have come to drink your blood."

It's one thing to destroy a building, but Christians are dying for their faith. And it's not just in Iraq.

On Palm Sunday, a week before my Iraq visit and nearly 1,000 miles to the west, bloodied pews, sobbing parishioners and crime-scene tape wrapped around churches in Egypt where bombs had exploded in the middle of Sunday services. What should have been a joyous time of worship as followers of Jesus prepared for Easter turned into a murder scene for families who were assaulted because of their Christian faith.

These heinous acts by ISIS captured headlines around the world, but if you think this kind of persecution is rare, perpetrated almost exclusively by extremists and terrorists - and in few areas of the world - 215 million Christian victims will tell you nothing could be further from the truth. (Read more)

- Father, we pray for strength in the midst of turmoil, and Your power and comfort for our brethren across the world.

- "And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives unto death." (Revelation12:11)

12. POW: Here Comes A Tick Disease That's Worse Than Lyme- Forbes

Lyme Disease is bad. Lyme Disease is caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi carried by ticks and can cause all kinds of serious skin, musculoskeletal, nervous system, and heart problems. But POW, beware of an even worse disease that you can get from tick bites...because you really just don't have enough problems in your life right now. What's the disease? POW. OK, enough with the dramatic sound effects, you say? No, POW is the disease. And it stands for Powassan (POW) Virus.

If Borrelia burgdorferi is the cesspool of tick borne diseases, POW is the Deadpool, not as well-known but potentially more damaging and deadly. Lyme Disease can result in debilitating symptoms such as severe headaches, neck stiffness, rashes, arthritis, an irregular heartbeat, nerve pain, brain inflammation, and memory problems. But at least, Lyme Disease has some treatments, especially if caught early. As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) explains, antibiotics (e.g., doxycycline, amoxicillin, or cefuroxime axet) at the early stages of Lyme Disease can lead to a full recovery. Even in some more advanced neurological or cardiac forms of Lyme Disease, intravenous antibiotics such as ceftriaxone or penicillin can help. There's also been a Lyme Disease vaccine, which unfortunately was pulled from the market due to lack of demand. And POW? No vaccine, no antibiotics, no medications, no treatment. (Read more)
- Lord we take authority over this new disease and bind it strongly in the power of Jesus' Name and by His Blood, to prevent it from spreading as people enter the woods and desert for the summer.

- "Behold I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you." (Luke 10:19)