It’s a Friday afternoon in August.

2:30 p.m. –I had just gotten my hair cut and it turned out way shorter than I had wanted. The cut wasn’t bad—it just wasn’t what I expected.

5:30 p.m. –My parents pick me up and we head to Panera for dinner. Of course, I vent about my haircut. For 10 minutes. It was then that my mom (who is the sweetest, most gentle and tender soul on the planet) turned around and lovingly said to me, “Do you think we could be happy now and maybe just move on?”

I’d love to say that I received her invitation with grace and thanksgiving, but no. Here’s what you would have heard if you were a fly on the inside of the car door as I responded with depth and maturity (not!):

“How do you think my clients would feel if, after 10 minutes of being in my office, I told them that they’d had enough of feeling sad for today and now it was time to move on and be happy?”

I then added, “I have the privilege of listening to people’s struggles all week and now it’s my turn to be listened to. But you want me to be instantly happy. I figure things out by processing and I just need you to listen as I talk it out. That is a gift to me.”

My cute momma said she would try to listen more (even though she’d clearly had enough of my complaining). But I kind of shut down after that; even though I was trying hard not to.

Through all of this my dad was sitting in the driver’s seat of the car, not saying a word. He held the ground steady as the ripples of the earthquake that started in the backseat were making their way forward. After living with four daughters and a wife, he’s learned at times like this that it’s best to stay silent until the storm has passed.

5:55 p.m. –We walk into Panera. The emotional air is thick around us but we order our food and try to salvage the evening as a best we could. My dad tells me that he really likes my haircut.

“You do? You’re not just saying that?,” I eek out.

“I think it is shaped nicely around your face and looks great on you.”

“For real? You promise you really mean that? Okay, I’ll try to believe you … thanks Dad.”

Hearing my dad’s truth about my hair helped me to look through his eyes and settle down. I guess I needed a man’s perspective more than I even realized.

My dad got it right that time. His tone, his truth and his timing were spot on.

6:05 p.m. –I can breathe again. Now I’m ready to enjoy eating a fantastic Greek Chicken Salad with a whole wheat baguette on the side. Partial meltdown complete. Total meltdown averted.

I don’t know what happens at times like this for us girls when the world seems to cave in over a seemingly insignificant thing and it’s hard to regain solid footing. That’s when dad wins the triple word score by saying just the right thing in just the right way at just the right time.

It doesn’t have to be a ton of verbiage, but your calming presence, Dad, and a few words of affirmation seem to do the trick.

The emotional torrents where the winds and waves hit unexpectedly have a way of dying down when the response from you parallels the desired outcome: soft, gentle, tender, rational, clear. That’s when you save the day. That’s when you save our day.

Dad, you can rescue a bad hair day and help turn it around by following a few simple steps. Let’s call them the “Five Hair Don’ts and Hair Do’s”:

1. Don’t talk louder in an attempt to overpower her intensity when she’s overwhelmed. Do talk softly and gently (even if that doesn’t seem very manly!).

2. Don’t tell her what to feel or not to feel. Do tell her you’re truly sorry she’s having a hard day.

3. Don’t tell her she is making a mountain out of a molehill. Do tell her that mountains (of emotional intensity) are part of life and you’ll always be at the base of the mountain, ready and steady.

4. Don’t tell her that she needs to toughen up. Do tell her that her sensitivity is one of her greatest strengths while teaching her by your example what it looks like to stay calm in the storm and work it through.

5. Don’t tell her she shouldn’t care about external things, like haircuts. Do tell her that you care about what she cares about (even if you can’t fully understand it from her perspective).

On the worst hair day, there’s nothing like having a dad who is in your corner cheering you on, telling you that you’re going to be OK while affirming you through the process.

Dad … don’t ever forget how much we need you through the highs and the lows of life. You are one of our greatest resources when you come alongside us and help save the day.

Dr. Michelle Watson has a clinical counseling practice in Portland, Oregon, and has served in that role for the past 17 years. She is founder of The Abba Project, a 9-month group forum that is designed to equip dads with daughters ages 13 to 30 to help them focus more intentionally on consistently pursuing their daughters’ hearts. She has recently released her first book entitled Dad, Here’s What I Really Need from You: A Guide for Connecting with Your Daughter’s Heart. She invites you to visit  for more information and to sign up for her weekly Dad-Daughter Friday blogs where she provides practical tools so that every dad in America can become the action hero he wants to be and his daughter needs him to be. You can also follow or send feedback on Facebook and Twitter.

For the original article, visit .

The National Day of Prayer and Fasting team from Australia is calling the nations of the world to pray and fast for the USA for seven days.

“The National Day of Repentance, held on 30 April 2015, takes its inspiration from Abraham Lincoln’s Day of ‘Humiliation, Prayer and Fasting’ held during the Civil War,” says Australian Pastor Matt Prater.

“This day of Repentance begins this seven-day period of prayer and fasting and concludes on 6 May, the eve of the USA National Day of Prayer.”

Lana Vawser says it’s time for Australia and the United States of America to join together.  

“It is God’s time for both of these nations to come into their destiny,” she says. “It is time to stand together and commit to pray and wage war, and God will make a way where there seems to be no way.”

In 1892 the United States Supreme Court determined that America was a Christian nation from its earliest days, reminds Dr. Graham McLennan.

“The court opinion, delivered by Justice Josiah Brewer said, ‘Our laws and our institutions must necessarily be based upon and embody the teachings of the Redeemer of mankind … ,'” McLennan says. “We find everywhere a clear recognition of the same truth … this is a Christian nation.”

Warwick Marsh, Australian coordinator, says America is a long time friend of Australia. He reminds that both nations fought together in the first and second world wars, Korea, Vietnam, the Gulf, Afghanistan and now we fight side by side in a spiritual battle of prayer.  

“Australian intercessors, along with the nations of the world, will continue to pray and fast over this seven-day period for a miracle in the Supreme Court,” he says, “that the court will affirm that marriage will remain between a man and a woman and so fulfill the words of Jesus Christ found in Matthew 19:4-6.”

Alison Jessup points to how the prayer call has gone viral: “The Elijah list had 1.2 million hits in a 24-hour period when we made our first announcement. Our own Prayer for America YouTube has had over 20,000 hits over two weeks.” 

A Kentucky court ruled Monday that a Lexington printer is free to decline to print messages that conflict with his religious beliefs and that the government cannot force him to do otherwise.

The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Human Rights Commission ruled last year that Blaine Adamson of Hands On Originals must print messages that conflict with his faith on shirts that customers order from him. Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys representing Adamson appealed the ruling to the Fayette Circuit Court, which has now reversed the commission’s decision.

“The government can’t force citizens to surrender free-speech rights or religious freedom in order to run a small business, and this decision affirms that,” said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Jim Campbell, who argued before the court in Hands On Originals v. Lexington-Fayette Urban County Human Rights Commission. “The court rightly recognized that the law protects Blaine’s decision not to print shirts with messages that conflict with his beliefs, and that no sufficient reason exists for the government to coerce Blaine to act against his conscience in this way.”

The court concluded that Adamson did not violate the law when he declined to print expressive shirts promoting the Lexington Pride Festival, hosted by the Gay and Lesbian Services Organization. Adamson regularly does business with and employs people who identify as homosexual, so his decision was based solely on his constitutionally protected freedom to decline to convey a message with which he disagrees, not on any characteristic of the customer.

“In short, HOO’s declination to print the shirts was based upon the message of GLSO and the Pride Festival and not on the sexual orientation of its representatives or members,” the court wrote in its decision. “In point of fact, there is nothing in the record before the Commission that the sexual orientation of any individual that had contact with HOO was ever divulged or played any part in this case.”

The commission’s ruling had the potential to override the conscience rights of all Lexington-area printers regardless of their views, as a GLSO representative admitted at a hearing last year.

Although Adamson declined to print the shirts because he did not want to convey the message that would be printed on them, he nevertheless offered to put the GLSO in touch with another printer that would produce the shirts for the same price. Unsatisfied, the GLSO filed a complaint with the commission and eventually received the shirts for free from another printer, so it had no problem obtaining its desired goods and services.

“What makes America unique is our freedom to peacefully live out our beliefs. The Constitution protects that freedom,” added co-counsel Beauman with Sturgill, Turner, Barker & Moloney, PLLC, of Lexington. “You’re not free if your beliefs are confined to your mind.”

Living Foods. They’re foods that are alive—raw (not cooked) and filled with life. They’re also called raw foods or live foods.

You can plant them, pick them, sprout them or simply eat them. In each case—you get life! That’s because life comes from life. These foods are your “true north,” your path home to health in a jungle of dietary havoc, contaminated food and abounding confusion about what and how to eat.

Good health is the result of consuming whole, unprocessed, clean food with a large percentage of that being raw and alive. These foods are chock-full of nutrients, water and fiber that flush away toxins, waste and “sludge” from our cells and intercellular fluids.

They help us prevent disease. They alkalize our bodies and help us restore our pH balance. And they give our cells vital light rays of energy to help them communicate more effectively.

Since your thyroid is a key gland that’s tied to every other system in your body, it needs to work flawlessly. When it’s out of balance, you’re out of balance. If you have a number of the symptoms of low thyroid, chances are that you could benefit by working on your thyroid health by eating more living foods.

Some foods boost thyroid function, which makes them perfect for treating hypothyroidism, while others suppress thyroid function, which can help people with hyperthyroidism. And there are certain foods that are best avoided by anyone who is concerned about having a healthy thyroid gland and overall good health.

The following raw foods are among the most helpful for restoring thyroid balance whether you have an underactive or overactive thyroid:

• Fresh raw vegetable juices
• Low-sugar fruit, especially lemons, limes, cranberries and other berries, and green apples
• Raw nuts and seeds
• Seaweed for its rich iodine content (for hypothyroid)
• Chlorophyll-rich green juices such as watercress, collards, chard, kale, kohlrabi
• Leaves, beet greens and parsley (vary the cruciferous greens with other non-cruciferous greens, such as lettuce, beet greens, watercress and spinach, if you have hypothyroidism)

Adapted from Cherie Calbom’s The Juice Lady’s Remedies For Thyroid Disorder (Charisma House, 2015). To order the book, click here.

Cherie Calbom, M.S., C.N., is the author of more than 20 books, including The Juice Lady’s Big Book of Juices and Green Smoothies and Remedies for Stress and Adrenal Fatigue. She holds a Master of Science degree in whole foods nutrition from Bastyr University. Cherie and her husband, John, offer juice health retreats throughout the year, along with health and healing conferences. For more information, visit .

If you haven’t noticed, the radical gay agenda is pulling out all the stops to shut the mouths of Christians—and close the companies of believers—who oppose its view.

But can they silence Josh Duggar? The eldest boy of the 19 Kids and Counting realty TV show star put a young voice to what many are seeing. He points to “an agenda to silence people of faith, those who hold a dissenting opinion.”

The young Duggar is speaking out as the Supreme Court decides whether or not to legalize same-sex marriage. Of course, he believes marriage is between a man and a woman.

“A lot of people say this issue is decided, why is it so important for you to keep fighting for the definition of marriage between a man and a woman?” asks Duggar, who serves as executive director at FRC Action, the Family Research Council’s legislative activist arm.

“I think that in 1973 the court had another decision that they said we’re going to decide this once and for all, and Roe vs. Wade, when that was handed down it only began the debate that still continues today and obviously we know where that issue stands now,” Duggar told .

“All of Americans understand that the issue is not going away, so I think what we have to realize is this is only the beginning of a larger discussion, and what’s really at stake here is the American family.”

As the eldest in a large Christian family, he has witnessed how marriage is central to the family and believes strongly that every child deserves both a father and mother. He’s watching and praying as the Supreme Court prepares to rule on the issue of a generation.

“This is fundamental because only one other country in the entire world has ever redefined marriage and that was Brazil when they stepped in through the court system to do that,” Duggar concludes.

At the recent meeting at the United Nations highlighting the persecution of Christians, there was a surprisingly positive report from one presenter who said that the church is growing in Iran, in spite of or because of the persecution of Christians by Muslims.

As already reported, there is plenty of bad news from the region. Each year, 100 million Christians suffer persecution, imprisonment and even death for their sacred religious beliefs. According to The Voice of the Martyrs, a ministry dedicated to assisting the persecuted church worldwide, “more people have died for their faith in Christ in the last 100 years” than in the previous 19 centuries combined.

While it seems in some countries we are literally seeing watching the genocide of Jesus’ followers in the Middle East, the Iranian speaker who now lives in the United States says the church is growing largely because of Christian television being beamed into the country. There is a real spiritual vacuum; people long for a spiritual reality that Islam cannot provide.

Recently I interviewed Christian leaders from three different Muslim nations. One source explained to me that ISIS considers moderate Muslims as infidels, so they also have a “price to pay.” As Shia and Sunni Muslims fight each other, “a Shia mosque being destroyed (one day) and the next day a Sunni mosque being destroyed (isn’t uncommon),” he told me. “And in between, of course, Christians were being smashed especially when they are located under the region of ISIS. So, in general, the Christians are paying a very high price, but other Muslims are suffering too, especially those like the Yazidi people. They pay a very high price exactly like the Christians because they are considered as infidel from the ISIS groups.”  

But, now for some good news. For their security, I am giving no names and being ambiguous about locations. For authenticity, I’m quoting my sources as much as possible within the bullet points. Let the facts speak for themselves. To my knowledge, these stories have never before been reported.

• “The good part of the story, is that God is using this to change the perspective of Christians in front of many Muslims. God is using this to open the eyes and ears of many Muslims to see the reality of who God is. God is not the God of violence. God should be the God of love—should be the good God, the God that the gospel is preached so many of them are coming, seeking and asking about the things of Christianity.  
• “While the Christians under the persecution, they were very giving, very loving, blessing. Every time they were interviewed after such a massacre, they spoke positively toward the country, toward Muslims, forgiving their persecutors, praying for them, asking forgiveness for them which is unheard of.
• “Every time Muslims were killed, their families, their parents asked for revenge. Here, every time they asked for forgiveness so many people started to compare. What is this? What spirit do you have? This is completely out of the box, out of their expectations. So God is using this in a mighty way to bring glory to Himself and to bring people to reconciliation with Him, with themselves and with their community.
• “More than that, now in Egypt, the government is trying to do their best to pay back what the Christians did to save the country. It could have been a civil war between the Christians and Muslims, but because the Christians reacted in a loving and forgiving way, (Christians) saved Egypt. The Muslim community came to us and said, Because of you, God saved Egypt. God saved us because of the church. For the first time, the Muslim community is changing their perspective about the church and Christians.
• “Systematically, the radical Muslim, they are doing something to wipe out, if possible, you know, the Christian community, the radical Muslim. But the moderate Muslim actually is good. They are a friend of Christians. But this radical, they are like terrorists, so they keep attacking.

I’ll close with an incredible story from Indonesia, where Christians showed love to the Muslims who persecuted them. Outside of Afghanistan, Indonesia, is considered the second largest base of the radical, like al-Qaida, even ISIS. Yet the church is growing at a rate of 2 million converts a year. If you missed my report on this, click here.

Persecution in Indonesia is less in the big cities, where most of the problems where laws are passed to keep churches from renting public buildings. But in some of the outlying islands, there is real persecution. One story of Christian love and forgiveness shows why the church is growing. Again, I’m quoting my source, edited only for space and clarity.

• “So there was a village in the east side of Indonesia. One day radical Muslims used this opportunity to that village. The village is mostly Christian, so they burned their houses, killed them, and they came with 500 soldiers with all the weapons. But then the Christians were cornered into a church building inside, so they killed 211 of them in one day and injured about 140 people. And then, the church, you know, next day they buried the dead and it was so sad. And so they made a monument there. (After this the Christians ministered to the Muslims) and because of the love of the Christian many were born again. They accepted Christ; there was a revival.  
• “(So the Christians) began to pray, ‘Lord, we don’t have any building on Sunday to worship You. Can you give us money to rebuild it?’ So when they prayed, God spoke to them, you know, ‘I don’t want you to use the money to rebuild your church first. I want you to collect the first offering and give it to the Muslims who killed you, who persecuted you. Give it to them so they can renovate their mosque also.’ So they obeyed. Very hard for them, you know, because they were the enemy of them. But anyway, after they prayed, they were convinced by God and then they said, ‘OK, God. We want to obey.’ So they took that first offering, which is huge for them, $5,000 U.S. dollars. And then, they brought that money with praise and worship. I think about 2,000 people marched to the next village, you know, with joy, came to them and said, ‘God told us to give you this money to rebuild your village and your facilities.’ The Muslim leader wept. They said, ‘Why you love us? We attacked you. We destroyed your building. Why you love us?’
• “The Christians said, ‘Because Jesus told us to do this.’ They all wept and one of them stood up and said, ‘Hey, Muslim people, we need to do something. Go to the jungle and cut all the bamboo tree and donate it to the church.’ So they took all the bamboo trees and brought it to the church and donated it. So the government was so moved because of this, what the Christians did to the Muslims, so the government decided to give $15,000 U.S. dollars to rebuild the church building and by the help of many churches, you know, the church was able to rebuild and very beautiful, not only the church building but the people now experience tremendous revival. Now they are born again and almost 100 percent of that village become Christian.”

A magnitude-7.8 earthquake centered less than 50 miles from Kathmandu rocked Nepal with devastating force Saturday, toppling homes, temples and historic buildings and leaving at least 2,500 people dead. In the aftermath of the quake, whole streets and squares in the nation’s capital and largest city were covered in rubble. 

Locals and tourists ferreted through mounds of debris in search of survivors. Residents, terrorized by a seemingly endless series of aftershocks, huddled in the cold rain overnight for safety. Dozens of bodies were pulled from the nine-story Dharahara tower, a popular tourist site, that came crashing down during the quake. At least 12 bodies were evacuated from a Mount Everest base camp hit by avalanches.

Tim Hill, Church of God director of World Missions Director sent this message: “Church of God World Missions has established the NEPAL CRISES RELIEF PROJECT NUMBER, 765-0053-008, and will immediately assist with humanitarian response. We will partner with Operation Compassion and others to make a difference in this time of need. Our National Overseer of Nepal, Ram Paudel, has made contact and is safe and already assisting with relief efforts.”

Ken Anderson who is the Unreached People Groups Representative of World Missions and a short-term missions team had been in western Nepal, but flew out two hours prior to the quake. World Missions missionary Scott Rains was in Kathmandu having stayed to be part of a youth service in the evening. Reports are he has been able to contact his family and is assisting in the relief efforts.

“Like all of us, I was shocked, horrified and deeply grief-stricken over the frightening images of the earthquake coming from the country of Nepal,” stated Church of God General Overseer Mark Williams. “We are continually monitoring the situation and receiving reports as they are able to trickle in via a badly damaged communications infrastructure in the region. As we learn more, let’s continue to pray for all affected by this tragedy.”

The church of God has a presence in all four of the affected countries: Nepal, India, Tibet and Bangladesh.

When more reports are known, they will be posted on the website and on social media.

Many church leaders are recognizing a heartbreaking reality. We have received the good news of the gospel but we’re not actually communicating that good news. Paul writes to the church in Corinth that we are compelled by love in particular because we know if Jesus died for all, then those who live should no longer live for themselves but for the One who died for them and was raised.

Research shows that Protestant churchgoers in the United States and Canada as a whole are not telling this good news message. According to Paul, part of our new life is that we have been commissioned by God to reconcile the world to Himself through Christ. So we’ve been reconciled to become agents of reconciliation. Unfortunately, most Christians have become cul-de-sacs on the Great Commission highway.

In the Transformational Discipleship study, we asked 3,000 Protestant churchgoers how many times they had personally shared with another person how to become a Christian. Sixty-one percent said that they had never shared their faith. Zero times. Forty-eight percent said they hadn’t invited anyone to church during that period of time.

Evangelism has become an afterthought for many believers.

Evangelism has become an afterthought for many believers. They invite their friends to church at a better rate. But inviting friends to church is not evangelism. It could be a step in evangelism, but evangelism involves a bloody cross and an empty tomb. It involves us telling people about the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The reality is when we look at the facts is that most people aren’t doing that. They know the gospel, but they aren’t sharing it.

Why Are People Not Sharing Their Faith?

When you find that people aren’t doing what they should be doing, there are bound to be reasons, and/or excuses. In the case of evangelism, there are even objections to the way others are doing it. “Well, I don’t like the way some people evangelize. It’s too reductionistic, or too canned.” So they make all these objections on the means and yet they don’t have any alternative ways for sharing the gospel.

When someone complained about the way he did evangelism, D.L. Moody supposedly responded, “I like the way I do evangelism better than the way you don’t do evangelism.”

We have to find a way to get the gospel out. There are plenty of organizations that have put out great and accessible tools. People can always find faults with these means.

We can always find a reason to not engage the lost, but at the end of the day, excuses don’t win souls. But in all of those things what we find is people have to find courage, obedience, willingness, to take the step and to use those means. Use the tools or don’t. But share the gospel.

On the other side people say, “Culture is too resistant. People don’t want to hear the gospel.” Yet the reality is the opposite. Our studies show that younger adults are more willing to have spiritual conversations than older adults. They’re turned off by the church, but not by spiritual conversations.

So rather than making our primary focus inviting younger adults to church, let’s first seek to tell them about Jesus and the good news of the Gospel that Jesus died on the cross for our sin and in our place. When they grasp that, they’ll get the church part. They’ll understand they can’t love Jesus and despise His wife. They’ll get that. But let’s first bring them Jesus.

I think we’re talking ourselves out of evangelizing a whole generation thinking they’re not open when they are open, receptive and even responsive to the gospel.

From Nominal to None

So when we look at all of these things I think we are at a key moment, because what’s happening is nominal Christianity is fading away. These are people who have moved away from associating with a Christian group, and now are just nothing. They’re the “nones”—those who mark “none of the above” on religious identification surveys.

There are many people who used to say, “Well I’m Christian because my mother was Methodist. I’m Christian because my parents or my grandparents were Lutheran.” They’re now just saying they’re nothing. So we’re getting clearer about what being a Christian truly is. That’s a good thing.

I’m not happy about the decline of percentage of people identified as Christians, but the fact that 75 percent or so of Americans identify as Christians really makes evangelism confusing. With Christianity, there’s a new life. There’s a born again experience that we speak of when we talk about evangelism and evangelicals. And so we don’t think that 75 percent of people are Christians.

Truthfully, statistics show about 25 percent of people, maybe 30 percent, might have some sort of identifiable faith commitment that measures up to Scripture. So what’s happening is the squishy middle is collapsing. Nominal Christians are becoming nones, and in the midst of that we have the opportunity to share the good news of Christ.

The Gift of Evangelism

Another reason we’ve talked ourselves out of evangelism is we tell ourselves that we don’t have the gift of evangelism. People even say, “You know, I don’t have the gift of evangelism.”

Let me just say this, there’s no gift of evangelism in the Bible. So don’t worry about it. You don’t have it—nobody has it. There is the evangelist who equips God’s people for works of ministry according to Ephesians 4.

All of us have been reconciled to become agents of reconciliation.

But all of us have the responsibility to share the gospel. All of us have been reconciled to become agents of reconciliation.

I remember sitting in a home of a family who had been regularly attending our church for a while. They were uncertain about where they were with the Lord. They attended my small group. I had shared the gospel with them on multiple occasions. I later had the privilege of praying with them to trust and follow Christ. They were then baptized.

That’s what I want my church and your church and my ministry and your ministry to be defined by. Not this agenda or that agenda, but people hearing the good news of the gospel, being changed by its power, and calling out upon Christ who died for their sins on the cross and in their place.

What do leaders need to do to increase the evangelistic efforts of their flock? What do you think gets in the way of people who have a responsibility to share their faith?

Ed Stetzer is the executive director of LifeWay Research. For the original article, visit .

My dear Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake,

Your invitation to “give space for those who want to destroy” is unbelievable. This interpretation of rights to free speech is dangerous, ma’am.

In 1963, my father Rev. A.D. King, after the firebombing of our home in Birmingham, Alabama, urged hostile protesters to abandon violence and turn to God in prayer instead. Thank God they listened to him, and the even greater voice of his brother, my Uncle MLK, during those turbulent days.

Now, you are inviting violence to your city? Who, ma’am, will incur the moral and economic costs of picking up the pieces? The innocent taxpayers?

We at  are very concerned. Ma’am, people are not entitled to pillage and destroy. That is just plain wrong. Our affiliates on the ground in Baltimore are willing to help quell the violent tide. And make no mistake about it; something must be done to save our cities.

How did we get here? Where do we go now? Think about this: Baltimore 1965 vs. Baltimore 2015, compare and contrast:

1.      Money spent on public schools then vs. now.

2.      Amount spent on social welfare payments then vs. now.

3.      The size of Government Bureaucracy then vs. now.

4.      The number of black elected officials then vs. now.

5.      Number of black children born in Baltimore to an intact nuclear family.

6.      Number of black lives MIA by abortion and incarceration.

If you look at all six questions/comparisons what you will see is the only statistics to have decreased (1965 to 2015) is the number of black children born in intact nuclear families.

Something is wrong. We must stop the killing and advance the healing now!

Alveda King is author of King Rules, Founder of Alveda King Ministries, Director of African American Outreach for Priests for Life, and spiritual adviser for Restore the Dream 2015. 

The death toll in Nepal’s earthquake could reach 10,000, Prime Minister Sushil Koirala told Reuters on Tuesday, ordering intensified rescue efforts and appealing for foreign supplies of tents and medicines.

“The government is doing all it can for rescue and relief on a war footing,” Koirala said in an interview. “It is a challenge and a very difficult hour for Nepal.”

A home ministry official put the latest death toll at 4,349. If the death toll does reach 10,000, that would be even higher than the 8,500 killed in a massive 1934 quake, the Himalayan nation’s worst disaster to date.

Koirala was abroad when the 7.9 magnitude quake struck on Saturday. He returned on Sunday. He has issued orders to his government to improve coordination of the relief effort and will address the nation later on Tuesday, an aide said.

Appealing for foreign assistance, Koirala said Nepal needed tents and medicines. Many people are sleeping out of doors because their homes have been destroyed or may not withstand the dozens of aftershocks that have hit the country, he said.

“The government needs tents, much medicine. People are sleeping in fields and rains,” he said. “There are more than 7,000 people injured. Their treatment and rehabilitation is going to be a big challenge.”

© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.