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Election 2020: Gohmert Suit About So Much More Than Pence’s Powers

The leftist media and Democrat operatives are claiming that the lawsuit filed by Texas congressman Louie Gohmert, a former judge, is just another desperate attempt to “overturn the election.”

Rep. Gohmert’s lawsuit seeks to clarify the constitutional process for counting the Electoral College votes for president. In the end, it could also solve the century old confusion and ambiguity of what should happen in a questionable election like we are experiencing.

The headlines of a United States congressman suing the vice president appear strange. However, there are several important constitutional questions raised by the lawsuit that could be addressed and bring some much-needed guidance to our presidential election process.

2020: The Year Hate Made the World Go Round

Hate has become the emotion of choice for a lot of people this year—including a whole bunch of Christians. It’s more evident than ever just how toxic our culture is; 2020 has been quite the litmus test for love and civility.

I was recently interviewed about an article I wrote for The Stream titled “Is Today’s Prophetic Movement Fake News?” In the midst of a discussion on the unhealthy nature of much of today’s prophetic movement, I noted I’m concerned that the church has wasted the opportunity that 2020 has provided us.

The church’s often volatile reactions to the pressures of this season have been telling. People from all sides—the left, the right, the saved and the lost—have been spewing poisonous personal revelations about everything from masks to freedom to Trump to equality. No, there’s nothing wrong with holding to a strong opinion on important matters. We’d be socially dead if we didn’t. However, the moment we villainize, attack, shame, cancel and blacklist those who disagree with us is the moment our true, dark hearts are revealed.

Brace for Impact: Prophetic Message Helps Church Prepare

On Dec. 19, the Holy Spirit spoke the words, “Brace for impact.” To be honest, those are words I didn’t want to hear. Other prophetic leaders have heard similar words. But I knew this wasn’t to be released until after Christmas.

What does it mean for us? First, it is not a word to fear.

My friend Kim Potter and I discussed it, and she sensed the same thing—but with a slightly different word about the need to build an ark. Both words speak of the need to prepare. If we are not grounded on the Word, what’s coming could shake us. But the end result will be God’s plan.

I don’t believe this is a crash-and-burn moment. I still don’t sense in my spirit that Biden will be the last man standing. What I believe is exactly what the Holy Spirit said: We are to prepare and brace for impact for the natural clash of what has already been happening in the spiritual realm. {eoa}

I have a friend who has had a migraine for five years. Moments of relief are few and far between. The pain became so debilitating that he even­tually had to resign from the church he was pastoring. He’s been to countless specialists. He’s tried a wide variety of treatment plans. Noth­ing seems to help much or for long.

I asked him how he’s managed the pain and the emotions that go with it. He said, “I’ve learned to kiss the wave.” I must have given him a quizzical look, so my friend explained. He was quoting Charles Spur­geon: “I have learned to kiss the wave that throws me against the Rock of Ages.”

It’s a powerful sentence all by itself, but the backstory makes it even more meaningful. Before I unpack the whole story, let me say some­thing point blank. Kissing the wave doesn’t mean we don’t experience storms or get seasick during them. The good news? There is a God who can rebuke the wind and the waves with these words: “Peace, be still.” But before you rebuke the storm, you need to accept it. You can’t move past the pain if you ignore it or hide it or deny it.

A few years ago, Lora and I found ourselves thrown against the Rock of Ages. Lora was diagnosed with breast cancer. If you’ve had cancer or have a loved one who has, you know that a thousand questions fire across your synapses. What stage is it? How do we treat it? What is the prognosis? Fortunately, we caught it early, and Lora is better than ever.

Can I brag on my wife? I don’t think I’ve ever been prouder of her. Lora kissed the wave. How? She participated in her own healing process by making some courageous changes. She became intentional about ev­erything she put in her body and in her mind. Along with changing our diet, we did our best to eliminate toxins in our environment. Yes, that includes people. Lora started practicing meditation more regularly. We even started frequenting comedy clubs. Why? Laughter “doeth good like a medicine.”

When you get cancer, denying the diagnosis does no good. If you don’t own it, it will own you. Kissing the wave is confessing what’s wrong—in this case, cancer. But it’s also professing what’s right—God’s healing power. Remember my miraculous healing from asthma? It began with a brave prayer. For Lora, the healing process began with a brave question she stumbled across while reading a poem about illness:

What have you come to teach me?

When we find ourselves in difficult situations, we get so focused on getting out of them that we fail to get anything out of them. Then we wonder why we find ourselves in the same situation all over again. There is nothing wrong with asking God to change your circumstances, but His primary objective is changing you. The circumstances you’re asking God to change may be the very circumstances He is using to change you.

In the words of John Piper, “Don’t waste your cancer.” You can fill in the blank with whatever challenge you face. Don’t waste it! Maybe it has come to teach you a lesson that could not be learned any other way! Kissing the wave starts with a brave question: What have you come to teach me?

You don’t need to sabotage yourself—that’s for sure. Suffering will find you soon enough. When it does, you must recognize that it has the power to enrich your life in a way that nothing else can. If you find yourself in a season of suffering, that is a difficult sentence to read. I acknowledge that, and I don’t stand in judgment over others, because I don’t stand in their shoes. I don’t pretend to know the trauma you’ve endured. I do know this: everyone is fighting a battle we know nothing about.

Lora and I have experienced our fair share of grief and pain and dis­appointment. I’m not sure where we rank on the bell curve, especially compared with those who have experienced injustice or aren’t sure where their next meals are coming from. Like our memories, suffering is subjective. We have some long-lasting regrets, like every parent I know. We have deep wells of sadness, like every person I know. We have walked through the valley of the shadow of death more than once, and we have the emotional scars to prove it. We’ve also seen God turn some of our toughest tests into our most treasured testimonies. We wouldn’t want to live those seasons all over again, but we wouldn’t trade them for anything in the world. Every testimony starts with test. Pass the test, and you get a testimony. {eoa}

Excerpted from Win the Day: 7 Daily Habits to Help You Stress Less & Accomplish More, copyright © 2020 by Mark Batterson. Used by permission of Multnomah, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC.

Mark Batterson is the lead pastor of National Community Church (NCC) in Washington, DC. And the New York Times bestselling author of 20 books, including the children’s book God Speaks in Whispers (co-written with his daughter Summer) and his latest, Win the Day: 7 Daily Habits to Help You Stress Less & Accomplish More.

In a recent episode of Live Your Best Life with Liz Wright on the Charisma Podcast Network, Wright shares powerful testimonies of what she has seen God doing in the bride of Christ and how we move the heart of God. She gave an update on the incredible things happening in Liz Wright Ministries through the International Mentoring Community (IMC) which launched in 2020. They have seen hearts miraculously healed from years of emotional pain, trauma and grief; minds renewed; people who have never had spiritual experiences beginning to encounter Jesus; and lives transformed. What is happening in the IMC is a glimpse into what God’s doing across the whole bride of Christ. Be encouraged that He is awakening us to know Him more than ever before!

Wright also shares some recent encounters to do with the deeper walk Jesus is inviting us into. We are entering into the palanquin journey spoken of in Song of Songs 3, where we lean into Him in the marriage carriage and learn to rest. From this place, we can view the events of this world from His perspective, and we become untouchable to the enemy because we are safe in the cocoon of His love.

Wright had another experience where she was taken into heaven and realized just how much it impacts Jesus’ heart when we offer love to Him, no matter how weak or compromised we may feel. Your love is the reward of His suffering, and He is overwhelmed by your heart. It is so important in this hour to be at his feet and let Him prepare us for the wedding supper of the Lamb. As Liz says, “All we leave this planet with is our relationship with Him.” Prioritize Him today and you will see your heart and life completely transform.

For more of Liz Wright’s teaching on what God is doing in the bride of Christ, listen to the entire episode of Live Your Best Life With Liz Wright here. {eoa}

Georgia Republican Sen. David Perdue is in quarantine after being exposed to the coronavirus.

Though he’s tested negative, the 71-year-old Perdue is coming off the campaign trail in the final days of his runoff election with Democrat challenger Jon Ossoff.

Perdue even canceled a New Year’s Eve rally with fellow Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler, who’s in her own runoff against Democrat Raphael Warnock. The winners will decide the balance of power in Washington.

Ossoff and Warnock have raised staggering sums of cash and have gained assistance from voting activists across the country as Democrats focus intense efforts on taking the two Senate seats from Republicans in Georgia.

Perdue and Loeffler both won their races against Ossoff and Warnock respectively in November, but they didn’t reach the 50 percent threshold to avoid runoff elections.

In November, Perdue beat Ossoff by 88,000 votes but just barely fell just short of avoiding a runoff with 49.7% of the vote in a three-way race that included Libertarian Shane Hazel. Democrats believe they can make up the difference thanks to mail-in ballots and get-out-the-vote efforts.

President Trump is scheduled to campaign in Georgia on Monday, the day before the Jan. 5 vote.

And Christians are rallying this Saturday to pray for these critical elections. A group of believers is gathering in the Georgia state capital and joining in spirit with others across the country to pray as part of an event called “The Georgia Prayer March.” {eoa}

Reprinted with permission from . Copyright The Christian Broadcasting Network, Inc. All rights reserved.