Bitterness rarely enters loudly. It settles into conversations, reshapes memories and changes the way people view churches, pastors and even God Himself. Pastor Landon Schott warned that many Christians are carrying offense without realizing how deeply it is affecting their spiritual lives. He described offense as a trap that slowly hardens the heart and pulls believers away from intimacy with the Holy Spirit.

During a recent episode of his “Spiritual Leadership” podcast, Schott focused on what he called “10 signs you may be offended.” He said offense is far more dangerous than hurt feelings or personal frustration. “It is one of the greatest demonic traps that Christians fall into today,” Schott said. “An offense is what takes most emerging leaders out.”

1. Every church feels unhealthy

Schott said some believers move from church to church carrying the same frustration into every new place. “If every church is toxic, if every pastor is controlling, if every leader is abusive, at some point you have to look at the common denominator,” he said. “The common denominator is you.” He explained that offense can distort discernment until healthy leadership looks threatening.

2. You keep repeating, “I’m not offended”

Schott said many offended people deny their bitterness while constantly returning to old wounds. “If you told the same story of what people have done about you over and over and over for years and years, you haven’t forgiven them and you haven’t moved on,” he said. The story stays alive because forgiveness never happened.

3. You replay arguments in your head

He described people mentally revisiting confrontations long after they happened. “You’re in the shower winning arguments with people who you aren’t even in the room,” Schott said. He warned that imagined battles often create deeper resentment.

4. Correction immediately feels personal

“The moment someone challenges you, all of a sudden, suddenly you become a victim,” Schott said. He explained that offense can make accountability feel hostile instead of helpful.

5. Someone else’s failure feels satisfying

Schott said bitterness can twist the heart until another person’s hardship feels deserved. “Your heart rejoices when people go through trials, you got a spirit of offense,” he said. Instead of compassion, offense produces quiet satisfaction.

6. Hurt becomes your main testimony

“If your biggest testimony is about people who hurt you, offense is running rampant in your life,” Schott said. He challenged believers to stop centering their identity around betrayal and return their focus to “the goodness of God, the grace of God, the mercy of God.”

7. You leave instead of resolving conflict

Schott said offended people often avoid honest conversations. Instead, they “change churches, change teams, unfollow people, and disappear from community.” He warned that isolation never heals offense.

8. Everyone else becomes the problem

Schott warned that offense changes the way people tell their stories. “If you cannot honestly evaluate and say, ‘Hey, I made mistakes here,’” he said, offense has already taken root. Humility disappears when bitterness takes over.

9. You gather people onto your side

Schott described offended believers building support systems around their hurt through conversations and private messages. “You’re building a case because it is a demonic ploy in a demonic courtroom,” he said. He warned that offense spreads quickly once it is shared.

10. Joy begins disappearing

“Offended people are rarely joyful because bitterness and joy can’t live in the same heart,” Schott said. He explained that unresolved offense drains spiritual life and replaces peace with heaviness.

Schott said forgiveness is the only way out of the trap. “You are never more like Jesus than when you’re forgiving,” he said. He encouraged believers to examine their hearts daily and release offense quickly before it settles deeper. “Where you stop forgiving, you stop spiritually growing.”

The Bible continually points believers back to forgiveness because unforgiveness keeps the heart stuck in old pain. Jesus forgave while hanging on the cross after betrayal, rejection and suffering. His example still calls Christians toward mercy today. Offense keeps people chained to yesterday, but forgiveness opens the way for healing and spiritual growth.

James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

A swarm of earthquakes near Area 51 has reignited speculation surrounding secret underground testing, UFO disclosure and the U.S. government’s long history of mystery surrounding the classified military base.

More than 17 earthquakes struck near Area 51 within a 24-hour span, according to reporting from the Daily Mail. The strongest quake measured 4.4 magnitude and struck at a shallow depth roughly 2.5 miles underground, prompting immediate online speculation tied to the base’s secretive reputation.

Geophysicist Stefan Burns said the location itself raised eyebrows.

“This is an unusual place to get an earthquake,” Burns said, noting the region has historically remained quieter than other fault-heavy areas across the western United States.

Burns also pointed to the quake’s shallow depth as particularly significant.

“Earthquakes and underground explosions can sometimes produce similar seismic signatures,” he said.

The theory quickly spread across social media, with some users openly questioning whether the seismic activity was tied to covert underground testing near the infamous Nevada facility.

Burns said the seismic data carried “some ambiguity” and described the event as “worth discussing in the context of whether this is a covert underground nuclear test.”

The renewed attention to the Nevada quake swarm arrives as UFO disclosure stories continue to dominate headlines across government, media and entertainment. Congressional hearings, Pentagon reports, whistleblower claims and military footage have pushed the subject from conspiracy theory into daily mainstream discussion.

Almost every major news cycle now seems to circle back to disclosure in some form, creating a growing sense that the public is being conditioned for something larger waiting just over the horizon.

James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

Hollywood comedian Tim Allen accidentally stepped into one of the strangest contradictions in modern American politics this week: a movement screaming “No Kings” while applauding an actual king.

“Would have been funny to see the facial reactions of an actual King with a no Kings parade yelling at him,” Allen posted on X after King Charles III addressed Congress.

Would have been funny to see the facial reactions of an actual King with a no Kings parade yelling at him.

— Tim Allen (@ofctimallen) April 28, 2026

Funny? Yes. But also revealing.

The same political machine chanting against “authoritarianism” rose to its feet for a monarch wrapped in royal ceremony while simultaneously flooding the streets for May Day protests organized by socialist, Marxist and openly communist groups. The irony was so thick it could be spread on toast.

One social media user summed it up perfectly: “The party chanting ‘no kings’ was clamoring to stand in ovation of a real King.”

Another added: “The democrats give an actual king a standing ovation. The irony.”

This is what happens when politics becomes theater and ideology replaces principle. The script changes depending on who is holding the microphone.

Meanwhile, Allen has been walking a very different road. Earlier this year, he revealed he completed a 13-month journey through the Bible.

“Humbled, enlightened and amazed at what I read and what I learned,” Allen wrote. “I will rest and meditate on so much. I will begin it again.”

That sentence explains more about America’s political divide than most cable news panels manage in five years.

Order Jonathan Cahn’s New Book, “The Altar of Pergamon” on !

Because Scripture does something ideology cannot do: it confronts the human ego. Marxism feeds it. The Gospel crushes it.

The modern left has spent years replacing God with government, morality with activism and repentance with outrage. Now the same activist ecosystem behind the “No Kings” protests is marching under banners connected to May Day, a holiday embraced for generations by communist revolutionaries, atheistic regimes and anti-Christian political movements.

According to a Fox News Digital investigation, roughly 600 groups with an estimated $2 billion in combined annual revenue mobilized about 3,000 May Day protests nationwide. The network included chapters of the Democratic Socialists of America alongside communist organizations like the Party for Socialism and Liberation and the Communist Party USA.

The coalition pushed slogans such as “No Work No School No Shopping,” “Tax the rich,” “No ICE. No War,” and “Workers Over Billionaires.”

The Revolutionary Communist Party called for dismantling the “capitalist-imperialist system.”

The Maoist Communist Union summoned activists to join an “Anti-Imperialist Contingent.”

And all of this erupted on May 1, a date loaded with spiritual and ideological symbolism.

Modern May Day politics traces back to socialist labor movements, but May 1 also overlaps with Walpurgisnacht, the occult festival tied to witchcraft folklore and later embraced symbolically within Satanic traditions. Anton LaVey founded the Church of Satan on Walpurgisnacht in 1966.

That connection matters because Marxism and Satanism share a common instinct: rebellion against God-ordained authority.

One attacks heaven spiritually. The other attacks it politically.

Both reject submission to God.

Both enthrone self.

Both promise liberation while producing bondage.

The Soviet Union murdered Christians. Communist China bulldozes churches and monitors worshippers with surveillance technology. Marxist revolutions throughout history replaced crosses with governments demanding total allegiance.

That spirit never disappeared. It just traded military uniforms for protest signs and hashtags.

Fox News Digital reported that groups tied to Shanghai-based businessman Neville Roy Singham helped drive the protest ecosystem. The report stated that organizations in the network promoted narratives aligned with the Chinese Communist Party.

The article also noted that many organizations involved in the anti-Trump “No Kings” protests participated in the May Day demonstrations.

That overlap is not accidental.

A culture rejecting God eventually rejects truth. Then reality itself becomes negotiable. Men become women. Evil becomes virtue. Criminals become victims. Churches become obstacles. Borders become immoral. And suddenly people applauding kings insist they are fighting monarchy.

George Orwell warned about political language designed to make lies sound truthful. America upgraded the concept. Now the lie comes with hashtags, corporate sponsorships and celebrity endorsements.

Allen’s response stood out because it cut through the absurdity with one simple observation.

A man who just spent more than a year immersed in Scripture recognized hypocrisy the moment he saw it.

That tends to happen when people read the Bible.

The light comes on.

And once that happens, the circus stops looking normal.

James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

The night sky will put on a dazzling display Friday as May’s full “Flower Moon” rises across the United States, marking one of the most recognizable lunar events of the spring season.

According to The Old Farmer’s Almanac, the Flower Moon gets its name from the abundance of blooming flowers that appear throughout North America during early May. The tradition traces back to Native American seasonal naming customs.

The moon reached peak illumination at 1:23 p.m. EDT Friday, but astronomers say the best viewing opportunity comes after sunset when the full moon climbs above the eastern horizon.

Order Amanda Grace’s New Book, “Brace For Impact” on !

“This sweetly named celestial event is worth stepping outside for,” Good Housekeeping reported in its coverage of the lunar event.

This year’s Flower Moon is also considered a “micromoon,” meaning the moon is near its farthest point from Earth during its orbit. As a result, it may appear slightly smaller than a typical full moon.

As the moon rises low in the sky, viewers may notice a deep yellow or orange glow. reported the color effect happens because the moonlight passes through the densest part of Earth’s atmosphere during moonrise.

Skywatchers will also get another rare lunar event later this month. A second full moon, commonly called a “Blue Moon,” is expected on May 31.

James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

The world is not preparing for the end. It is making dinner reservations.

Families are planning vacations. Couples are posting engagement photos. Teenagers are scrolling endlessly through short videos while millions argue politics, sports and celebrity scandals online. Cities glow late into the night with restaurants packed and music blaring through crowded streets.

Normal life rolls on.

And according to John Bevere, that is exactly what should concern us.

In a recent episode of “The John Bevere Podcast,” the longtime Christian author and minister warned that the final moments before Christ’s return will not resemble the apocalyptic chaos most people imagine. Instead, he said society will appear stable, distracted and spiritually numb until sudden destruction arrives without warning.

“Jesus said the end wouldn’t look chaotic,” Bevere said. “It would actually look quite normal.”

The message centered on Christ’s words comparing the last days to the days of Noah and Lot. People were eating, drinking, marrying, buying and selling right up until judgment suddenly fell.

“For when they say peace and safety, then sudden destruction comes upon them,” Bevere said while quoting from 1 Thessalonians.

The warning cuts against the popular image of the end times as an obvious collapse visible to everyone long before it arrives. Bevere argued many people wrongly assume they will have time to get serious about God later, after unmistakable prophetic events begin unfolding across the world.

“No, no, that’s not the attitude you should have,” he said. “We are to be ready for a sudden catching away.”

But while the surface of society may appear calm, Bevere argued the deeper spiritual condition of the world already resembles Noah’s generation.

He pointed to what he described as exploding corruption, sexual immorality, occult fascination and rising violence spreading throughout modern culture. He referenced the growing popularity of witchcraft, crystals and spiritual practices once pushed to the fringes of society. He spoke about human trafficking, moral confusion and what he called a dangerous effort to redefine humanity itself.

“It was a time of dark spiritual activity,” Bevere said while discussing Genesis 6. “There’s definitely a rise in this today.”

The conversation became even more intense as the discussion turned toward transhumanism, artificial intelligence and modern fascination with UFOs and interdimensional beings. Bevere connected modern disclosure narratives surrounding unidentified aerial phenomena to the biblical account of the Nephilim in Genesis.

Then the atmosphere of the podcast shifted.

What began as a theological discussion turned deeply personal.

Bevere stopped speaking broadly about culture and instead addressed listeners directly, warning Christians living in hidden sin that spiritual compromise hardens the heart and separates people from fellowship with God.

“There’s still time to change,” he said. “Jesus is so patient. God is so patient.”

He warned against sexual immorality, greed, addiction and lukewarm Christianity, pleading with listeners to repent while mercy is still available.

“God will come running to you,” Bevere said. “But you have got to stop sinning because your heart is being hardened.”

The emotional centerpiece of the episode came when Bevere described the coming tribulation in explicit detail, quoting passages from Isaiah, Hebrews, Acts and Revelation that describe worldwide devastation, cosmic shaking and mass death unlike anything humanity has ever experienced.

“The Day of the Lord is coming,” he said while reading from Isaiah. “The terrible day of His fury and fierce anger.”

He described a future so catastrophic that Scripture says human life will become “more rare than fine gold.”

Throughout the discussion, Bevere repeatedly emphasized that his message was not rooted in fear but urgency. His son, Ardan Bevere, said the teachings had transformed his own view of the end times from anxiety into expectation.

“It builds an expectation and excitement into me,” Ardan said. “It doesn’t build a fear.”

Near the end of the podcast, Bevere said his burden comes from what he described as a father’s heart for the church and for younger generations who are spiritually drifting and asleep in a distracted culture.

“The time really is short,” he said.

And perhaps that is the unsettling core of the entire warning.

The days of Noah did not end with people hiding in bunkers watching the sky.

They ended with people living ordinary lives until the rain began.

James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

Scientists are warning that one of California’s most dangerous fault lines is overdue for a devastating earthquake that could shake the San Francisco Bay Area far harder than previously expected.

Researchers from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory said the Hayward Fault, a 74-mile fracture running through the Bay Area, poses a major threat to nearly eight million residents living in the region. The warning comes after new 3D simulations revealed future shaking could be up to 50 percent stronger in several heavily populated communities.

“The fault is overdue for an earthquake that could cause extensive damage to such a dense population zone,” the research team said in a statement.

The Hayward Fault is part of the larger San Andreas Fault system and is capable of producing earthquakes stronger than magnitude 7.0. The last major rupture along the Hayward occurred in 1868. Scientists estimate the fault typically ruptures every 95 to 183 years.

Order Jonathan Cahn’s New Book, “The Altar of Pergamon” on !

The new study, published in Seismological Research Letters, simulated 50 realistic earthquake scenarios using updated underground geological maps of the Bay Area. Researchers examined how seismic waves would move through California’s underground basins, hills and shoreline mud deposits.

The findings showed areas including Oakland, Berkeley, Hayward and Livermore could experience significantly stronger and longer shaking than older earthquake models predicted.

Researchers warned that when the Hayward Fault ruptures, seismic energy often focuses in one direction “like a lens,” intensifying the shaking and increasing the danger for tall or flexible buildings.

Deep geological basins including the Livermore Basin, the East Bay Hills and shoreline “Bay Mud” regions were identified as especially vulnerable because they can trap and amplify seismic waves.

In a Daily Mail report, Arben Pitarka said, “With this new database, not only can we provide better estimates of the expected ground motion from this type of earthquake, but we can also locate areas that are susceptible to very strong shaking in the San Francisco Bay Area.”

According to the United States Geological Survey, there is a 95 percent probability that a magnitude 6.7 or larger earthquake will strike somewhere in the Bay Area by 2043. Researchers said the Hayward Fault is the most likely source of that future disaster, with a one-in-three chance of rupturing by that same year.

The LLNL team also plans to conduct similar simulations for the San Andreas Fault, which caused the catastrophic 1906 San Francisco earthquake that killed more than 3,000 people.

James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

British authorities launched one of the largest coordinated operations in recent memory Wednesday as more than 500 police officers raided facilities tied to the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light sect in Crewe, England, leading to multiple arrests tied to allegations of forced marriage, human trafficking and modern-day slavery.

According to CBS News, six men and three women were taken into custody during the operation after police executed warrants at three separate addresses linked to the group, including its headquarters in Cheshire.

JUST IN: Members of an Islamic sect have been arrested in the UK for slavery and forced marriages.

Over 500 police officers have raided the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light in Crewe, England.

Police say members were arrested for human trafficking, s*xual assault, r*pe, forced…

— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) April 29, 2026

Authorities said the investigation began after a former female member came forward in March with allegations involving “serious sexual offenses, forced marriage and modern slavery” that allegedly occurred in 2023.

Police said the arrests involve allegations connected to:

• Human trafficking
• Sexual assault
• Forced marriage
• Modern slavery

“Today’s operation is the outcome of a detailed and robust investigation,” Chief Superintendent Gareth Wrigley of the Cheshire Constabulary said. “While those arrested are members of the group, I want to make clear that this is not an investigation into the religion, this is an investigation into the serious allegations which have been reported to us.”

Lawyers representing the sect denied wrongdoing, telling The Guardian that “any wrongdoing is vehemently denied.”

The Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light, also known as AROPL, is a fringe sect affiliated with Shia Islam that has been granted charitable status in the United Kingdom. The organization is led by Abdullah Hashem Aba Al-Sadiq, an Egyptian-American figure who claims divine appointment connected to Islamic prophecy.

According to reporting from The Guardian, roughly 150 people live together inside the group’s gated Crewe compound, including 56 children who are reportedly home-schooled.

The movement has attracted attention for blending Islamic messianic teachings with conspiracy theories, UFO beliefs and supernatural claims.

Order Jonathan Cahn’s New Book, “The Altar of Pergamon” on !

Previous reporting by Charisma highlighted a rare remote interview conducted by Christian researcher L.A. Marzulli with Hashem, where the sect leader openly discussed his controversial doctrines.

During the interview, Hashem denied claiming to literally be Jesus Christ but described himself as “a messenger from Jesus Christ.” He also claimed the Holy Spirit currently operates through him as a divinely appointed caliph.

Hashem additionally told Marzulli that UFOs may involve “demons, angels, spirits or physical beings in craft from other worlds,” while affirming belief that Nephilim activity continues in the modern era.

In another striking claim, Hashem rejected the biblical account of Christ’s resurrection, asserting that Jesus’ spirit escaped before the crucifixion while another being died in His place.

Marzulli later said the interview was intended to allow viewers to hear the sect’s teachings directly and better recognize spiritual deception and end-times religious movements emerging on the world stage.

James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

As tensions continue to erupt across the Middle East, Iraq is rapidly transforming into a major maritime and economic hub through massive infrastructure projects near the historic site of ancient Babylon. The Bible warned thousands of years ago that Babylon would rise again in the last days, and the developments unfolding now are drawing renewed attention to prophecies found in Revelation 17 and 18.

In a recent discussion, Pastor James Kaddis and Dr. Andy Woods said the geopolitical and economic shifts taking place in Iraq align directly with Scripture’s warnings about the future rise of Babylon.

“The Bible says so much about the last days,” Kaddis said. “One of the many things it tells us is about the coming city of Babylon. Folks, make no mistake. We’re embarking upon the construction of that great city.”

The discussion centered heavily on the Strait of Hormuz, ongoing tensions involving Iran and the rapid development of Iraq’s maritime infrastructure, particularly around the Al-Faw Peninsula in southern Iraq.

Woods explained that Revelation 18 describes Babylon as a powerful maritime city tied directly to global commerce.

“Babylon is looking more and more like it has the potential of being a maritime city,” Woods said. “The people that weep and wail over its destruction are the sea merchants that became wealthy.”

Order Jonathan Cahn’s New Book, “The Altar of Pergamon” on !

The two pointed to recent reports highlighting Iraq’s aggressive investment in ports, floating docks, shipping lanes and logistics corridors connecting the Persian Gulf to Turkey. Iraq’s government has also announced new investment initiatives involving digital infrastructure, economic cities and transportation projects designed to transform the nation into a regional logistics powerhouse.

Woods said the developments mirror the framework laid out in Revelation.

“Iraq is gradually transforming into an economic powerhouse with the economy and with the maritime environment that is starting to look more and more like what Revelation 18 anticipates for the end of the age,” he said.

The conversation also explored the biblical origins of Babylon beginning in Genesis 11 at the Tower of Babel under Nimrod.

Woods described Babel as “Satan’s grand project,” explaining it was the first attempt at a one-world political, economic and religious system.

According to Woods, prophecies in Isaiah 13-14 and Jeremiah 50-51 were never completely fulfilled during Babylon’s historical fall to Persia in 539 B.C. because those passages describe a catastrophic destruction similar to Sodom and Gomorrah.

He argued those prophecies point to a future rebuilt Babylon that will eventually become the headquarters of the Antichrist’s global system described in Revelation 17 and 18.

“And once that city falls, heaven … just explodes into praise because Satan’s great project that he’s always lusted after and finally had a chance to bring to fruition … has been destroyed,” Woods said.

The two also rejected interpretations claiming Babylon represents Rome or the United States, insisting Scripture repeatedly points to literal Babylon in modern-day Iraq.

Kaddis warned that the pace of developments in the region is accelerating rapidly.

“I think it’s going to happen a lot faster than we think,” he said. “Babylon will rise in prominence.”

As headlines continue emerging from Iraq, Iran and the Strait of Hormuz, the warnings found in Genesis, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Zechariah and Revelation are moving from the pages of Scripture into the center of global events.

At a time like this, we must know the Word of God, stay spiritually awake and recognize the prophetic significance of the days unfolding before us.

James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

An Egyptian Christian convert is facing severe persecution after authorities imprisoned him on terrorism-related charges tied to his conversion from Islam and his efforts to change the religious designation on his identification documents.

According to Christian Daily International, Said Mansour Rezk Abdelrazek appeared before Egypt’s First Criminal Terrorism Circuit in Badr last week as international religious freedom advocates raised alarms over his treatment behind bars.

Prosecutors accused Abdelrazek of “promoting ideas and beliefs deemed ‘harmful to national unity and social peace,’” along with charges including contempt for Islam and joining an unlawful organization.

The case has drawn global attention because of the brutal treatment Abdelrazek reportedly endured while in custody. Advocacy groups stated he was deprived of adequate food, clothing and medical care while being suspended for hours in a “crucifixion” position inside Cairo’s 10th of Ramadan Prison.

Order Jonathan Cahn’s New Book, “The Altar of Pergamon” on !

The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom designated Abdelrazek a religious prisoner of conscience, stating he was targeted because of his Christian faith and religious activity.

“During detention, authorities and inmates physically and psychologically abused Abdelrazek for his conversion,” the commission stated.

Abdelrazek converted to Christianity in 2016 after what human rights advocates described as years of personal reflection. The conversion triggered years of escalating persecution in Egypt, eventually forcing him to flee to Russia in 2019 seeking asylum.

After Russian authorities deported him back to Egypt in 2024, Egyptian officials allegedly interrogated him over his Christian beliefs and pressured him to abandon his faith.

“When communication resumed, Egyptian authorities interrogated him about his religious beliefs and pressured him to reconsider his faith, monitor other converts, and asked him to delete his social media accounts,” USCIRF reported.

Despite the pressure, Abdelrazek continued publicly expressing his Christian beliefs online and sought legal help to officially change his identification documents. Egyptian authorities arrested him again in July 2025.

Human rights organizations now are urging Australia to intervene and grant him humanitarian protection because his fiancée is an Australian citizen.

An international coalition of rights groups warned that his imprisonment exposes a broader pattern of persecution against Christian converts in Egypt.

“His experience starkly contradicts Article 64 of Egypt’s Constitution, which states that ‘freedom of belief is absolute,’ yet in practice denies that right to those who leave Islam,” the coalition wrote.

Abdelrazek’s suffering serves as a sobering reminder that many of our brothers and sisters still face imprisonment, torture and isolation simply for following Jesus Christ. While those of us in the West often worship freely, countless Christians elsewhere endure persecution that rarely makes global headlines.

We should continue praying for Abdelrazek’s protection, strength and release, while also lifting up persecuted Christians across the globe who remain steadfast in their faith despite unimaginable suffering.

James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.

For decades, The Walt Disney Company sold families a vision of magic, wonder and escape from reality. Now, critics say the entertainment giant is helping normalize the very surveillance infrastructure many of us as Christians have warned about for years: a global system built on biometric tracking, data harvesting and the extinction of privacy.

Disney this week confirmed it is rolling out facial recognition technology at entrance gates inside Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure Park, with expansion expected at additional locations.

The company said the system is designed to “speed up entry into the parks and reduce ticket fraud.” Cameras capture images of guests’ faces and compare them against photos tied to their tickets or passes. Disney said the images are converted into “unique numerical codes” and deleted within 30 days unless retained for “legal or fraud-prevention purposes.”

Many Americans are no longer seeing convenience. They are seeing the framework of total surveillance unfolding in real time.

Some Disney fans immediately blasted the system as “dystopian” and compared it to “Big Brother,” the all-seeing authoritarian government from George Orwell’s novel “1984.” Others questioned Disney’s claim that the data would be deleted within 30 days, asking: “Why not immediately?”

Order Jonathan Cahn’s New Book, “The Altar of Pergamon” on !

Those concerns strike at the heart of what many of us in the church have warned about for years. Scripture describes a coming global system in which buying, selling and participation in society become tied to centralized control. Revelation 13 warns of a future Beast system where allegiance, identification and economic access become inseparable.

What once sounded impossible now looks increasingly familiar.

Facial recognition systems are spreading across airports, retail stores, government buildings, stadiums and entertainment venues. Society is being conditioned to surrender biometric data in exchange for speed, convenience and access.

And many are cheering it on.

One guest wrote on Facebook: “It was fine. It actually moved things along quicker.”

Another park guest told the Los Angeles Times: “Pretty much every other place is doing the same thing. The police, the government, they’re all using facial recognition. I don’t think it’s going to stop.”

That statement may be the clearest warning of all.

The normalization phase is already here. Surveillance is no longer presented as oppression. It is marketed as efficiency, safety and customer convenience. Massive corporations and governments are building databases of faces, behaviors and movements while society willingly scans itself into the machine.

Even children are being drawn into the system.

Disney’s policy states minors under 18 may use the facial recognition service with parental consent. That troubled some guests.

One mother said: “When they were going to do it for her, it freaked me out a little bit, to be honest.”

Another guest also raised concerns over how the data could ultimately be used.

“It’s a little scary because it’s not clear how it’s going to be used,” the guest said.

As Christians, we are watching these developments through a biblical lens because we recognize something much larger than a theme park policy change. The infrastructure for the Antichrist’s future control system is rising piece by piece before our eyes. Cameras, biometric identification, AI tracking and centralized databases are merging together into a digital cage unlike anything humanity has ever experienced.

And just as prophecy warned us, millions are embracing it voluntarily.

James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact media@.