U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday ordered the unveiling of 2,800 documents related to the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy but yielded to pressure from the FBI and CIA to block the release of other records to be reviewed further.

Congress had ordered in 1992 that all remaining sealed files pertaining to the investigation into Kennedy’s death should be fully opened to the public through the National Archives in 25 years, by Oct. 26, 2017, except for those the president authorized for further withholding.

Trump had confirmed on Saturday that he would allow for the release of the final batch of once-classified records, amounting to tens of thousands of pages, “subject to the receipt of further information.”

But as the deadline neared, the administration decided at the last minute to stagger the final release over the next 180 days while government agencies studied whether any documents should stay sealed or redacted.

The law allows the president to keep material under wraps if it is determined that harm to intelligence operations, national defense, law enforcement or the conduct of foreign relations would outweigh the public’s interest in full disclosure.

More than 2,800 uncensored documents were posted immediately to the National Archives website on Thursday evening—a staggering, disparate cache that news outlets began poring through seeking new insights into a tragedy that has been endlessly dissected for decades by investigators, scholars and conspiracy theorists.

The rest will be released “on a rolling basis,” with “redactions in only the rarest of circumstances,” by the end of the review on April 26, 2018, the White House said in a statement.

In a memo to government agency heads, Trump said the American people deserved as much access as possible to the records.

“Therefore, I am ordering today that the veil finally be lifted,” he wrote, adding that he had no choice but to accept the requested redactions for now.

A Central Intelligence Agency spokesman told Reuters that every single one of approximately 18,000 remaining CIA records in the collection would ultimately be released, with just 1 percent of the material left redacted.

CIA Director Mike Pompeo was a lead advocate in arguing to the White House for keeping some materials secret, one senior administration official said.

While Kennedy was killed over half a century ago, the document file included material from investigations during the 1970s through the 1990s. Intelligence and law enforcement officials argued their release could thus put at risk some more recent “law enforcement equities” and other materials that still have relevance, the official said.

Trump was resistant but “acceded to it with deep insistence that this stuff is going to be reviewed and released in the next six months,” the official added.

Quelling Conspiracy Theories

Academics who have studied Kennedy’s slaying on Nov. 22, 1963, said they expected nothing in the final batch of files would alter the official conclusion of investigators that Lee Harvey Oswald was the lone assassin who fired on the president’s open limousine that day in Dallas from an upper window of the Texas Book Depository building overlooking the motorcade route.

They likewise anticipated that the latest releases would do little to quell long-held conspiracy theories that the 46-year-old Democratic president’s killing was organized by the Mafia, by Cuba, or a cabal of rogue agents.

Of the roughly 5 million pages of JFK assassination-related records held by the National Archives, 88 percent have been available to the public without restriction since the late 1990s, and 11 percent more have been released with sensitive portions redacted. Only about 1 percent remain withheld in full, according to the National Archives.

Thousands of books, articles, TV shows and films have explored the idea that Kennedy’s assassination was the result of an elaborate conspiracy. None have produced conclusive proof that Oswald, who was fatally shot by a nightclub owner two days after killing Kennedy, worked with anyone else, although they retain a powerful cultural currency.

“My students are really skeptical that Oswald was the lone assassin,” said Patrick Maney, a professor of history at Boston College. “It’s hard to get our minds around this, that someone like a loner, a loser, could on his own have murdered Kennedy and changed the course of world history. But that’s where the evidence is.”

Kennedy’s assassination was the first in a string of politically motivated killings, including those of his brother Robert F. Kennedy and civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., that stunned the United States during the turbulent 1960s. He remains one of the most admired U.S. presidents. {eoa}

© 2017 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.

Alerting all parents! Additional controversial content will be included in the Disney Channel show Andi Mack during season two, premiering Friday, Oct. 27, at 8:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. CT. One Million Moms (1MM) earlier warned parents this program is not suitable for a kids’ network, and now the show is introducing the network’s first gay character.

In a first for the Disney Channel, the show Andi Mack will spend an hour focusing on one of the main characters coming out as gay. Young teen Cyrus Goodman is a key member in the program’s cast. During the season two premiere, he’ll make Disney Channel history as he grapples with his feelings for another boy. And in subsequent episodes, he’ll work these feelings out along with having a new girlfriend.

According to an article in TV Line, Disney Channel’s upcoming series Andi Mack will be Disney Channel’s “most adult show yet.” This season’s premiere episode was also screened in advance for organizations like Common Sense Media, GLAAD and PFLAG. Disney Channel claims the aim was to craft a story that maintains its signature brand of age-appropriate storytelling while building a narrative of inclusion and kindness.

The Walt Disney company also released a statement regarding Andi Mack‘s stories and characters, writing, “The Disney brand has always been inclusive, with stories that reflect acceptance and tolerance and celebrate the differences that make our characters uniquely wonderful in their own way. We constantly strive to live up to that legacy by continuing to create and share compelling storylines from our studios and media networks that entertain with inspirational and aspirational themes and reflect the incredibly rich diversity of the human experience. Our stories are timeless because they speak to the heart; our characters appeal to children across gender, ability and experience because they’re defined by kindness, loyalty, humor, courage, wit and other traits that make a good friend. Disney remains committed to continuing to create characters that are accessible and related to all children.”

One might question why Disney Channel feels the need to pursue such programming. Minsky states, “[The network] asked me for something different. They wanted to attract an older audience.”

Why? What is wrong with having family-friendly content that is acceptable for all ages or even leaving a couple of networks solely for children’s entertainment? Disney Channel is gradually becoming another Freeform Network. As one of only a few channels catering to children, it cannot possibly be that Disney Channel has a financial need for more adult viewers.

By choosing to abandon family-friendly entertainment, Disney’s inexplicable choice to move toward more “adult” fare may ultimately prove to be a huge mistake.

Disney’s first gay kiss aired earlier this year on Disney XD’s animated series Star vs. the Forces of Evil. The scene took place at a concert where the band played a romantic tune that inspired many couples in the audience to kiss; a few of those couples—none of which involved a main character—were same sex.

The Disney Channel is deliberately choosing to “move forward” and promote adult content to children. By choosing to move in the direction of more “adult” stories and content, the Disney Channel—and the entire Disney media empire—may be choosing to sacrifice something far more precious … children’s innocence. {eoa}

This article originally appeared on One Million Moms.

Houston police busted a local pastor in a massive prostitution sting.

The Houston Chronicle reports First Haitian Community Church pastor Ermonte Moliere was one of 139 men netted during a 10-day operation at a massage parlor turned brothel.

According to the church website: 

Pastor Moliere graduated from the Theological School of Boulvard on October 15, 2004 located in Tabarre, Port-au-Prince, Haiti where he studied Theology. After working for 5 years for the “Conseil National de Financement Populaire, (CNFP)” he traveled to Fort Myers, Florida, in January 2010 to rejoined his wife. Once arrived in Fort Myers, Florida he started preaching the Word of God to his people. In late 2010, with Cenel Benel, he founded the church “Riocher de Delivrance” at Fort Myers, Florida.

Pastor Ermonte Moliere is committed to winning souls for Jesus-Christ and uses preaching, and formation to provide God’s Word to help people understand how important it is to have Christ in their life. His ministry is based in the scriptures “God has saved us through his only Son Jesus-Christ who accepted to give his life on the cross for our sins”, this is how we know what love is when Jesus said: “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep”, John 10:11.

While he was collaborating and serving people, the people at the Church of Rock deliverance, He had a vision of God, in which God asked him to go to Houston, Texas to work in a ministry he reserved for him. Pastor Ermonte Moliere and his family accepted to travel to Houston, Texas where they did not have any family members, but God has planned everything because he gave the vison. When God gives vision, he provides means for it.

After 3 years of ministry in different churches in Houston, Texas God guided Pastor Moliere through the ministry he has prepared for him. He is now the Senior Pastor of First Haitian Community Church, an assembly where the people are dedicated to serve God and help spread his words according to Mark 16.15-16. Pastor Moliere’s emphasis on the need for spiritual growth and development through the teaching of God’s Word, has resulted in dramatically increased attendance at Bible Study and Sunday School. In addition, the Church School curriculum has been expanded to accommodate the participation of all age groups of the Church.

The sting was orchestrated by police, who went undercover as “new management” at the brothel.

“These 139 individuals are part of the reason the sex trade is alive here in Houston,” says Houston Police Department Chief Art Acevedo. “These men should be ashamed.”

I grew up in a preacher’s home, but we celebrated Halloween with gusto. As I got older I wondered why we did that when I had devout Christian parents. As an adult I saw it as the devil’s holiday because it was a time when we encouraged children to dress up as ghosts, goblins, witches, devils, vampires and anything evil. That was scary, but there was still something even more scary about Halloween.

When my son was around 2, he was extremely scared of gorillas, gorilla masks or anything big, loud and hairy. There was an ad on television with a man dressed up as a gorilla and anytime it came on he cried, ran and hid.

That year at Halloween an adult family member came up to the front door with a full gorilla facemask over his head. My son was in the living and saw the gorilla just as it growled. I was afraid he was traumatized for life.

I think that was the first time I thought, “Why do we have a holiday that scares our kids to death?” It didn’t make sense. I was also concerned about the increasing number of entirely wicked costumes that seemed to be everywhere on every size kid from tiny to large.

Even though I weighed over 300 pounds at the time and loved anything sweet, I was also concerned about the amount of candy a child could collect and consume in the course of one evening and what that might do to him or her. Then, there was the entire debate about whether or not it was even right for Christians to celebrate Halloween.

Is Halloween Christian?

Some say Halloween began as a celebration of All Saints Day and All Hallows Eve combined. It’s said to be the time the church remembered the saints, those martyred for the faith and those who have departed this earth, according to History.com and Wikipedia.

It was a time for lighting candles and placing them on the graves of the dead, abstaining from meat and eating vegetarian foods like apples and soul cakes.

Soul cakes are a small cake filled with cinnamon, allspice, along with raisins or currants. The baker would make the mark of a cross on the top of the cake. These were baked on Oct. 31, All Hallows Eve, as an offering to the dead. The next day, All Saints Day, children would go from door to door begging for the cakes, a kind-of precursor to collecting candy like is done today.

Is Halloween Pagan?

Others say the origins are in a Celtic festival commemorating the end of summer and harvest and the start of winter. It was said to be the time when the boundaries of the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred, according to History.com.

During this festival, people would light bonfires to ward off ghosts. They also made sacrifices to the Celtic gods to protect them through the winter, wore costumes and attempted to tell each other’s fortunes.

The Scariest Part of Halloween

The origins of Halloween may have been Christian at one time, but to me, the overemphasis on evil costumes, scary stories and such has taken it out of the realm of being a Christian holiday. Churches, though, that hold parties that allow fun costumes, games and family atmosphere are great alternatives.

But even they still have the scariest part of Halloween. They still give away candy, concentrated sugar, the more the merrier.

Remember the early Christians baked soul cakes, which children went around begging for? The soul cake was sweet, but it was not the like the candy we give children today. This emphasis on sugar is truly the scariest part of Halloween.

How Sugar Ruins Halloween

Did you know that over one-fourth of all candy in America is bought at Halloween? Therefore, one must logically assume it is given to the most vulnerable of us all—our children.

It really was quite uncommon when I was growing up in the 1950s and 60s to have an obese child or teen in my school. In 2017, the American Heart Association (AHA) says one in three American children and teens are overweight or obese. These statistics have more than tripled since 1971. Today, childhood obesity is the number one health concern of American parents. It has topped drug abuse and smoking.

Obesity can lead to many diseases that in previous years weren’t seen until adulthood. These can include heart disease, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and elevated blood cholesterol. Then, there are psychological effects like low self-esteem and negative body image.

When we find out one of our children has a disease that can take his or her life, it will take the sweetness out of any celebration.

What Can We Do?

The AHA has tips for helping overweight children. Many of them have to do with limiting sugar or eliminating the access to foods with concentrated sugar and increasing meats, vegetables and fruits.

The correlation between sugar addiction and Halloween is something I know all too well. I endured nights of running through the rain in a ghost costume with a plastic mask over my fogged up glasses, going up to doors with adults in vampire costumes playing scary music from loudspeakers just to be able to fill my bag full as much candy as possible.

It was the one time of the year we could eat all the candy we could gather. Perhaps my mother thought it would make us so sick, we’d never want candy again. I really wish that had worked. It would have saved me years of super morbid obesity.

Halloween Is Not To Blame, We Are

Children will eat what we make available to them. If there is a current supply of fresh fruit or nuts, cheese sticks, yogurt without sugar, they will choose those.

As neighbors and friends, we can help turn this around starting with Halloween. At our house, costumed children will receive cutie oranges, goldfish snack packs, Christian or positive stickers and other similar items. Every year I’ve done this, parents have looked me in the eyes and said, “Thank you for not giving candy.”

The truth is, we can make this holiday what we want it to be. It can be a fun time for children to celebrate in a positive way or we can contribute to a sweet tooth that in later years can lead to a full-blown addiction and possible early death.

What will you choose? {eoa}

Teresa Shields Parker is the author of seven books, all available on Amazon. Her latest book, Sweet Hunger: Developing an Appetite for God, is available now, and Sweet Grace: How I Lost 250 Pounds is the No. 1 Christian weight-loss memoir. She is also a writing and weight-loss coach, blogger, speaker, wife and mother. Visit her online at TeresaShieldsParker.com to find her books, coaching programs and free gifts.

This article originally appeared at teresashieldsparker.com.

The Israeli government hosted a “first of its kind” conference for Christian media professionals in Jerusalem, Oct. 15-18, featuring high-ranking government officials—including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Reuven Rivlin—with the goal of achieving greater accuracy in reporting on Israel.

“Israel has no better friends—I mean that—no better friends in the world than the Christian communities around the world,” Netanyahu told about 130 participants from 35 nations on the first evening of the Christian Media Summit.

Held during the 50th anniversary of the reunification of Jerusalem, the Summit’s objective was to strengthen cooperation with Christians around the world, especially via media serving those communities.

“Our hope is that by gathering so many media professionals together for the next few days, they won’t just talk shop, but reinforce our ties—culturally, professionally and morally—between Israel and the Christian community worldwide,” Nitzan Chen, Director of the Government Press Office (GPO) told the group. In addition to GPO, the government’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Jerusalem and Heritage sponsored the Summit.

Netanyahu praised President Donald J. Trump’s “courageous speech outlining a new course against Iran, the enemy of our free civilization,” noting the President’s “resoluteness” has made a “big impression” on many nations, including Iran.

He also decried Iran for “brutally” persecuting Christians, adding, “I think that how a country treats religious minorities is a very good indicator of how it will treat its other citizens and its neighbors.” Netanyahu urged the journalists to highlight the “plight of countless Christians suffering under Iran.”

Responding to a question from CBN News Israel Bureau Chief Chris Mitchell, Netanyahu said Israel sends humanitarian relief teams around the world because it fulfills “our deepest values. Israel is a light unto the nations,” calling the work a fulfillment of biblical prophecy.

The prime minister concluded with gratitude for the Christian journalists: “Thank you for standing with Israel. We are all deeply grateful.”

With Netanyahu beginning the Summit and Rivlin hosting the group at the president’s residence on the final day, the Summit included addresses by senior government leaders, including several Cabinet ministers, members of the Knesset and Israel-based journalists and experts on Israel.

Yuval Rotem, director-general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, praised the professionalism of Christian journalists while noting they undertake their work understanding the “universal significance” of Israel’s story.

“I believe that when Israel is covered unfairly and unduly criticized, it is not bad only for Israel; it’s bad for everyone,” Rotem noted. “And we are not interested in being given defense. Israel wants to receive fair coverage and nothing more.”

On October 16, Ze’ev Elkin, Minister of Jerusalem and Heritage, said hosting the Summit in Jerusalem was especially important in light of actions of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to “erase” the Jewish history of the biblically significant city. In Oct. 2016, UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee approved a resolution that denied Jewish historical ties to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.

“I call on you to use your influence—and we know that it’s not small—to bring the word of the holy city of Jerusalem and its truths about the present and the past to the billions of believers in the Christian faith around the world,” Elkin said.

Coupled with addresses by government officials, the Summit included panel discussions covering topics such as Islamic terrorism, media bias, Palestinian human rights and the Boycott, Divestment and Sanction movement, as well as tours in and around Jerusalem focusing on Israel’s security, the settlements debate, biblical archeology and Israel’s high-tech economy and entrepreneurship.

In addition to CBN News’ Mitchell, National Religious Broadcasters’ members who spoke at the Summit included Christian Broadcasting Network CEO Gordon Robertson. At the invitation of the government, NRB made recommendations for prospective invitees to the Summit, although government officials were responsible for making the invitations and planning the Summit. {eoa}

This article originally appeared on NRB.org.

Deceitful, unclean spirits are always lurking in the shadows, looking for some way to dissuade us from faithfully following God. We need to be on our guard at all times. Their insinuations are deceptive, manipulative, seductive and alluring. Demons lure people from a position of stability into instability in an attempt to capture them in their web of lies.

“The Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith and pay attention to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils” (1 Tim. 4:1).

We can count on the Holy Spirit to help us discern and detect the presence and tactics of enemy spirits. The brilliant light of heaven not only shines like a beacon to guide us, but it also exposes whatever is hiding in the darkness. By this light, we can both discern deceitful spirits and elude their manipulations as we pursue the one true God.

By growing in discernment, we can learn to recognize and expose demonic tactics. Demons operate in different ways in different circumstances, perpetrating error in the most advantageous way possible, using a number of strategies. Have you seen the following four tactics of the enemy at work in your heart or life? If so, root them out by the light and love of God!

By Exaggeration—Truth Wrapped in a Lie

Much of the seductiveness of the enemy’s lies comes from the fact that they contain a kernel of truth. “You are sad, aren’t you?” he whispers. “You will never get over that thing your brother did to you. It’s really affecting your personality. Why not do something about it? Why not get even with him, hmmm?”

It is true that your brother did something hurtful to you. It is true that you are sad. But the rest is an exaggeration and the beginning of an accusation. Soon a supposed “truth” is ringing in your head, and you lose sight of the real truth. An insinuation turns into a motivation to retaliate. You may have begun the day as a faithful follower, only to end it off in the weeds.

Paul was exasperated with the people of the church in Galatia because they so often fell for this trick of the devil, in which truth is mingled with falsehood. He wrote: “O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth? … …Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?” (Gal. 3:1, 3).

By Exalting a Special Revelation Above the Word of God

Uh-oh. This is a tricky one for people who are zealous to know God’s revelation. If they do not watch out, they start holding the latest prophetic word higher than the Word of God.

“That was revealed to him by an angel, so it must be reliable!”

“The Bible can’t cover everything; that’s why God sends extra-special revelation like this.”

“Get outta my way! Personal experiences don’t lie!”

Obviously, I believe that God does send special revelation to His people—but never, ever should it be held in higher esteem than the written Word of God. Even though I myself have had a number of angelic visitations and supernatural experiences that are almost indescribable, I want to remain open to correction at all times, and I return to the “main and plain” message of Scripture all the time. The extras are just extra. My happiness, and especially my salvation, do not depend on them. God helping me, I will always take seriously these warnings of Paul to the believers under his care:

Do not let anyone cheat you of your reward by delighting in false humility and the worship of angels, dwelling on those things which he has not seen, vainly arrogant due to his unspiritual mind, and not supporting the head, from which the entire body, nourished and knit together by joints and sinews, grows as God gives the increase” (Col. 2:18-19).

I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different gospel, which is not a gospel. But there are some who trouble you and would pervert the gospel of Christ. Although if we or an angel from heaven preach any other gospel to you than the one we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so I say now again: If anyone preaches any other gospel to you than the one you have received, let him be accursed (Gal. 1:6-9).

People too easily fall for the appeal of an exciting new message or its messenger, or they begin to say, “Oh well, if I can hear God for myself, then I don’t have to pay as much attention to God’s Word and what I already know to be true, because now I can just listen, and He’s going to direct me.” They may even back this approach up with a proof text such as this one: “Your ears shall hear a word behind you, ‘saying, This is the way, walk in it,’ whenever you turn to the right or to the left” (Isa. 30:21). But again, remember that the Holy Spirit never contradicts God’s Word.

Sometimes we become more susceptible to deception because of desperation. We so badly want healing or some kind of miracle for ourselves or for someone else that we will cling to a “word” that did not originate with God. Our emotional weak spots can become points of vulnerability for the enemy’s alluring, fraudulent messages.

It is a slippery slope. One mild-sounding deception leads to worse ones. How else do you think people end up in cults or seriously off-balance?

By Prideful Self-Promotion

The devil loves to persuade people that they are better than others. Even though the Bible says clearly, “Do not forsake the assembling of believers” (see Heb. 10:25), such people become convinced that they are too big (too elite, too important, more educated, above criticism) to fellowship with ordinary Christians in an ordinary church. They position themselves above accountability, exalting their own giftedness or experience level.

Or they may buy into some trend in the church, even a genuine move of God, and make their association with it a source of personal pride. Eventually, they can become what I call “parked cars” in a cul-de-sac of yesterday’s move of God. They have not moved forward with the Holy Spirit. They have not learned humility. They have not reached out to others with God’s love.

The only cure is humility. “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6, quoting Proverbs 3:34). Oh by the way, God does not humble us. He calls us to humble ourselves. Humility is our task, restoration and favor is God’s!

Through Hero Worship

Another subtle deception of the enemy is hero worship. Along comes a preacher with a golden tongue, and blessings accrue to him. Soon he has a ministry, a slot on television or radio, and a new wardrobe. When he goes on the speaking circuit, people flock to hear him and, if they can get close enough, to take selfies with him.

It is the people I am concerned about, more than the so-called hero, because hero worship has a way of taking worship away from the only one to which it belongs, God Himself. Another concern is that even if the hero slips into error, the people often do not want to hear about it. For now, I will push pause on specifics names of people and ministries and stay with the principle that there are gifted people who start off great but finish off-course, often due to their error or pressure to perform by those surrounding them.

We have had too much of this in church history. So watch out when you see someone drawing too much attention to himself or herself, or to gifts and experiences. It can happen again and it will. There is nothing new under the sun.

“Now the Spirit clearly says that in the last times some will depart from the faith and pay attention to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their consciences seared with a hot iron …” (1 Tim. 4:1-2).

Reaching for a Higher Realm

Paul wrote, “And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and all discernment” (Phil. 1:9). The noblest use of our discernment is for it to enlighten the love that God pours into our hearts. Then we will walk in a spirit opposite to self-glorification and pride: “For in Him lives all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. And you are complete in Him, who is the head of all authority and power” (Col. 2:9-10).

God gives us grace to live in His love: “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly desires, we should live soberly, righteously, and in godliness in this present world” (Titus 2:11-12). You can regain your place in that grace if you’ve lost it, but only if you surrender your claim to know what is right apart from God’s written Word.

I want to be a person who starts well by grace—and who also finishes well. Don’t you? So let’s recognize and expose these subtle deceptive tactics of the enemy, and instead grow in discerning good and evil in Jesus’ great name.

Halloween is a strange day for Christians. A wide array of convictions are held concerning Oct. 31. For many, it stirs up images of ghosts and witches and sacrificial ceremonies that find their genesis in the occult. It is the one day of the year that is a reminder of a very real devil and his kingdom of darkness and destruction. Countless Christians (who love Jesus deeply), have a profoundly held belief that to participate in this day in any way is to celebrate, or at the very least, acquiesce to the destructive forces of the enemy of our souls. I understand and have a deep respect for those who choose not to dress up, hand out candy, go to Fall Festivals or any other activity that seeks to normalize a dark holiday. I get it.

However …

There are also many other Christians (who also love Jesus deeply) that recognize there aren’t many calendared holidays that provide more opportunity for gospel witness than Halloween. I understand this may create a tension inside your heart as a Jesus person. Perhaps you grew up hearing about the devilish statistics of occult activity on this one day. Maybe you have read how predators and perverts use this day as a perennial stomping ground of conquests. The tendency is to bolt the doors and keep our family close.

While I can’t confirm the veracity of every scary statistic, I can confirm one statistic for sure—more people will knock on your door this one day than any other day of the year. With that information in mind, Christian: Don’t waste Halloween!

Turn on your lights. Put a smile on your face. Give out the good candy this year! Don’t be a cheapskate and hand out that garbage from the Dollar Tree. And have fun! Even more than that, be a gospel witness. Use the darkest time of the year to shine the brightest. Isn’t that how light works?

Christian, let me challenge you: Don’t make this day about you! Make this scary, dark day about shining the light of Jesus to those who long for the light.

I love one of the ways our church is equipping our people to do this. This weekend at Vineyard, each family will receive a stack of invite cards to drop in the trick-or-treaters’ bags. It’s just one small way to say, “We’re here! Jesus is real. He loves you!” There are also a couple groups that I know of who are grilling hot dogs and giving them to hungry parents as they herd their sugar-crazy children.

Christian, let’s not waste another day to put on display the radical generosity and grace of Jesus. Whether it be Flag Day, Monday or Halloween, Jesus is breaking into the darkness. {eoa}

Jon Quitt serves as lead pastor for Vineyard Community Church in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. He is the author of We’re All Heroes in Our Own Story (Crosslink, 2016). This article originally appeared on jonquitt.com.

When I first wrote my book, The Voice of God in 1998, there were only a few books in print that could be considered a teaching guide for emerging prophets. John and Paula Sandford had written their cutting-edge one, The Elijah Task, and Bishop Bill Hamon came out with his Prophets and Personal Prophecy in 1987.

While we have come a long way in both the raising up of many people who prophesy, it is still difficult today to find what can be called the prophets to the nation. For years, I have made it a regular practice to ask the leaders of the nations where I preach—and I have been to more than 100 of them—”Who do the leaders of this nation recognize to give a credible, national word?” I have rarely had any of them even able to think of a name. Of course, this is not to say that they are not there, but most of them are not very visible.

With this in mind, for the last year, I have been scouring the world, trying to find any prophetic voice to gather together for a consultation. Many leaders are helping many here in the U.S. because there are a number of credible voices. Other nations such as Canada, England and Australia as well as Latin America have started roundtables of their own and, as a result, are beginning to issue prophetic words.

In 2015, at the U.S. gathering of prophets called the Apostolic Prophetic Council of Prophets Elders, which was formed in 1999 under Dr. Peter Wagner, I was given a prophetic word by James Goll that I was to host an international gathering of prophets in 2017 at Trinity Church in Cedar Hill, Texas.

We have obeyed that word as our ministry, Generals International, and 36 of the most respected prophets in the nation will gather together in an invitation-only consultation.

After this consultation, we will have an open event called the “Global Prophetic Summit” in which these leaders will share on the most cutting-edge prophetic teaching. Subjects include dream interpretation, the seer gift and more. There will be a room for the attendees to have their dreams interpreted as well as receive personal words of the Lord.

This is the first of its kind. It will be a watershed moment for the prophetic movement worldwide.

This hinge-of-history moment will open the door for prophetic revelation on a level that has not been known in a collective way.

For details, please go to globalpropheticsummit.com. {eoa}

Cindy Jacobs is an author, speaker and teacher with a heart for discipling nations in the areas of prayer and prophetic gifts. She and Mike—her husband of 43 years—co-founded Generals International in 1985.

Why is there such controversy surrounding Revelation? (By the way, it’s not “Revelations,” there’s no “s” on the end.) There are many reasons. Revelation is one of the most supernatural accounts we have in all the Bible, for Jesus Himself appears to John in His glorified state and takes John through heaven’s portal into a realm where he sees things no one can fully describe. John had to use the words “like,” “something similar to” and so on to describe what he saw.

Then, add to that all the multiple interpretive models you can apply to the book (futurist, historicist, preterist, idealist) with an almost endless supply of variations and nuances that come from hundreds of commentators. No wonder many believers today don’t even bother to read the final book of the entire Bible—the book of Revelation.

We really need to have help from God as we study the book of Revelation. Don’t you agree?

What would revelation on Revelation look like? I think it would look like humility. All too often we get dogmatic about a text—sure that we have understood and teach it correctly—only later to realize we only saw but a faint glimmer of His truth. To read the sacred text is like gazing upon the Grand Canyon—you can’t take it all in with a glance. The light shines upon a section and reflects its beauty. So it is with reading the book of Revelation. We need God’s help to understand it, and we need humility to acquire God’s help.

So how does one navigate the “minefield” of oft-conflicting interpretations related to Revelation? In a word, carefully. Many believers hold their own view of the last days as the only valid one. It seems we all are divided over how God brings everything together in the end. But if we start with the premise that God indeed brings all things together in Christ, we can step back, take a deep breath and leave room for differing viewpoints.

While working on The Passion Translation project, we’ve done our best to keep these multiple interpretations in mind as we finished the monumental task of translating the New Testament, and especially the book of Revelation. We are praying that the Holy Spirit drenches us with revelation from God, insights into His holy Word, and passion to live the truth in every aspect of our lives.

Many have asked what makes Revelation different when read in The Passion Translation. First, we’ve tried to explain the nuances of the Greek text. Scholars will tell you that John’s text of Revelation breaks nearly every Greek grammatical rule. It’s almost like he’s saying, “You have to think out of the box.” So you’ll find ample explanations of many Greek words and phrases.

Also, we were working under the assumption that people don’t want to simply read the book; they want to understand its meaning. With that in mind, we’ve kept the translation clean, crisp and to the point. We think you’ll love it.

But perhaps the one guiding light for understanding this cryptic, apocalyptic book is found in its title. It is not “The Manual for Coming Events” or “How to Know When the Antichrist Comes on the Scene” or “How to Survive Armageddon.” The title of the last book of the Bible is “The Unveiling of Jesus Christ.” We believe that the best way to read and study this book is to look for Christ on every page. It is false advertising for God to give us a book called “The Unveiling” only to have nothing unveiled and everything confusing and unknowable. God wants to lift the veil from our eyes and show us a beautiful Christ full of glory, coming again with love overflowing His heart for His bride. Yes, there are judgments included, and some painful episodes full of loss and death, but it all must be placed on the canvas of an unveiling of Jesus within His people.

To read Revelation is almost like reading a book in a foreign language. You must learn the language first before you can read its contents. And so the book of Revelation is written in the language of God—pictures! Take time to digest them, to “eat the scroll” (Rev. 10:9) and ponder long on what you read. It will yield its treasures to the patient and passionate ones. We know you’ll enjoy seeing Christ unveiled before your eyes.

May the Lord give us all revelation on Revelation!

Download a free e-book from The Passion Translation and sample of The New Testament With Psalms, Proverbs, and Song of Songs (releasing Oct. 31, 2017), including a section of Revelation at thepassiontranslation.com.

Dr. Brian Simmons is the lead translator of The Passion Translation, a linguist, minister, Bible teacher and former missionary.

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The stage is set for one-fourth of the world to die ahead of the fifth seal breaking, Jim Bakker says.

The televangelist discussed the Revelation end-times prophecies during a recent episode of his self-titled show.

“Power over a fourth of the earth was given to them, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth,” John wrote in the book of Revelation. “When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony they had held. They cried out with a loud voice, ‘How long, O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?’ Then a white robe was given to each of them, and they were told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and brothers should be completed, who would be killed as they were” (Rev. 8b-11).

What does this mean? Watch the video to see.