I’ll never forget watching this young woman belt out her battle cry on America’s Got Talent.

My family and I were sitting in our living room relaxing. My husband was flipping through channels on the TV and landed on a replay of America’s Got Talent.

A young girl with cropped hair got up and shared her story about how she found out she had cancer, and all through her treatments, she played the song she chose to sing that day.

It was very profound, given her story—such a young girl to walk through such a huge storm. But she endured and came out stronger on the other side.

It reminded me of another story.

An alliance of nations was forming against Judah, threatening to crush it. You can imagine what the king must have felt at the moment he heard about what was happening.

Actually, the Bible says, “And Jehoshaphat was fearful …” (2 Chron. 20:3a).

Of course he was!

Who wouldn’t have a little fear in that moment?

But then it says this, “… and set himself to seek the Lord, and he called for a fast throughout all Judah” (2 Chron. 20:3b).

Instead of pacing the floor, wringing his hands and then going to consult his great military leaders, he sought the Lord and asked the nation to fast and pray with him for divine guidance.

The whole nation came together in corporate prayer and this is what we see in King Jehoshaphat’s prayer:

• A proclamation of God’s sovereign authority and power
• A remembrance of how God had delivered them in the past
• An acknowledgment of their helplessness apart from God’s divine hand

Jehoshaphat was a humble king.

He was not so impressed with his own title, “king of Judah,” that he could not stand before the entire nation and acknowledge the fact that his position didn’t give him supreme power.

He was king, but his power was limited.

He took a huge risk and acknowledged before the whole nation that apart from Almighty God, he was pretty much powerless in face of this alliance gathering against them.

And his humility positioned himself for this amazing word from God:

“‘Do not fear, nor be dismayed because of this great army, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. … It will not be necessary for you to fight in this conflict. Take your positions, stand, and observe the deliverance of the Lord for you, O Judah and Jerusalem.’ Do not fear or be filled with terror. Tomorrow, go out before them, and the Lord will be with you” (2 Chron. 20:15b, 17).

In Jehoshaphat’s moment of greatest humility and authenticity before the people, God gave him a promise of salvation.

Then he did an even odder thing—more risky than choosing to humble himself before the nation.

The next morning, they woke up and started out to prepare for battle. Instead of ordering his troops as one would for combat, he chose to put the worshipers on the front lines.

As the army marched into battle, the worshipers sang and praised the Lord, and the Bible says that ambushes went out against the alliance of nations and no one escaped.

The army of Judah arrived at a place where they could overlook the wilderness where the nations had gathered against them, and all they saw were dead bodies lying all around, and they had not even lifted a finger to fight against them.

Their fight song was a declaration of God’s mercy: “Praise the Lord, for His mercy endures forever” (2 Chron. 20:21c).

I have a question for you.

What is your fight song?

Is there a song in your heart that declares the goodness, mercy and grace of God that you sing on those dark days when the enemy has gathered against you with a strategy to take you out?

Is there a song you sing to remind your soul and spirit that there is no reason to fear, because you will see the salvation of the Lord?

Is there a song that you can stand up and sing at the top of your lungs to remind the enemy that he is defeated and that Jesus Christ has already won the victory on the cross?

What is your fight song?

Maybe you have a whole list.

Throughout Scripture, we read of the power of worship. Jehoshaphat’s story is not a unique one. There are several accounts of how worship defeated God’s enemies.

And it still does today.

When we stand in faith and declare the sovereignty of God, remind ourselves of the great things He has already done, throw ourselves on His mercy, and then sing out.

Maybe our voice is a little wobbly at first, because maybe we have some fear, as Jehoshaphat did. Maybe we aren’t actually singing just yet, maybe our voice is just a whisper because our faith is literally the size of a mustard seed, but as we warble out or whisper those words, our faith will start to grow.

Soon, we’ll throw our hands in the air in a sign of victory, because as we’ve crested that hill, we look down and see our enemy on the ground.

Defeated!

Demolished!

What is your fight song? {eoa}

Rosilind Jukic Rosilind Jukic, a Pacific Northwest native, is a missionary living in Croatia and married to her hero. Together they live in the country with their two active boys, where she enjoys fruity candles and a hot cup of herbal tea on a blustery fall evening. She holds an associates of practical theology and is passionate about discipling and encouraging women. Her passion for writing led her to author a number of books. She is the author of A Little R & R where she encourages women to find contentment in what God created them to be. She can also be found at these other places on a regular basis. You can follow her on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Google +.

This article originally appeared at .

We are so worried about offending others, but have we stopped to consider that we may be offending God? Watch this short, spirited debate between two opposing pastors on the LGBT issue, and full audio debate. Is the Bible clear on this issue, or is it time for the church to rethink her position?

Click here to watch the interview.

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Click here to listen to the full debate.

{eoa}

The Christian baker whose case is before the U.S. Supreme Court received an award this week for “courage in the face of power.”

Colorado cake artist Jack Phillips received the 2017 “Courage in the Face of Power: Daniel Award” at the Weyrich Awards Dinner in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday.

The Weyrich organization gives the award each year to people who, in spite of tremendous resistance from those in power, show amazing courage.

Phillips owns Masterpiece Cakeshop. He found himself in legal trouble after declining to make a cake for a same-sex wedding because he says it conflicts with his Christian beliefs.

Eventually, Colorado’s Supreme Court refused to take up Phillips’ cause after the state’s Civil Rights Commission in 2014 ordered the baker and his workers to make cakes for same-sex ceremonies and file “compliance reports” to prove they were.

The case, Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission, is now before the U.S. Supreme Court. Oral arguments are set for Dec. 5.

In the past, the Weyrich organization awarded the “Courage in the Face of Power: Daniel Award” to Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and investigative reporter Sharyl Attkisson.

Reprinted with permission from . Copyright The Christian Broadcasting Network, all rights reserved. {eoa}

The horrendous revelations about Harvey Weinstein’s predatory abuse of women have ripped the silver screen of Hollywood to reveal a dark backstage area. Report after report of abuse and revelation after revelation of the years of the casting couch, and worse, in Hollywood have ignited a firestorm of reactions from the press, celebrities, pundits and families.

If all these reactions cause Hollywood to change for the better, then there will be something worthwhile out of these revelations. However, as several articles point out, the problem isn’t just Harvey Weinstein, or any of the other big villains. No, the problem also is a “Culture of Abuse” that has permeated the storylines of movies and TV programs and titillated the minds of our children and grandchildren, not to mention ourselves.

So, part of the problem regarding the Weinstein Scandal is to expose the evils, address them and remove them. More importantly, however, families and children must develop the discernment and wisdom not to get sucked into the abusive culture.

One way to help children and grandchildren is to teach them how to be media-wise and ask the right questions about all the things they see and hear in the culture, including the news media, movies, television, video games, the internet and social media. A practical extension of that is to help them recognize timeless virtues in great movies that will help them build character and avoid joining with the abusers of women and children.

These two solutions are clearly set forth in the book The Culture-Wise Family by Pat Boone and myself and my new book Reel to Real: 45 Movie Devotions for Families.

The Culture-Wise Family helps families with children and grandchildren uphold Christian, biblical values in a world infected with toxic values spread by the mass media, including some leaders in Hollywood. It also gives them the information they need to safeguard their children and grandchildren, including helping them to learn to make wise choices about the mass media and entertainment they choose.

Reel to Real is a book of 45 devotionals showing how great filmmakers have inserted positive Christian, biblical values into their movies in pleasing ways to inspire moviegoers in their daily lives. Each devotional focuses on one or two movies to delineate what positive lessons they are presenting to their audience.

Families do not have to submit to the culture of abuse that’s destroying relationships and tearing apart civilization. They can be lights in the darkness by focusing on morally cleansing, spiritually uplifting, inspiring movies as parables for future generations: our children and grandchildren.

Nearly every woman has had that moment—the one where she’s hunched over in the dressing room and catches sight of her body. She can immediately pinpoint exactly what’s wrong with it or what she would change. Rarely does she use that moment to reflect on how God created her fearfully and wonderfully.

Nineteen-year-old beauty video blogger Chelsea Crockett has been there—along with other stops on the self-esteem train—as she works out who she is in Christ and her divine purpose.

“God has given us our faces and our bodies for a divine purpose, and if we are emphasizing that, he’s created us uniquely and beautiful in our own ways,” Crockett says.

Crockett is as quick to laugh as she is to discuss difficult topics for a Christian teen. Her vlog conquers doozies like how to honor God in a culture saturated with sex and pornography, but also has captures the moment of sweet adoration when she surprised her long-distance boyfriend for his birthday.

What’s she’s most known for, though, might be her fresh makeovers and beauty tips that coincide with the seasons. As much fun as it is, she says, a woman must be careful to guard her heart.

Her YouTube channel has more than 1.5 million subscribers.

“Whenever we look at ourselves in the mirror, whenever we’re changing, it can be kind of discouraging when we see ourselves like that, we think, ‘I wish I could do this to change, that it’s time to get on diet plan.’ Some of us follow through, but a lot of us don’t have that willpower, and we eat all these Cheetos, do whatever, and get stuck in this cycle,” Crockett says. “But even then, I think we have to know we are made in God’s image, and we are created with a divine purpose.”

She continues: “All in all, I think if this is all you’re thinking about throughout the day is your appearance and how you view yourself and your weight, then you probably need a new heart check and probably need to ask God for guidance. That’s becoming your idol—it’s hard to face, but that’s the truth of it. I’m preaching to the choir too, because this is a hard answer for me to give, I think it’s something we all struggle with.”

It’s all documented in Your Own Beautiful, due out Oct. 24.

In her debut book, Crockett talks faith and fashion and everything in between. With Charisma News, she wasn’t afraid to speak candidly about the modesty culture within the church.

“I like to feel confident in the clothing I wear,” Crockett says. Her go-to fall outfit is jeans, heeled booties and an oversized sweater.

“In the summer when I wear swim suits and stuff around guys at the beach, I wear one-pieces and want them to be cute and flattering,” Crockett says. “I get one pieces from H&M, and I always get compliments on them. … I feel like a lot of people are too strict on the modesty thing, but also some are too loose sometimes. I kinda fall in the middle, maybe.”

Your Own Beautiful isn’t the only book on Crockett’s mind right now. She’s enrolled at a local community college, where she studies communications. She says she wants to hone her public speaking skills so she can one day address and empower women.

“So many conferences have come up lately, but I wanna do something different. I just don’t know what that is,” Crockett says. “I love Beth Moore, love Sadie Robertson, but I generally think the world needs something more personal, more intentional that lets [attendees] relate to their community and [shows them how to share the] gospel intentionally within their communities.

“It’s so mysterious, what do you do? I’m just praying God reveals this beautiful picture or dream.”

In his latest New York Times best-seller The Paradigm, Jonathan Cahn unveils how today’s politicians demonstrate alarmingly similar behaviors as leaders from the Bible.

Cahn writes on King Ahab, whom the Bible presents as a man divided. He was at the forefront of deepening apostasy in ancient Israel, leading a spiritual, cultural and political war against the nation’s biblical faith and traditional values. Cahn identifies the characteristics of such a leader and reveals how these traits set the precedent for political figures in modern, Western culture.

“The king will be a divided man. On one hand, he will come from a culture founded on faith in God. On the other, he will embrace and champion a culture and an ethos that wars against the God of his heritage…. He will be a man in conflict, compromised, complicated and divided,” Cahn says.

He emphasizes the impact that leaders have on a nation and how their actions carry great weight for good and evil. Cahn extrapolates on Ahab as a leader, detailing how he oversaw the rise of a new pagan morality and presided over its enshrinement. By embracing Baal worship, Ahab allowed his people to transfer sexuality from the private realm of marriage to the public realm of the temple cult.

Furthermore, Baal worship involved child sacrifices. Thus, under Ahab’s reign, the government endorsed the killing of innocent children. Cahn then reveals how the Bible uses this paradigm of the king to foretell a modern-day leader who would also allow the murder of children, along with other acts of ungodly morality.

“As it was with King Ahab, President Clinton was especially connected to the blood of the innocent…. As it was in the reign of King Ahab, it was in Clinton’s time in office that the state now became an active agent in the nation’s apostasy,” Cahn writes.

He points to how Bill Clinton signed a series of executive orders that enabled abortion in America and around the world. He also writes on Clinton’s act of adultery in the White House, which not only separated sex from marriage, but also placed sexual sin on the ultimate public platform. Bolstered by these parallels, Cahn underscores King Ahab and President Clinton’s overall moral ambiguity.

“Though Clinton was raised with a biblical foundation, he would embrace an ethos and morality that warred against biblical morality. As was his prototype, King Ahab, Clinton was a man divided. … He would sin against the ways of God and then express repentance and sorrow—just as Ahab did,” Cahn says.

The Paradigm details how both these leaders, one from 3,000 years ago and the other in contemporary America, exhibited a weakness of will and morality. By drawing on these similarities and even incorporating shocking parallels between timelines, Cahn demonstrates how the paradigm can provide insight for future events.

“The Bible is the Word of God,” Cahn affirms, “So much that its patterns, keys and templates reveal, illuminate, foretell, if not determine even the events and details of the present day.”

In The Paradigm, Cahn uses these revelations to educate readers on the dangers of having leaders who rebel against God’s ways.

He expounds on how Clinton and Ahab had both “broken the ground and breached moral parameters that had never before been breached. And because of these breaches, the repercussions would be far-reaching, not only into the future but into other lands.”

The Paradigm refers to an ancient blueprint that reveals secrets to modern-day events. In his signature descriptive and precise writing, Cahn exposes shocking parallels between ancient Middle Eastern palaces and the White House, biblical leaders and today’s political figures, scandals from 3,000 years ago and the current controversies on American soil. The Paradigm was released on Sept. 19, 2017 and is published by Frontline, an imprint of Charisma House. Learn more at .

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has taken up the cause of a 17-year-old, pregnant, illegal immigrant being held in a detention facility in Texas. The girl wants an abortion. The ACLU is arguing that it is the responsibility of the federal government to make that happen for her and must transport her from the detention facility to an abortion clinic. The Trump administration position is that the federal government is not compelled to do so. As an illegal alien, she has no right to abortion in the United States, just as she has no legal right to reside here.

The misuse of the legal system to promote abortion, even for non-citizens, is why we must pray for true constitutional principles in our nation. Download a free prayer guide to uphold the Constitution here.

It amazes me that with papers and words in courts, the one who seeks to steal, kill and destroy is stoking a battle that may end the life of an innocent child, manipulate an entire country’s legal system and stir up even more dissension in our nation. Societies that do not protect the vulnerable and uphold what is true become barbaric and eventually die themselves.

Our legal system is crucial to determining the outcome of the overall conflict going on in our nation. We must pray for judicial appointments of men and women who rule in the fear of God. At this moment President Trump has 150 vacancies (out of 890 total) to address, with 51 nominees pending before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Filling these positions with judges who have a proven track record upholding our Constitution, as our founders intended it to be upheld, is critical for our nation.

Organizations like the ACLU are funded by individuals intent upon seeing biblical principles eradicated from our nation. Over the last five years, the ACLU has received over $100 million from the George Soros-funded Open Society Foundation (OSF). Recently, Soros “invested” an additional $18 billion into OSF, effectively doubling the amount of assets in this global Trojan horse. The prominence and power of this organization is evident in its location—directly across the street from the White House. Further, OSF is in the process of transitioning their global president to a new president, Patrick Gaspard, a top adviser to the Democratic Party and a former adviser to President Obama.

Soros is a dangerous man with dangerous ideas. A petition has asked the White House to label George Soros as a terrorist. Click hear to learn more.

We need to pray:

1. Pray that life is protected: “Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter” (Prov. 24:11, NIV).
2. Pray for godly judicial appointments: “Oh, let the nations be glad and sing for joy; for You will judge the peoples uprightly, and lead the nations on earth. Selah” (Ps. 67:4).
3. Pray that the billions of dollars in assets set aside to counter Judeo-Christian values would be used for the good:  “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many lives” (Gen. 50:20. {eoa}

Reverend David Kubal is the president and CEO of Intercessors for America (IFA). IFA equips and supports praying Christians to shape the nation’s history through prayer. As the president, his vision is to mobilize a multi-generational army of intercessors. To learn more, visit .

Though LGBT lobbyists complained about traffic concerns, the San Diego City Council approved evangelist Morris Cerullo’s religious retreat.

“We are excited and thrilled that the San Diego City Council has approved the Legacy project to move forward. We are also humbled by the incredible outpouring of support that we have received from the Local San Diego faith community, and from national and international faith leaders the past few weeks! Thank you hardly seems adequate, so we pray that our gracious Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will bless you for your faithful prayers, calls, and letters of support on behalf of the Legacy Center,” Cerullo and his wife say.

Last month, the City Council resoundingly rejected the $160 million Legacy Center, with five Democrats bending their ears to complaints of a spokeswoman for the San Diego LGBT Community Center in Hillcrest and other critics.

However, the anti-religious sentiment backfired and pushed Council members to approve the plan this week.

“We can’t take into consideration a lot of this ancillary discussion about religion and values. We should not be using that as a benchmark for whether it’s allowed. What’s important is whether it meets guidelines set forth by the city, and I believe it does,” Councilman Scott Sherman told the San Diego Union Tribune. “We have property rights and it’s very important we don’t abridge those property rights, especially when it comes to matters of religious organizations.”

As Charisma News previously reported, Cerullo’s $160 million retreat was slated to open in 2019. According to a statement, the project was designed by the noted San Diego architectural firm of Carrier Johnson Plus Culture in conjunction with Dr. Morris Cerullo, the center’s patron. The 18-acre hotel complex will offer spa services and luxury accommodations to the public. Its event center, fully-equipped with a lecture and performing arts hall, a 500-seat theater and a restaurant with catering services, will allow visiting groups and the local community to hold receptions and special events.

The Legacy International Center will also function as a compelling tourist attraction, immersing hotel guests into biblical and international-themed exhibits. A massive digital globe, installed at the heart of the Welcome Center, will display the geopolitical and religious composition of each country, while the history dome—a 100-motion seat visual experience with a 57-foot dome ceiling—will transport guests through an aerial journey of Israel and the Bible story. The center will also include a state-of-the-art teaching and training facility for local and remote training, the statement continues.

“Prayer is the key. If God be for us, who can be against us? I’ve certainly witnessed in my years in ministry that no great breakthrough ever happened without conflict. Throughout Scripture, conflict created the circumstances where God’s glory could be revealed. I believe that to be true now more than ever. So we are praying throughout this process that God’s glory is magnified and revealed. We are believing that God will have the last word, and it will be good,” Jim Penner, executive director of the Legacy Center, says.

“I’ve witnessed once again through this process that God is good, all the time. In the midst of any storm, one only needs to look up. The psalmist said it best, “I will lift my eyes to the hills from whence comes my help. My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth!” Penner says.

“On Oct. 31, 1517, Martin Luther nailed his Ninety-five Theses on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenburg, Germany, beginning what would become known as the Protestant Reformation. Ironically, these ‘Theses’ were not an attack on the Church as much as a reintroduction of what true repentance really meant and a call to return to it.”

We now find ourselves just a few days away from Oct. 31, 2017, the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. The church today is in a similar place of lack in understanding true repentance. We are still not yet operating in the full potential the church was established by Jesus to display.

In Martin Luther’s Day, sin and corruption were rampant, immorality was destroying the family and “truth” was whatever influential people said it was. Sound familiar? 

Our generals have written a new Reformation Manifesto specifically for this 500th anniversary on Oct. 31, 2017. You can read it and download it here.

We are asking you to:

1. Read it and pray through it as often as possible through this month and up to Oct. 31, 2017.
2. Consider gathering people for prayer at a church or in a home or other location on Oct. 31, 2017. Pray through the items mentioned on the Manifesto.
3. Print it out and post it on the door of your home.
4. Print it out and post it on the door of your business, if you own your own business or if your employer is willing.
5. If you are a pastor or minister of a local church, print it out and post it on the door(s) of your church or ministry.
6. If you are not the pastor of a local church, forward it to your ministry leader or bring them a copy and ask them if they will post it on the doors of their church. Also, see if they will print copies for the congregation to take home to post. {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.

This article originally appeared at .