Mar 23 2016
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Prayer and faith in God helped Hollywood star Jesse Metcalfe overcome addiction

By Sodwana Bay

Date published: 23-03-2016 God’s not Dead 2 is gonna be such an amzing movie cant wait for it to come out. =) Prayer and faith in God helped Hollywood star Jesse Metcalfe get and stay sober, he has revealed. The star of God’s Not Dead 2, who is known worldwide for his roles in John Tucker Must Die, Desperate Housewives and Dallas,  told Fox411 that faith had become really important to him. “I really discovered a connection with a higher power and with God as I understand him probably five years ago when I got sober through the 12 steps of Alcoholic Anonymous,” he said. He went into rehab in 2007. He said: “A large part of that program is giving the will and character life over to God, or a God as you understand him, and prayer is also a big part of that program as well. I feel that that really helped me overcome a difficult time in my life and since then has really deepened and enriched my life in a lot of ways.” Metcalfe, 37, plays a lawyer in God’s Not Dead 2, the sequel toGod’s Not Dead, about a teacher who finds herself under attack after she answers a student’s question about Jesus by quoting Scripture. Metcalfe said: “Discovering my own faith and my own connection with God, I brought some of that emotional foundation to the character so the character would be really connected and really fighting for something on a deeper level and that the emotion would come through. It was a lot of preparation.” The movie also stars Melissa Joan Hart, Robin Givens, and Pat Boone. Givens told the same show: “I grew up without my dad. I think that role is so important and in many respects God has sort of been the only father I know. I can’t imagine not having that belief in my life.” The film’s producer David White recently defended the plot after it was criticised by atheist blogger Hemant Mehta who accused it of promoting a “fake” Christian persecution story. White told The Blaze: “It’s an interesting thing, because, if it wasn’t real, why do they get so offended by it? I don’t think it would annoy people if it wasn’t true.”

Mar 23 2016
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5 pieces of evidence that Jesus rose from the dead

By Sodwana Bay

Date published: 22-03-2016 Easter Sunday is only a few days away, and it’s a great time to remember once again the power of the resurrection of Jesus Christ in a way that will affect the rest of our lives. That’s not to say that we shouldn’t live everyday with the message of the cross in our minds, but this season can be a wonderful time to focus on Jesus’s death, burial and resurrection. Holy Week isn’t just a time for more vacations and outings. It’s also a time to reflect more on what God’s redemptive work means to us. But is the message of Christ’s resurrection really true? 1 Corinthians 15:14 tells us, “And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.” The resurrection is the stamp that seals our victory in Jesus’s name. So what is our assurance that Jesus indeed rose from the dead? Here are five pieces of evidence that assure as that Jesus is indeed risen. 1. Matching accounts in the Gospels Not all accounts in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are identical. Some numbers are off and some parables are told a little differently, but one thing that all accounts agree on is that Jesus rose from the dead three days after he was buried. Matthew and John are both direct accounts written about personal experiences with a resurrected Jesus. Mark is a reliable, first-hand relay of experiences Peter had with Jesus as Mark worked most closely with him. Luke is also a credible account from a physician who would rather look at facts and numbers than tall tales. 2. Empty tomb One thing is for sure — Jesus’s tomb is empty until this day. There have been many failed archaeological studies that claimed to have found Jesus’s remains, but there is not one that has proven to be at all reliable. Then there is the account written of an execution, signed by Pontius Pilate, of an innocent man named Yeshua on the request of Jewish people. So if Jesus is really dead, why hasn’t a body been found? 3. Paul’s transformational account Acts 9 tells the account of Saul’s conversation to Paul. In Acts 9:5, an exchange is made, “And he said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And he said, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.’” If Jesus was truly dead then who appeared to Paul on the road to Damascus? 4. Multiple testimonies Aside from the testimonies of the four authors of the Gospels, there are numerous others that proclaim the resurrection of Jesus. There’s the account of the women visitors, of a doubting Thomas who later believed, and dozens of other disciples and followers who claimed to have interacted with Jesus. 5. Martyrdom of apostles While anyone can discount a large group of Jesus’s followers as liars who made the story of Jesus’s resurrection up, it’s hard to imagine how all of them would succumb to a painful martyr’s death for the sake of a “lie.” Not one person gave up on the message of a resurrected Jesus, which can only mean one thing — they believed He was alive because He is alive.

Mar 23 2016
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Jacob Zuma dares the ANC to fire him

By Sodwana Bay

Date published: 22-03-2016 President Jacob Zuma has dared the ANC’s national executive committee (NEC) to recall him if they wished to.  Emboldened by the superior number of NEC members who support him, Zuma made the remarks on Sunday while closing the three-day meeting. The NEC is the party’s highest decision-making body between national conferences. The meeting discussed the allegations made by current and former ANC leaders about the influence of the Guptas, who are Zuma’s friends, in government. The Gupta family have consistently denied they wielded corrupt influence on the government, including controlling cabinet appointments. Zuma’s son Duduzane shares business interest with the Guptas’ sprawling business interests with tentacles across state-owned companies. ANC NEC leaders who attended the meeting said Zuma gave an explanation about the Guptas. He spoke of how they gave Duduzane a breakthrough when no one wanted to employ him after Zuma was recalled as deputy president in 2005. He said he was introduced to the Guptas by former minister in the Presidency Essop Pahad. Zuma made similar claims when confronted by Eastern Cape alliance leaders two weeks ago. The NEC members also said Zuma stated that unlike former president Thabo Mbeki, he had never made the Gupta family participate in government. He allegedly claimed that Mbeki appointed them to his economic advisory council. “If you want to recall me, you can go ahead. I will step aside and go to my branch,” an NEC member who wanted to remain anonymous said Zuma told the gathering. However, Pahad yesterday denied introducing the Guptas to Zuma. “It is not true that President Zuma was introduced to the Guptas by me,” Pahad said. Another NEC member said Zuma defended the Guptas and accused some ANC leaders of also being controlled by big business. Zuma told the NEC that after he had appointed Des van Rooyen as finance minister, billionaire Remgro chairman Johann Rupert flew from London to meet with a senior ANC leader demanding the reversal of the decision. Although Zuma didn’t mention the ANC leader, his claims were similar to those made in a column published by The New Age, a Gupta-owned newspaper, which claimed that Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa had received a call from Rupert. Following a discussion on the influence of the Guptas, the NEC decided to invite submissions from those who wished to report allegations of state capture by the family. The submissions will be handled by the office of secretary-general Gwede Mantashe. Mantashe said the information would help the party to decide what action to take. Yesterday, ANC spokesman Zizi Kodwa said the ANC NEC statement released on Sunday reflected the outcome of the meeting, therefore he could not talk about who said what during the meeting.

Mar 23 2016
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Verse of the Day: Romans 3:23-24

By Sodwana Bay

Date published: 23-03-2016 … for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. — Romans 3:23-24 Thoughts on Today’s Verse…. No matter how hard we try, how good we are, and how much we work, we can never measure up to the only standard that matters — the glory of Almighty God. Thankfully, God doesn’t require us to pretend to be what we are not — perfect, spotless, and holy. Instead, God makes us to be these (cf. Colossians 1:21-23) by grace, through the gift of his Son who purchased our pardon and gave us his righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21). Praise God. Praise our Savior, Christ Jesus. Now let’s live with Jesus as our Lord; not to earn or secure our salvation, but to thank him for what he has so freely given us! My Prayer… Most precious and holy Father, all I can say to your marvelous grace is thank you! Please know that while these words are woefully inadequate, they are genuine. Dear Father, I look forward to showing you through the rest of my life how much I appreciate all that you have done for me. In Jesus’ glorious name, I pray. Amen.

Mar 23 2016
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Jehovah Nissi: The Lord Is My Banner

By Sodwana Bay

Date published: 23-03-2016 How well do you remember names? This is something that many people struggle with and I am one of them. I am seeking ways to be intentional about remembering people’s names when I meet them, because remembering someone’s name is a sign that you value them as a person. I would suggest to you that name remembrance is a learned habit and I’m trying hard to learn this habit!! As I was dressing one morning, I glanced at a flip calendar that sits on my dresser and it happened to be recounting some of the names of God. These names struck a chord within my heart and I sensed the Holy Spirit urging me to delve deeper into some of the names of God. Why? In antiquity, a person’s name revealed much about their character. This is no less true when you study the names of God, for His names tell us a great deal about the person and character of God. The first name that we will focus on is Jehovah Nissi – The Lord is my Banner. This name for God is found in Exodus 17:15 (HCSB). Take a peek at the context with me from verses 9-16. Moses said to Joshua, “Select some men for us, and go fight against Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the hilltop with God’s staff in my hand.” Joshua did as Moses had told him, and fought against Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. While Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, but whenever he put his hand down, Amalek prevailed. When Moses’ hands grew heavy, they took a stone and put [it] under him, and he sat down on it. Then Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other so that his hands remained steady until the sun went down. So Joshua defeated Amalek and his army with the sword. The Lord then said to Moses, “Write this down on a scroll as a reminder and recite it to Joshua: I will completely blot out the memory of Amalek under heaven.” And Moses built an altar and named it, “The Lord Is My Banner.” He said, “Indeed, [my] hand is [lifted up] toward the Lord’s throne. The Lord will be at war with Amalek from generation to generation.” In this passage Moses held God’s staff in his hand and as long as his hands and God’s staff were raised, Joshua and the Israelites won the war with the Amalekites. What I want us to pay particular attention to is that this battle was all about God. Joshua, Moses, Aaron, Hur, and the Israelite armies were simply vessels God used, but the battle itself was orchestrated by God. Moses knew this and wanted to make certain the Israelites knew it and remembered it. Nothing that he or they did in the physical realm brought about victory. God’s presence and power took them into the battle and assured the victory when the battle was done. What battles are you fighting today? Is the battle you are in one that the Lord has chosen for you? Strange question, isn’t it? Scripture is very clear in this particular passage that the Lord, in fact, chooses certain battles for us to fight. Does He lead the way as Jehovah Nissi in your current battles? Perhaps the battle you are in is a battle that you have chosen, one that is outside the will of God? Are you fighting in your own strength? Are you struggling to be victorious in the battle? If Jehovah Nissi is leading the way in your struggle, then you are assured success, but if you are fighting your battle in your own strength, your defeat is imminent. Where in your life do need God to show Himself strong as Jehovah Nissi – the Lord my Banner – and go before you so that you may know victory?