Dec. 12, 2019: Worship leaders pray with Trump; Army bans Bible verse tags; 11 Kenyan Christians murdered
Daily Radio Script - Thursday, Dec. 12, 2019
Here are the latest headlines, brought to you by The Christian Post.
Megachurch pastor steps away from pulpit because he feels far from God, tired in soul
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Rev. Howard-John Wesley, senior pastor of the historic Alfred Street Baptist Church in Alexandria, Virginia, surprised his congregation earlier this month with an announcement that he is stepping away from his ministry for a season because he feels far from God, tired in his soul and needed to recuperate mentally and physically.
“From January 1 (2020) to April 1. I am walking away from every responsibility I have as pastor,” Wesley announced in his sermon on Dec. 1.
“You can’t pour out of an empty cup. It is very dangerous for your pastor to be on empty,” he told congregants. “I need to take care of me.”
He further noted that: “I’m tired. And I’m tired in a way that one night of sleep ain’t gon’ fix. I’m tired in my soul.”
Prior to making the formal announcement to his 10,000 member congregation, Wesley, who has led the 216-year old church since 2008, preached on the value of rest in his sermon called “Selah.”
In the sermon he noted how common pastoral sabbaticals are in white churches while pointing out how rare it was in black churches. He argued that many black pastors don’t take sabbaticals because they are afraid attendance might dip and affect the bottom line or the church may just function just fine without them.
Judge removed from 7-year-old James Younger case, new judge to be appointed
The Texas judge who rejected a jury's decision granting conservatorship to a mother intent on medically gender-transitioning her 7-year-old boy into a girl and instead awarded joint conservatorship to both parents has been removed from the case.
A regional administrative judge, a conservative Republican, will soon be appointing a new judge to oversee the ongoing dispute.
In late October, Judge Kim Cooks of the 255th district ruled that parents Jeff Younger and Anne Georgulas would share conservatorship and have equal decision-making regarding the medical and psychological treatment of the boy, and Jude, his twin brother.
Brian Houston, Christian worship leaders pray for Trump, visit Oval Office
A group of Christian worship artists and faith leaders, including Hillsong Church founder Brian Houston, prayed for President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on Friday.
The musicians and ministry leaders participated in a worship service and visited the Oval Office and the Cabinet Room, where they prayed for the president and took part in a policy briefing on what the administration is doing to help the faith community and religious freedom.
Attendees included the 65-year-old Houston; Bethel Music founders Brian and Jenn Johnson; Grammy-nominee Kari Jobe; her husband, Cody Carnes; Trump’s faith adviser, Paula White; and Sean Feucht, a Bethel worship leader running for congress in California.
Army bans faith-based business from selling Bible verse dog tags
The U.S. Army’s licensing office has banned a faith-based company from engraving Bible verses on Army-licensed dog tags and jewelry, an action that has outraged at least one member of Congress.
Last week, the religious freedom law group First Liberty Institute sent a letter to the U.S. Army Trademark Licensing Office arguing that the office is violating the U.S. Constitution by requiring a licensed military vendor to remove all “biblical references” from its licensed Army products.
Shields of Strength has been authorized for the last seven years to sell products with Army trademarks and seals. Its jewelry products are available for sale in some military exchanges and stores.
11 Kenyan Christians murdered in Al-Shabaab bus attack
As many as 11 Christians were killed in a Dec. 6 bus attack carried out by the Somali-based radical Islamic terrorist group Al-Shabaab in Kenya.
Police said a group of armed men ambushed a bus traveling from Nairobi to Mandera, a region on the border of Somalia with a large ethnic Somali population.
To read more stories from a Christian perspective, visit christianpost.com.
