i have no impulse control and this sound was a vocal stim for like. way too long last(?) year and boom this is happening.

What is Happening to the Church?

2 Thessalonians 2: 1 - 2 “Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come.  Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first..’

It’s now been over four months since the government shut down the churches and banned Christians from holding services together as they have for centuries because of the risk of spreading the Covid-19 virus.  There has been some relief these last few weeks to allow limited numbers to assemble in church provided they separate at least six feet apart or twelve feet if they want to sing and everyone must wear a mask.  As we all look for an end to this difficult time the news is now that a second wave is raising its ugly head and the wearing of masks is now mandatory in all closed public spaces with heavy fines for those who don’t obey.  As a result, many are wondering if the end to all of this is much further away than we’d hoped and will anything be the same when it’s all over? We have been warned that when it does end there will be “a new normal”—whatever that means.  The big question is, “How is the Church of Jesus Christ” coping with all of this?”  Is it surviving, thriving or dying through it all.  The final answer to this question is clearly spelled out in the bible—we win!  Jesus said to Peter in Matthew 16:18 “..I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it”.  Jesus is coming back for a spotless Bride, the Church, to which all who call on his name belong but He warned us in Matthew 24:21-22 the time before he comes will be a time of trial and tribulation “such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.  And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.”  That sounds to me like things will get pretty tough as we head into the final days before He comes and the one thing we will needs lots of is endurance because He told us (Matthew 10:22) “you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved”.  Endurance is not something to look forward to but it is the one thing that will be necessary to survive.  

So, how is the Church enduring this pandemic?  The Barna Research Group has just released a poll describing the state of the Church in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic.  The poll’s headline is: “One in Three Practicing Christians Has Stopped Attending Church During COVID-19".  At first glance, I thought they must be referring to practicing Christians unable to attend church due to the government shut-down of churches but surely they must still be attending “on-line” either with their own local assembly or maybe “church-hopping” to one of the many mega-church broadcasts that fill our TV screens?  Not so, it turns out! One in three practicing Christians has quit attending any church whatsoever! That is an extremely disturbing statistic by any standard and it suggests a worrisome “falling away” from the Church and its message of salvation through the atoning blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.  Also, it’s of little comfort to realize that Barna studied only the US Church because I suspect the picture for the Church in Canada and many other countries will be similar.  Worse still, Barna also found that among millennial Christians—our youth, half are not attending any church whatsoever! We can convince ourselves that it’s only temporary, that everything will return to normal once a vaccine is found.  We can reassure ourselves that the Church is not a building but a body; not an organization but an organism and that we can continue through this time of separation from each other without any real harm being done but that’s not what these numbers are telling us. For the Church to be a real body and not a virtual (digital) body it must come together as an assembly to worship and praise the Lord and grow in relationship with Him and each other.  This cannot happen at a distance and cannot be stopped for long without incurring the losses that the poll shows. Laying this sad picture against the backdrop of a world in turmoil, the daily mayhem and madness in many US cities, politicians scrambling to defund the police, the media trying to convince us we are all racists, the financial upheaval, the gender confusion, the loneliness, depression and suicides and an upcoming election in the US which is a ticking time bomb for untold lawlessness, we are forced to ask, “What does all this mean, Lord?”  If a third of all practicing Christians and half of all young practicing Christians are no longer attending any church what kind of relationship do they have with the Body of Christ?  If that’s too painful a subject to contemplate, we might simply write the whole thing off as a glitch, an anomaly that will evaporate once we have a vaccine at which time everything will return to what is was before.  Given the multitude of prophecies appearing on social media these days about what lies ahead, it appears that God is beginning to shake the whole earth in readiness for His coming and He’s beginning with His Church.  Are we ready?

2 Thessalonians 2: 1 - 12 clearly speaks of the days before the Lord returns: “Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come.  Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.  Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things?  And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time.  For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way.  And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.  The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved.  And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”  

We are not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled and we are not to be deceived because Jesus will give us clear signals of His impending return: there will first be a “falling away” from the Church followed by the coming of the “lawless one” who will dazzle and delude the world with lying signs and wonders. Hmmm!!! “falling away”?  Isn’t that what Barna is reporting. “Lawlessness”, “deception” and “delusion”.  Isn’t that what fills our TV screens right now with the riots across the globe? Will the rioters soon turn their attention to the churches to vent their hatred?  It’s already begun.  There are many other signs the Lord has given His Church about his return (see Luke 28) but in all of them we are given the promise that He will never leave us and never forsake us and we will be held safe provided we endure to the end (Mark 13:13).  It is that last phrase that presents our greatest challenge.  The only way we will ever know how to endure anything is to endure through it so get ready.

What’s the answer for the Local Church?

Besides Covid-19, there’s a pandemic of confusion across the world right now as billions of common folk try to sort out the conflicting advice of thousands of “experts” while their governments keep changing the rules controlling how they must behave.  Lock-downs, quarantines, face masks, travel restrictions, job losses, schooling and a host of other issues pile on to the stress and strain caused by the virus and even local churches are feeling the impact.  Churches are being torn apart from the contentions arising between those fearful of the virus who demand strict adherence to the government’s rules and those rejecting the fear and objecting to the governments’ interference in the life of the Church. Some argue for what appears to be blind obedience to the dictates of their government using the scriptures found in Romans 13:1, “Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God.”; Titus 3:1, “Remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work,” and 1 Peter 2:13 , “Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake..,” while others use Peter’s defense against the pharisees in Acts 4:18 - 20 “So they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge.  For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.” as the reason for their disobedience.  As time passes, cracks continue to appear in the social order as evidenced by the “Black Lives Matter” protests and riots in the US and around the world, the “Defund the Police” movement in the US, the mayhem occurring nightly in some US cities and the upcoming US election, the result of which will be a tipping point between law and order and riot and rebellion.  Also, the large numbers of “practicing Christians” who have given up attending church is a symptom of what the Church—particularly the western Church—has been suffering from for many years, a lethargy towards the “great commission” of taking His Gospel to the neighbours we live beside, a lukewarmness towards the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, and a lazy attitude towards the gross sin pervasive in our culture as seen in the abortion statistics, homosexual practice, marriage breakdown, gender confusion, political correctness and media corruption, etc., etc.  

If we can accept it, Covid-19 is the Lord’s wake-up call to His Church to be the Church He is building, a Church that will turn the world upside down rather than run terrified from a virus that God has promised “shall (not) come nigh our dwelling” (Psalm 91:10).  I don’t believe the Lord is looking for a Church that blindly obeys authorities when the authorities arbitrarily forbid the church from meeting together, praying together, worshiping together and ministering together under the cloak of “the common good”.  We can all understand the need for caution in dealing with this virus and why the rules have been put in place but we are also aware of the inherent conflict that can arise between “the common good” and the Church. We cannot serve two masters, the Lord Jesus and the civil authorities.  The “common good” can easily be used as a sledge hammer by the authorities to beat the Church into submission and there is already growing concern that the “new normal” being touted by the authorities might well include compulsory vaccinations as a precondition to entry into public buildings and proof of vaccination as an implanted chip in the hand.  If this is where we are headed, (and I hope not) then we are indeed entering “the time of the end” (Daniel 11:35).  

Jesus is building a Church that demonstrates His Power over all the power of the enemy— including his viruses, a Church that is breaking down the gates of Hell and setting the devil’s captives free, a Church with the ability to say, “Thus saith the Lord...” and to stake their very lives on the truth of His Word!  That kind of power is in very short supply in most of our churches today and there will be no change until churches across the land fall on their knees and repent for failing to be the salt and light Jesus has declared us to be.  This will take more than a revival, it will take a new awakening to the power of the Holy Spirit that Jesus has invested in each believer: a baptism of fire.  It will result in church members no longer remaining passive participants in the pews “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof” and “Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth” (2 Timothy 3: 5, 7).  As Paul said to the Corinthians “How is it then, brethren? Whenever you come together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification.”  (1 Corinthians 14:26) That in no way describes the current model for church gatherings which see the congregation mostly sit placidly while those on the platform perform. We can no longer remain as passive participants in our churches and our pastors can no longer carry the weight of responsibilities that we are laying upon them at this time, a weight that is leading many to quit the pulpit discouraged and dismayed. No amount of digital savvy and technical wizardry, electronic gadgetry and slick  delivery will ever substitute for what’s at the heart of the Gospel message—a personal vibrant, living, active relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ and His people.  Ultimately, it matters little what we say we believe.  Rather, it’s about WHO we are, WHO we know and WHAT we DO that the world wants to see from the Church.  It’s a relationship with a real Person people want to see, that the Church has real answers to their deepest needs whether it be broken relationships, wayward children, physical calamity, financial worries or Covid-19 and they want to see it both in its members and its pastors.

I sense there are troublesome days ahead when the faith of many will be tested. If a single virus pandemic can result in a third of the church walking away, what will some serious persecution do to the rest?  Some churches in the US have already been attacked by rioters and set on fire but there’s encouraging news from a church in Seattle, Washington which went ahead and held a city-wide public praise rally last Sunday evening.  Between four and seven thousand people showed up to take part and despite the continuous attempts by violent protestors, Antifa and others flashing knives and threatening participants and a satanist group screaming their praise to Satan to break up the gathering, the people refused to be intimidated and never stopped singing.  As a result, the Holy Spirit moved among them with salvations, healings, miracles and baptisms. Would you take part in such a gathering with all the risks it involves---even if the government declares it illegal?  That’s the kind of decision we may all have to make in the days that lie ahead and it’s the kind of decision that requires some heart-searching on our knees before God before we decide.  Such decisions will not be taken lightly because they may cost us dearly but they will have to be taken.  Again, Jesus has told us that “He that endures to the end will be saved” and we can rest on His promise.

Germany ramps up deportations of failed Afghan asylum seekers

New Post has been published on http://asylumireland.ml/germany-ramps-up-deportations-of-failed-afghan-asylum-seekers/

Germany ramps up deportations of failed Afghan asylum seekers

Bavaria’s Interior Ministry released a statement announcing that 51 of those on board were rejected asylum seekers and that the “lion’s share of this collective repatriation” were from the southern state of Bavaria.

Most of them were “voluntary repatriations,” the statement said. But that’s not how 26-year-old Mursalin saw it.

“I’m devastated. I’m worried. I’m afraid,” the Afghan asylum seeker told CNN on the eve of his planned deportation flight. (Mursalin is not his real name: He asked for anonymity because, as a Christian convert, he fears retaliation if he is sent back to Afghanistan.)

“I did everything Germany asked of me,” he said. “I am no criminal. I have no links to any terror organization. I provided them with all the documents they need. My passport, documentation. And all I got was this letter telling me I would be deported on Tuesday.”

One man deported to Afghanistan on the July 3 flight has since taken his own life, according to German Interior Ministry spokesman Harald Neymanns on Wednesday. His body was found on July 10 and a police investigation into his death is underway, Neymanns said.

angela–merkel-berlin-march-2018-large-169.jpg”>

After embracing hundreds of thousands of refugees in 2015, Germany is now firmly closing the door on asylum seekers.

The southern state of Bavaria is taking the lead with the strong backing of Federal Interior Minister and former state premier Horst Seehofer, who recently triggered a crisis in government over his plans to reject some asylum seekers directly at the southern border.

Presenting his controversial “migration master plan” in Berlin on July 10, Seehofer joked about the July 3 repatriation, smiling as he said, “On my 69th birthday of all days, 69 people — it wasn’t ordered by me — were sent back to Afghanistan.”

Following Wednesday’s news of one deportee’s death, Seehofer is facing calls to resign from some opposition politicians.

In Bavaria, police forces are being bolstered, more asylum claims rejected and deportations ramped up, particularly for Afghans.

On June 6, German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced that any remaining restrictions on deportations to Afghanistan would be lifted and all failed asylum seekers would now be eligible. Bavaria’s Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann believes that change is the correct one.

“Fundamentally it’s clear. Anyone who has lost their asylum status has to leave. We say that unambiguously to all of those affected,” Herrmann told CNN.

“Previously, we only repatriated Afghan refugees that had been rejected at a federal level i.e. those who had committed a crime, had links to terror or refused to prove their identity. Now, we have received approval from Berlin that others can also be deported.”

“So in the days ahead we will see larger scale deportations to Afghanistan taking place,” Herrmann said. “Other federal states that do not deport to Afghanistan — we consider that to be wrong.”

‘I have been a refugee my whole life’

After refugees from Syria, Afghan nationals represent the highest number of asylum applicants in Europe, according to the European Asylum Support Office, often traveling from Iran to Turkey to reach Greece as the doorway to the European Union.

Unlike Syria, however, Afghanistan is deemed safe enough for the repatriation of asylum seekers, despite regular bombings in Kabul and violent clashes between Taliban and Afghan government forces.

france–italy-migrants-file-large-169.jpg”>

In 2017 more than 3,000 people died and more than 7,000 were wounded due to violence in the country, with a growing number of attacks targeting the country’s Shia Muslim minority, most of whom are of Hazara ethnicity, according to the UN Assistance Mission to Afghanistan.

Afghan asylum seekers in Europe must prove through extensive documentation that they are persecuted at home in order to be accepted as refugees in Europe.

For Mursalin, that was an impossible request because, although his family belongs to the ethnic Hazara minority in Afghanistan, he says he has never set foot in the country. He says he was born in Iran but was never granted citizenship because his family had fled to the country as refugees during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan.

“I have been a refugee my whole life. And I will still be one in Afghanistan, if I have to go back,” he told CNN in fluent German.

Mursalin says he has spent three years in Germany and recently been offered an apprenticeship as a carer after first volunteering in the role. He felt so at home and accepted that he decided to convert to Christianity, he says.

“I love Germany. I want to stay here and give something back to the society that took me in.”

He says he’s now worried that he’ll be targeted as a Christian convert: “I cannot even fathom what will happen to me in Afghanistan.”

‘Afghanistan is a test run’

Even cases where an asylum seeker has documented evidence of political persecution at home and a strong connection to Germany have been rejected, says immigration lawyer Philipp Pruy, who says he has seen a surge in denied asylum applications.

“The Bavarian government wants to prove that it is taking a particularly hard stance on refugees,” Pruy told CNN. “There is substantial pressure on migration offices to deport people — to prepare them to be deported, get documentations prepared and work with Afghanistan to obtain passport replacement.”

Sami is a 20-year-old Afghan whose asylum claim has been rejected twice by Bavarian authorities and is one of those eligible for deportation under the new rules. He asked CNN not to use his full name, fearing his case for asylum in Germany would be adversely affected.

germany-deportations-afghanistan-intl-large-169.jpg”>

He says his family was targeted by the Taliban because his brother worked as a car mechanic with German NATO forces in Kunduz.

When his brother and father were captured by Taliban forces, his mother bundled him out of the house through the window and urged him to flee to Iran, Sami says.

“I really did not want to flee my country,” Sami told CNN. “I wanted to stay but I had no choice. I wanted to stay alive.”

He says he spent a month in Iran before his aunt helped organize his escape to Germany via Turkey and Greece.

Sami believed that Germany would accept his application, especially because his brother had worked with German forces. Like Mursalin, Sami speaks fluent German and was so popular at his college that 12,000 students signed a petition imploring Germany to accept his asylum application.

“They know the danger he will be exposed to when Germany sends him back to Afghanistan,” said his classmate Melissa Barna who helped organize the petition. “We are worried. He is one of us.”

Pruy believes that the expanded deportation of Afghan asylum seekers is only the beginning and that other countries deemed “safe” will soon see repatriation flights.

“We are now seeing the first signs, with asylum seekers from Iraq getting rejected the same way as Afghans,” Pruy said. “Afghanistan is a test run.”

CNN’s Judith Vonberg and Kevin Tschierse contributed to this report.

,https://edition.cnn.com/2018/07/12/europe/germany-deportations-afghanistan-intl/index.html