FAST Day 15/40--Go Women! Pray the Devil Back to Hell

Following Jesus to Confront Corruption

Take a Stand--Speak Out--Live in Integrity
Pod-Post 5

How the women in Liberia/West Africa confront a horrific war and corruption.

Film description and links below.

Cry loudly, do not hold back; raise your voice like a trumpet, and declare to My people
 their transgression, and to the house of Jacob their sins. (Isaiah 58:1)

So do not be afraid of them, for there is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.
Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. (Matthew 10:26-28)
 Jesus Christ

Listen to the podcast here. 

#integrityFAST  #CMCtoo  #HealUsToo

Warm greetings!

A reminder of the purpose of my Into Integrity FAST. It is to call attention to--and confront--the lack of disclosures by specific organizations/leaders/people affected by the international Nordic Capital Investment KB fraud (NCI) as well as the related dismissals that Michele (my wife) and I have received. I am fasting for genuine contrition and striking for resolute action within the Church Mission Community (CMC).

Reflections on FAST Day 15

(combined food FAst and hunger Strike)
.

I have been praying specifically for women and for specific women the last three days. I am praying for the women, women-leaders, and spouses of men-leaders who have been affected by the NCI fraud, including their organizations. And women connected to our dismissals. And I am praying for the women who are tracking with the Into Integrity podcasts and postings. Hence, praying for many of you. The essence of my prayers:

Go women!
 May your courage and good sense win the day!

Stay the moral course regardless of whatever others do or say.

And may you emulate the strength, virtue, and wisdom in the fear of the Lord
of people that we have so esteemed down through history (Hebrews 11).

Three Examples

1. Old Testament: Deborah (prophetess-leader) and Jael (common woman), believing, obeying, and praising God. “Then Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam sang on that day, saying, “That the leaders led in Israel, that the people volunteered, bless the Lord!....My heart goes out to the commanders of Israel, the volunteers among the people; bless the Lord!....Most blessed of women is Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite; most blessed is she of women in the tent…“Thus let all Your enemies perish, O Lord; but let those who love Him be like the rising of the sun in its might.” (Judges 5:1-2, 9, 24, 31)

2. New Testament: Mary (common woman) and Elizabeth (common woman), believing, obeying, and praising God. And Mary said, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her….And [Elizabeth] cried out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!...And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her by the Lord.” …And Mary said: “My soul exalts the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. For He has had regard for the humble state of His bondslave; for behold, from this time on all generations will count me blessed.” (Luke 1:38,42, 45-48)

3. Liberia: Pray the Devil Back to Hell (2008) Watch the film trailer (two minutes). This inspiring documentary “chronicles the remarkable story of the Liberian women who came together to end a bloody civil war and bring peace to their shattered country. Thousands of women--ordinary mothers, grandmothers, aunts and daughters, both Christian and Muslim - came together to pray for peace and then staged a silent protest outside of the Presidential Palace. Armed only with white T-shirts and the courage of their convictions, they demanded a resolution to the country's civil war. Their actions were a critical element in bringing about a agreement during the stalled peace talks. A story of sacrifice, unity and transcendence, Pray the Devil Back to Hell honors the strength and perseverance of the women of Liberia. Inspiring, uplifting, and most of all motivating, it is a compelling testimony of how grassroots activism can alter the history of nations.” (quote from the film website) Also available via YouTube rental.

My takeaway from the above three examples:

There is always a blessing for obedience—for putting faith into action, for freely volunteering, for taking risks, for leading, for laying down your life for the good of people, for cooperating with God in line with the Lord’s word and for not being afraid to do what is right. A related quote from Martin Luther King Jr. comes to mind.

Human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability; it comes through the tireless efforts of men willing to be co workers with God, and without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation. We must use time creatively, in the knowledge that the time is always ripe to do right. Martin Luther King, Jr., Letter from Birmingham Jail, 16 April 1963

Perhaps it will be the through the tireless efforts of courageous and virtuous women, who as co-workers with God, will model and call for “genuine contrition” and “resolute change” within the Church-Mission community. May today’s Deborahs, Jaels, Marys, Elizaabeths and women like those in Liberia take the lead to rise up and pray the devil back to hell. I sincerely hope and pray so.

Go women!
Be blessed and be a blessing.

Take a stand, Speak up. Live in integrity 
And spread the word.

Kelly
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I am doing FAST in the spirit of the consecrated fast and repentance called for by the prophet Joel (Joel 1:14).  And I am doing it in line with the concerns and requests in the Shine the Light-Together petition and by its signatories.

Thank you for your prayers, encouragement, and support. I will be regularly sharing updates via brief posts and podcasts in the coming days. Please spread the word.

Notes

--Integrity is moral wholeness—living consistently in moral wholeness. Corruption is moral rottenness, the opposite of integrity--the distortion, perversion, and deterioration of moral goodness, resulting in the exploitation of people.

--For information/updates on NCI and anti-corruption resources, see the latest postings from the PETRA People Network.

--A Summons to a Global Integrity Movement: Fighting Self-Deception and Corruption, our article  in the Lausanne Global Analysis, March 2018. "In this article we distill some of the lessons we have learned over the past 15 years in promoting integrity and confronting corruption. Why is it hard to live up to our moral and ethical aspirations? We reflect on the reality of dysfunction and deviance, highlight the challenge of self-deception, describe anti-corruption resources, and summon the church-mission community (CMC) to a global integrity movement marked by righteousness and relevance.

--Jesus' words in Luke 6: 17-49 and Mathew 10: 16-42 (The Message) have been so helpful to me, providing  instructions, warnings, perspectives, and motive checks especially about hypocrisy. Some excerpts: 

"Don’t be intimidated. Eventually everything is going to be out in the open, and everyone will know how things really are. So don’t hesitate to go public now. Don’t be bluffed into silence by the threats of bullies. There’s nothing they can do to your soul, your core being. Save your fear for God, who holds your entire life—body and soul—in his hands. (Matthew 10:26-28). Your task is to be true, not popular….It’s who you are, not what you say and do, that counts. Your true being brims over into true words and deeds” (Luke 6:26,45)