ETERNAL FLAME NEWS: Aug 28, 2012

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Donkeys Come Wi-Fi Equipped at Tourist Attraction in Israel

A tourist attraction in lower Galilee that seeks to recreate daily life as it was in ancient Israel recently got a technological upgrade when it began putting Wi-Fi hotspots around the necks of donkeys so tourists can have access to the Internet.

"We're the only place in the world that will give the opportunity to surf the Internet when riding a donkey," Menachem Goldberg of Kfar Kedem told The Christian Post from Israel on Thursday.
The Kfar Kedem park is located in the hills of Galilee in view of the city of Nazareth, and offers tourists the opportunity to wear the same clothes, make the same foods and ride the same animals as did those who lived in ancient times.
According to the attraction's website, "Kfar Kedem creates a holistic experience using all your senses ... connecting these tangible experiences with the values and spirit of the ages from the time of the Bible and the Mishnah, that are still part of our lives today."
Now, because the experience also includes an Internet connection, tourists can also share the experience with their friends and family at home.
If someone "wants to change his profile on Facebook, for example, in the middle of the riding, now we give the opportunity to do it," explained Goldberg.

Federal Court Delivers Final Blow to U. of Cincinnati 'Free Speech Zone'

CINCINNATI, August 22, 2012—In a major victory for student rights, a federal district court issued a final ruling today prohibiting the University of Cincinnati (UC) from reinstating its tiny "free speech zone." In today's order, United States District Judge Timothy S. Black issued a permanent injunction against UC's unconstitutional system of speech restriction.
The court's decision comes hard on the heels of yesterday's startling resignation of UC President Gregory H. Williams, who reportedly did not provide any explanation for his sudden decision to quit a mere week before students return to campus.
"Limiting student expression to just 0.1% of campus was bad enough. Threatening to call the police if students were caught gathering signatures for a petition was even worse. The decision to waste taxpayer money defending such unconstitutional censorship was completely indefensible," FIRE President Greg Lukianoff said. "President Williams' surprise decision to step down should be welcomed, as the University of Cincinnati should have never picked this doomed fight with the Bill of Rights."
Per today's ruling, UC may not restrict student speech in the outdoor areas of UC's campus unless the restriction is "narrowly tailored to serve a compelling University interest."
Prior to the lawsuit, UC had required all "demonstrations, pickets, and rallies" to be held in a "Free Speech Area" that comprised just 0.1% of the university's 137-acre West Campus. University policy further required that all expressive activity in the free speech zone be registered with the university a full ten working days in advance, threatening that "[a]nyone violating this policy may be charged with trespassing."
The University of Cincinnati chapter of Young Americans for Liberty (YAL) and its president, student Christopher Morbitzer, filed suit on February 22, 2012, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Western Division, challenging UC's policy. The lawsuit was coordinated by Ohio's 1851 Center for Constitutional Law in cooperation with the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE).

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Survey: Slow Economy Continues to Weigh on Pastors

Pastors say the economy continues to have a negative impact on their churches despite stabilized giving, according to a survey by LifeWay Research.
The survey of 1,000 Protestant pastors asked respondents, "How is the economy impacting your church?" Almost two-thirds responded negatively, with 56 percent indicating somewhat negatively and 8 percent very negatively. One quarter of the pastors surveyed said, "The economy has had no impact on my church," while 9 percent indicated a positive impact on their churches.
"Pastor views on the economy are similar to many economic outlook surveys," says Scott McConnell, director of LifeWay Research. "We weren't surprised the current perspective of economic impact on churches is predominantly negative."

However, there is some good news. LifeWay Research found that while the sluggish economic recovery has translated into flat or reduced giving for many churches, the trend continues of fewer churches reporting declines in giving.

23 percent of churches had lower giving in 2010 than 2009.
19 percent of churches had lower giving in 2011 than in 2010.
Through May 2012 giving for 15 percent of churches has been below 2011.

1. Fear

Sharing your faith is a scary prospect. You can lose face and friends as a result of communicating this "narrow-minded" message of the gospel even when you do so in love. When choosing between being accepted by others and sharing the good news with others too often Christians choose silence. Fear is the biggest culprit that keeps most Christians from evangelizing.
The Cure: "Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should." Ephesians 6:19-20

2. Ignorance
There are many Christians who, down deep inside, want to share their faith but they honestly don't know what to say. Sadly, if you were to put a microphone in the face of the average church goer leaving a typical Sunday morning service and asked them to define the gospel message the answers could range from "um" to dumb. To add insult to injury far too many preachers have over-complicated the gospel to the point where even true Christians wonder if they are saved. They've added caveats and small print to John 3:16 and, as a result, many believers are confused by the clear and simple gospel that once they embraced with child-like faith.
The Cure: "For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures…." 1 Corinthians 15:3,4

Voice of the Martyrs' Tom White suicide confirmed

The Oklahoma state chief medical examiner's office has confirmed that Voice of the Martyrs executive Walter Thomas "Tom" White killed himself with a toxic mix of drugs in April, after learning that he had been accused of sexually molesting a young girl.
Police reportedly have stopped investigating the case that shocked many in White's community and those who support the Christian persecution ministry he served for over 30 years.
In a toxicology report made available to The Christian Post on Thursday, the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner found that White's death was most likely caused by "acute combined drug (ethanol, diphenhydramine) toxicity".
In addition to consuming alcohol, White had ingested Diphenhydramine, a common antihistamine sometimes prescribed for insomnia. Zolpidem, used to treat insomnia, was also found in his system.

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Is Your Mind a Hacker’s Next Target? Scientists Test Feasibility of Cheap Devices and ‘Brain Spyware’

An international group of researchers have presented a successful method to show how hackers could use a relatively cheap piece of equipment and software to gain access to secrets inside your mind.
Presented earlier this month at the USENIX Security Symposium, “On the Feasibility of Side-Channel Attacks With Brain-Computer Interfaces” discusses how with the emergence of technology that allows users to communicate via their thoughts alone, software could be developed to spy on things like your pin number or other passwords.
“The security risks involved in using consumer-grade BCI devices have never been studied and the impact of malicious software with access to the device is unexplored,” the researchers abstract reads. “We take a first step in studying the security implications of such devices and demonstrate that this upcoming technology could be turned against users to reveal their private and secret information. We use inexpensive electroencephalography (EEG) based BCI devices to test the feasibility of simple, yet effective, attacks.”

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Do not be conformed to this world

Rom 12:2 Do not be conformed~| to this present world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may test and approve what is the will of God– what is good and well-pleasing and perfect.

   When someone accepts Christ as their Savior, Paul wrote that they “become a new creature” (2 Cor 5:17), which is true, at least inwardly. This new Spirit regenerated inner live in our soul from the abiding presence of the Spirit now seeks to “work out your salvation” (Phil 2:12) from the inside out.
   Paul had described the concept of salvation by faith and the undeserved grace and mercy of God that has been granted to the believer (Romans 1-11). On this basis (“therefore”) Paul “urged” (parakaleo, present tense: “continually exhorted”) his readers to “present [their] bodies” (paristano, aorist infinitive, “to place before” as a once and for all-time offering), which implies an imperative sense following the verb parakaleo, “to exhort” (Rom 12:1). Thus, the believer is commanded to give over the control and direction of their bodies as a “living sacrifice” to God as an act of “reasonable service” or “logical worship” (latreia, from which we get the liturgy of worship) as a logical response to God’s unconditional mercy and grace.
   What does this mean in a practical sense? Paul now explains the meaning of self-sacrificing worship as the believer commits himself “cease or stop being conformed to this present world.” The body is attracted to sin, but the mind makes the choices that mark our life’s direction. We either commit ourselves to obedience to His commands or yield to sensual pleasures to live in disobedience and unholiness.

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