Metamorphosis Ministries USA/Int'l
Center for the Prevention of Crimes Against Humanity
Karl A. Oglesby, Sr., Founder
300 Palmetto Park Blvd., #1116
Lexington, SC 29072-7886
803.359.9708
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
I hope that this letter finds you well as I am sure God has richly blessed and highly favored you and your loved ones throughout the year as we look forward to celebrating the birth of Our Precious Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
The Lord has been good to us here at Metamorphosis Ministries USA/Int'l as well, as He has continued to allow us to serve His Kingdom as missionaries to the brokenhearted and the persecuted church here in the US and around the world. As you know, there are many believers who pay a high price for their faith in Jesus Christ and are not as fortunate as we as to be able to worship freely as we do here in the US. Many are tortured, murdered, imprisoned, raped and otherwise brutalized for their faith in God and His Dear Son Jesus Christ.
The cost to provide aid and encouragement to our less fortunate brothers and sisters is very high and increasing all the time, especially travel expenses and those cost related to providing teaching, training and the publishing of materials to provide the comfort and encouragement of the Lord. We hope that you will help us at this time, to continue to provide this sorely needed assistance to those who suffer by sending us a contribution of any amount to carry on the Lord's work to those who are often forgotten. We also ask that you will continue to pray for us and those God as blessed us to serve in these last days before our Lord's return. Please make you checks and money orders payable to Metamorphosis Ministries/K. A. Oglesby, Founder and mail them right away to:
Metamorphosis Ministries USA/Int'l
Karl A. Oglesby, Sr., Founder
300 Palmetto Park Blvd., #1116
Lexington, SC 29072-7886
803.359.9708
Please know that your gift of love and show of support is greatly appreciated, and that we carry your love for the less fortunate in our hearts as we seek to bless those who God has sent us to serve.
MORNING REFLECTION
Luke 14:12. Then said he also to him that bade him, When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen, nor thy rich neighbours; lest they also bid thee again, and a recompence be made thee. 13. But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind: 14. And thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just.
Thought for the Day: Seek To Bless, Not To Be Blessed.
Reflection for the Day: Your Reward Is From God.
Jesus taught His disciples to seek to bless, not to be blessed. They were to actively seek out those who did not have: the poor, the maimed, the lame, and the blind. Their motivation was not to receive, but to meet the needs of those who were weak. Their reward would not come from the recipients of their good deeds, but rather, their reward would come from God.
As we enter into the Christmas season, which is a time of giving and sharing, it is important that you look to bless the less fortunate. They are not able to repay you; however, your desire should not be to receive, but to give. You have the assurance that your heavenly Father will provide a just reward.
"When you bless others?you too are blessed!"
Proverbs 3:27
Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine hand to do it.
Proverbs 24:11-12
Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter. If you say, "But we knew nothing about this," does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who guards your life know it? Will he not repay each person according to what he has done?
Isaiah 2:3-4
Come let us go up the mountain of the Lord, that we may walk the paths of the Most High. And we shall beat our swords into ploughshares, and our spears into pruning hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation--neither shall they learn war any more. And none shall be afraid, for the mouth of the Lord of Hosts has spoken.
Isaiah 58:9-12
If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets and Dwellings.
Micah 6:6-8
What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
Ezra 2:20
Guard the rights of the widow, secure justice for the
fatherless, give to the needy, defend the orphan, clothe the
naked?
Luke 21:15
For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist. (KJV)
James 3:17-18
Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.
"WILL YOU PRAY FOR THE
PERSECUTED CHURCH?"
When did you last pray
For your persecuted brothers and sisters
Who daily pay a high price for their faith?
When did you last ask God to break your heart
With the things which break His?
For many cry out to God for His mercy
To be delivered from bondage, torture and pain.
From oppression, rape and forced conversion,
From threats, false accusations and forced labor!
So, while their cries of agony
Rise to touch the very Heart of God
and their blood flow stains the River of Life
with crimson crown,
Will you hear the cry of God's heart and remember
to pray for those . . .
Who for Christ's sake,
Willingly suffer and die?
"We at times feel as if we are all alone in our struggle."
(Brother Andrew's recollection of the testimony of the
pastor of a small oppressed underground church)
"But I tell you: Love your enemies and
pray for those who persecute you."
?Matthew 5:44, NIV
"Remember those in prison as if you were
their fellow prisoners, and those
who are mistreated as if you yourselves
were suffering."?Hebrews 13:3, NIV
Written by Karl A. Oglesby, Sr.
Copyright 2004
In His Service,
K.A. Oglesby, Sr.
Missionary to the persecuted church
& the brokenhearted in Christ
In some countries, a person who becomes a Christian forfeits a good education and job. And in a few countries, a person who converts risks his or her life. One church historian estimates more Christians have been martyred in this century than in all preceding centuries put together.
Yet, strangely, more often than not, intense persecution of Christians leads to a spurt of growth in the church. An ancient saying expresses this phenomenon, "The blood of martyrs is the seed of the church."
The rape of Darfur: a crime that is shaming the world
Children as young as eight are attacked by militiamen
By Marie Woolf, Political Editor
Published: 10 December 2006
Halima Bashir is a survivor. She was tortured and gang- raped for days as a punishment for speaking out about an attack on primary school children in Darfur.
Her crime was to tell people that a group of Janjaweed militia and government soldiers had attacked the primary school for girls, raping pupils as young as eight. She paid a terrible personal price.
"They were aged between 8 and 13," she said. "They were in shock, bleeding, screaming and crying. It was horrific. Because I told people what happened, the authorities arrested me. They said, 'We will show you what rape is'. They beat me severely. At night, three men raped me.
"The following day the same thing, different men. Torture and rape, every day, torture and rape."
The gang-rape of girls as young as eight has prompted fresh calls for intervention in the western Sudanese region, where tens of thousands of women and girls have been subjected to rape and other extreme sexual violence since the crisis erupted in 2003. The Islamist government in Khartoum has given the Janjaweed militia a free hand in putting down a rebellion by African tribes in the region, and there has not been a single conviction in Darfur for rape against displaced women and girls .
According to a report published today by a charity, the Alliance for Direct Action against Rape in Conflict and Crises, there has been a rise in sexual violence in the region. In the past five weeks alone, more than 200 women in Darfur's largest displacement camp, Kalma, have been sexually assaulted. Unicef and other charities working on the ground have expressed concern about the gang rape of minors by up to 14 men. In one case, schoolgirls and their teachers were targeted by a gang in the Tawila area of Northern Darfur. In an incident in the town of Kailek, Janjaweed militiamen separated women and men. More than 80 rapes were reported - but many more were kept quiet.
Under international law, sexual violence as a tactic in war is considered a crime for which states can be held accountable. A United Nations commission of inquiry found recently that the atrocities in Darfur amounted to war crimes and crimes against humanity. There was hope that the sexual violence would end when a peace agreement was signed in May. But observers say that since then, sexual violence has escalated and the conflict has expanded into Chad and the neighbouring Central African Republic, where rapes and killings have continued.
Charities fear that women and children living in refugee camps are not being protected from Janjaweed militiamen, who have targeted civilians collecting firewood and water to bring back to camp.
The African Union, in an attempt to stop sexual violence, set up "firewood patrols" to provide armed escorts for women. But these patrols recently ended because of problems with finance and questions about the AU's mandate.
Aid agencies say the end of the patrols has contributed to the massive increase in sexual violence. They report that victims not only face trying to recover from their ordeal without proper support, but are often stigmatised. Many women who have been raped in Sudan have been thrown out of their communities, while children conceived in rape have been abandoned. In addition to this, victims face the added fear of contracting HIV.
"Rape is feared all the more in Darfur for two reasons. Most important, a woman who has been raped is ruined; deeply traumatised, in some cases she is thrown out of home by her family and forced to survive on her own," the report, entitled Sexual Violence in Darfur, says. "Raped women, not the perpetrators, are blamed. The woman is shamed for life and so is her entire family. Witnesses to large-scale attacks typically record repeated and systematically conducted incidents of widespread rape and other forms of sexual violence committed by armed groups. The mass rapes in Darfur have been among the most effective means to terrorise tribal populations, break their will and drive them away."
The publication of the report coincides with today's global day of action to highlight violence in Darfur. Thousands of people, mainly women, will march on the Sudanese embassy and Downing Street to highlight the increase in sexual violence. The women, who will include WI members, are expected to let off thousands of rape alarms in a symbolic gesture. It will be one of many events around the world, including in Africa and the Middle East.
Among them will be the rape survivor Halima Bashir, who will speak publicly of her experience and hand over a letter to Lord Triesman, the Minister for Africa, to call for immediate action to help the women of Darfur.
Yesterday Tony Blair called on the government of Sudan and rebel movements in Darfur to implement an immediate ceasefire and agree a resolution to the conflict.
Mr Blair hinted at sanctions against the government in Khartoum if the violence continues, warning: "If rapid progress is not made, we will need to consider alternative approaches with international partners. The government of Sudan must prove it is taking its responsibilities seriously."
The Prime Minister said Darfur would remain "at the top of my agenda".
About 400,000 people have been killed and two million driven from their homes during three years of conflict. The Government in Khartoum has been accused of tacitly supporting Janjaweed militiamen,
Brendan Cox , director of Crisis Action, a co-organiser of today's events, said: "The global message going out today in events right around the world is that the international community is at a turning point: either it can turn its words into actions and deploy a peacekeeping force, or it can turn its back on the people of Darfur."
How it started: 2m displaced in a region the size of France
Militants from non-Arab African tribes in Darfur started a rebellion against the Arab-led Sudan government in 2003, claiming discrimination. The Islamist government in Khartoum used a local Arab militia, known as the Janjaweed, to crush the insurgency. More than 85,000 people have since been killed, with a further 200,000 dying of war-related disease, and over two million displaced. The African Union sent in a 7,000-strong peacekeeping force in 2004, patrolling a region the size of France.
SAVE DARFUR
It's been more than four years since the violence began in Darfur. As many as 400,000 innocent men, women and children have been killed and more than 2.5 million people have been driven from their homes. Millions more face death, rape, torture, and disease.
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SAVE DARFUR
1 Corinthians 4:7
For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?
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