Suodi People of China | Opium courses through Hwang's system. The first sharp warm pleasure assaults his brain and radiates to the rest of the body. He knows that soon he will experience hours of glowing bliss. He has seen others of his Suodi (pronounced Swohr-dee) community lose themselves to the addiction to opium. He swallows the lie that this will not be his fate. Addiction already grips this Suodi youth, though he does not recognize it. Opium usage has resurfaced among this group in China's Sichuan and Yunnan Provinces. Meanwhile others of his ethnic group become traders, farmers and herders. In fact, Suodi has become a brand name for certain household products. But conflicts plague the Suodi history: War with their Nosu neighbors, battles between Suodi clans and combat with Chinese soldiers. During "The Long March" of the Communist Revolution, many Suodi people in this region joined the efforts to overthrow oppressive powers. Hwang has heard about Christians, but he knows nothing of their beliefs. His grandparents believed in many gods. They also honored their ancestors and worshiped Yasomu, the all-powerful god. But those "superstitions" are long gone-replaced by communist notions that there is no spiritual realm. Meanwhile, Hwang remains trapped in a meaningless life. Opium dulls the pain until the drug wears off and he has to face his misery once again. Pray for Christ to intervene in the lives of Suodi youth who feel drawn to opium's false promise. Pray for Christians in neighboring districts to bring them the hope of Christ.-EF
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John 14:18 | "I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you."
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Saragh Yugur People of China | His first birthday brought his first haircut: Right to left, then middle and back. And the community sang: "Cutting his hair with iron scissors, The child will grow as strong as an iron rod. Cutting his hair with gold or silver scissors, Treasures of gold and silver will roll in." Around the same time, his bride was born. On her third birthday, they cut her hair: Left to right and then middle and rear. When he turned 13, their parents arranged their marriage. Now, four years later, final marriage plans have begun. Soon the wedding will commence. The couple will feast on a sheep's thigh and keep the bone for several years. Meanwhile they will move in with his parents. This has been the Yugur (pronounced Yoo-gur) tradition for centuries. Whether roaming as Tibetan nomads or later mixing in China's Gansu Province with Mongols and Chinese, they ritually eat sheep at the wedding. Now that rings a bell, doesn't it? What if a believer helped the Yugur see that the Lamb has already been slain for their sins and ours. How can we invite them to the Wedding Supper of the Lamb? Pray that the Holy Spirit will prepare hearts to hear a new message, that of the gospel. Pray that God will call translators to produce scripture and other literature in the Yugur language and that other servants will teach reading to them.-EF
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Bolstered by Major Shareholder's Support, Yahoo Comes Out Swinging | With its annual meeting looming in just two weeks, Yahoo is ratcheting up its defense against Carl Icahn's proxy fight with an energy critics wish they'd seen for the past few years of Yahoo's gradual decline. The fight for... 
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Shui People of China | The weekly market days for the Shui people are occasions not only to sell their produce and beautiful embroideries, batiks, paper-cuts, and wood carvings, but also to visit with their neighbors. During festive occasions the Shui (pronounced Shway) people have the chance to sing and dance in the marketplaces. The Shui people mainly live in a fertile area in the Sandu Shui Autonomous County of Guizhou Province. In an attempt to keep their culture and unique script and language alive, some leaders are teaching their script to Shui boys. Shui people today are much more mobile than in earlier generations with the construction of roads connecting many parts of the county and province, but they are still mainly a rural people relying on farming, rice cultivation and fishing in the county's many rivers. Western missionaries who have adopted the Shuis to pray for and evangelize hope to send Chinese agricultural missionaries who can help the Shui people better care for their livestock and increase their agricultural productivity. In due time these Chinese missionaries can help start house churches in every Shui village, giving the reins of leadership to the locals, but periodically returning to train and teach Shui leaders. Pray that God will give this vision to those trained in these skills. Pray that their ideas will be readily received, and that such agricultural missionaries will soon have the opportunity to evangelize the Shui people.-JS
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Ruiz Steps Down At AMD | All those wondering how much longer Hector Ruiz would remain CEO of Advanced Micro Devices got their answer on July 17, when the struggling chipmaker replaced him with COO Dirk Meyer. The change up was long overdue. Under Ruiz, AMD... 
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A Rare Miss for Google (GOOG) on Second-Quarter Earnings | My quick take on Google's second-quarter earnings (full release after the jump and updates from conference call below): It's a miss, though not a huge one. My full story is here, and below are notes from the conference call: CEO... 
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Google Second-Quarter Earnings Coming Up | I'll have a quick take on Google's second quarter earnings as soon as they're released shortly after 1 p.m. Pacific time. I'll add key comments from the conference call and post an early draft of a full story a couple... 
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Wi-Fi Hotspot Explosion Continues -- in Europe | This year, the number of hotspots globally will rise 40%, according to consultancy ABI Research, which notes that "the greatest growth and the largest number of hotspots continue to be found in Europe. While the UK has long led in European Wi-Fi hotspots, there is also marked growth in France, Germany, and Russia." Which begs the question: Why isn't the U.S. market growing as fast? 
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Yahoo Fires at Microsoft Again | As the days wind down to Yahoo's Aug. 1 annual meeting, you can expect an escalating war of words among Yahoo, would-be dealmaker Microsoft, and corporate activist Carl Icahn. The latest missive comes from Yahoo, which sums up its support... 
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Hmong Leng People of China | Those unfamiliar with China's rich cultural makeup often assume the country is one ethnic society, but this is far from true. There are hundreds of very unique ethnic minorities within China's borders, each with its own language, customs and dress. Such is the case with the Hmong Leng people, considered a sub-group of the Miao under the Chinese government's inaccurate attempt to pigeon-hole all groups into an official 55 minorities. They are geographically widespread and populous, but are especially populous in Yunnan Province and even in Vietnam and Laos. During religious festivals, it is easy to spot young Hmong Leng (pronounced Hmong-Leng) women wearing dresses made from hemp cloth and flat round black and white turbans. Similar to so many of China's other minorities, they practice ancestor worship, and Hmong Leng homes typically have a spirit and ancestral altar on a wall in the main room of the house. The Hmong near the Vietnam border have a greater chance to hear the gospel than their counterparts farther north. Around Kaiyuan County there are a few Christian communities among other minorities, but the Hmong Leng remain largely untouched. Perhaps the greatest opportunity for them to hear the gospel comes from their young people who are increasingly traveling to cities in search of employment. Pray for Hmong Leng youth to be evangelized and to return to their ancestral lands with their new riches, the gospel of Jesus Christ. Pray that God will raise up this new generation to spread Christ's fame throughout China and Vietnam.-JS
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Hold Fast Your Confession | Thursday, July 17, 2008. With God's help, I will keep speaking in agreement with the Word of God, no matter what the circumstances may say.
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Gelao People of China | The large tree was the focal point of the celebration. Men of the village were circling it, others killed chickens and sheep as sacrifices under the divine tree. They pleaded for the gods to give them a large harvest the next year. These participants are members of the Gelao (pronounced Ger-laow) people group who live mainly in Guizhou Province. Despite their considerable numbers, almost 700,000, they are one of the least known of China's ethnic minorities. The Gelaos are a very ancient people, usually considered the original inhabitants of each region where they live. Their distinctiveness is seen in some of their unusual customs, such as breaking the front tooth of a bride. They also have the dubious reputation of once having been head hunters and cannibals. Although they have their own Gelao language, most speak China's trade language, Mandarin, because Gelao has four distinct dialects that vary so greatly from each other that even Gelaos in the same county have difficulty in communicating. Their main religion is ancestor and spirit worship. They have no systematic religious creeds, they do have a number of superstitions and taboos which affect every aspect of their lives. Pray for gospel recordings in each of the four dialects. These can be most effective in reaching the pre-literate. Pray for Chinese believers to share Christ with the Gelao people.-JS
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What You Say Is What You Get | Wednesday, July 16, 2008. Jesus said I will have whatever I say if I believe it.
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Microsoft Still Searching for Yahoo Search Deal | Despite Yahoo’s rejection of a new search deal offer from Microsoft last week--one that went over like the proverbial turd in the punchbowl with some shareholders--the software giant this time is leaving its walking shoes in the closet. A number... 
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App Store Activations: 100 Per Second | Just how much downloading is happening through the new Apple App Store? One developer, uLocate, says users are activating its Where application at a rate of 100 per second at peak. And Where is not even the top-10 most popular free or paid applications in the store. 
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MTV isn't being evil.... Google, on the other hand. | To hear Google tell it, MTV-owner Viacom is the epitome of evil media conglomerate and Google is the hero of user privacy. In a July 15 blog post, YouTube executives portrayed an agreement with Viacom to obscure users' identities in... 
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New June ComScore Numbers Show Facebook Still Has the Mojo | I just got a first look at the ComScore numbers for the top social networking Web sites in the U.S. The big story is that Facebook saw a nice jump in unique visitors and it continues to grow faster than... 
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iPhone 3G: Where's the Nav? | Among the 500+ applications available from the iTunes App Store, the glaring omission is a turn-by-turn navigation service. This seems odd, since the iPhone, with it's big display and beautiful touchscreen interface, seems ideally suited to a nav app of... 
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Iu Mien People | Gathered around their grandfather, the fidgeting children begged him to tell them again about the three great books. He patiently repeated the story he had told so often. "The Book of Day must be consulted before you decide the luckiest day for your marriage. The Ancestor Book will name nine generations of your ancestors, and the Mien Passport was issued by Emperor Pien Hung to our Iu Mien ancestors to allow them freedom to travel and cultivate land in his territory." The Iu Mien (pronounced Yoo-Mee-en) people of China have a rich folk literature, including many myths, legends and folktales. Over one million live primarily in China's mountain counties of the western provinces of Guangxi, Guandong, Yunnan, Hunnan, and Guizhou. The Iu Mien are mainly farmers, famous for their steeply terraced rice paddies which cling to the sides of steep cliffs. They are very family-oriented with many generations living in large extended family homes with perhaps as many as 60 individuals. Although some marriages are still arranged by parents, the choice now is generally left up to theyoung couple. There are about 10,000 Christians among the Iu Mien, but the majority practice ancestor and spirit worship. Some living in Yunnan Province have had access to gospel radio broadcasts in their language. Pray that Christian literature, radio and TV programs will be made available to the Iu Mien people so that their names can be written in the most important book, the Lamb's Book of Life.-JS
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Life Can Be Tough | Tuesday, July 15, 2008. No matter what I face, the Lord is with me, and I can overcome because Jesus already won the victory.
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Tit for Tat: Microsoft and Icahn "Set the Record Straight" | Yahoo came out swinging yesterday and today with an impassioned defense of its rejection of Microsoft's latest offer, an improved bid for Yahoo's search operations. Now, Microsoft has fired back with a statement of its own (full text after the... 
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eBay Claims Victory in the Tiffany Lawsuit | E-Commerce giant eBay claimed victory July 14 in its long legal battle with luxury brand manufacturer Tiffany Co. The renowned jewelry maker had sued eBay for trademark infringement in hopes of forcing the company to proactively remove items from its... 
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Apple: Users Download 10 Million Apps | Apple has just announced that its App Store topped 10 million application downloads in the three days since its launch. Today, the store that sells games, ringtones and organizers for the iPhone and iPod Touch offers some 800 applications, a quarter of them for free. These numbers are stunning. No other mobile applications store has ever come close to this kind of sales volume. 
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Intel Centrino 2 Launch--Powerful, but Late | Just ahead of Intel's second-quarter fiscal earnings release, the chipmaker is finally beginning to roll out its delayed new family of notebook processors, dubbed Centrino 2. The company was holding an event in San Francisco the afternoon of July 14... 
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Hunanese Han Chinese People in China | Rose, an 18-year-old Hunanese girl, couldn't believe her ears. In her Xian dialect, she heard an old woman in the marketplace jeer, "Why did you dye your hair green? Did you want people to think that you had grass growing out of your head?" The Xian-speaking Hunanese Han Chinese people are in the midst of a major generational transition. The older generation is noted for being conservative. Many Hunanese elders revere Communist China's founder, Mao Zedong, who himself was Hunanese. Nineteenth and 20th Century missionaries noted that people in this part of China were resistant to the gospel. Even today, less than two percent of the Hunanese are believers, a rarity among a Han Chinese group. Their youth are not embracing Christ, but they are intrigued by Western ideas and styles of dress. This conflict between new and old is not new; it became especially intense almost 20 years ago during the student democracy movement. Changsha, the capital of Hunan Province, experienced particularly intense student unrest. The government cracked down harshly on the "foreign" influences. The government and the older Hunanese population consider democracy and Christianity "foreign ideas." Hunanese Christians suffer persecution. Even though intense prayer has softened the hearts of the Hunanese people, tens of millions of them don't personally know a believer who can share Christ with them. Pray that God will give the few Hunanese believers the love and boldness they will need to share Jesus with their own people.-CH
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They Laughed Jesus To Scorn | Monday, July 14, 2008. I choose to believe the Word of God regardless of what other people think. I am a believer, not a doubter.
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God Gives You Ability To Get Rich | Sunday, July 13, 2008. I trust in the living God, Who gives me richly all things to enjoy. He gives me the power to prosper because He said He would.
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The Holy Spirit Is Your Helper 2 | Saturday, July12, 2008. Thank You Holy Spirit that You are my Helper! Thank You for helping me!
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The Holy Spirit Is Your Helper | Friday, July 11, 2008. Thank You Holy Spirit that You are my Helper!
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God Is A Father | Thursday, July 10, 2008. God, I am glad to know You are a Father. Please help me to always remember that.
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1 Corinthians 2:9 | But, as it is written,"What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him"....
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As Bad as It Gets | David faced a crisis. Pursued by Saul and Israel’s armies, he didn’t see any hope. He felt strangled as if by “the cords of death†and ungodliness that came at him in torrents. The assault was so intense that it “terrified†him. This was a life-and-death struggle…as bad as it gets. But when David cried out to God, everything changed. God dramatically answered his prayer: “Then the earth shook and quaked; and the foundations of the mountains were trembling and were shaken, because He was angry†(vs. 7-15). God responded only after David cried out to Him. David recognized that God delivered him “from my strong enemy, and from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me.†He continued to face trouble but knew that God was with him and would deliver him (vs. 16-19). We can feel David’s fear and sense how desperate he felt. Later, we can understand more clearly why he said, “I love You, O LORD, my strength,†and why he looked at God as his rock, fortress, and deliverer (vs. 1-3). It was wonderful to know that God would save him from his enemies! How do you respond when you face crises or feel trapped in seemingly hopeless situations? Learn from David: These are opportunities to cry out to God, confident that He will hear your prayers. Make Him your strength. Your rock, fortress, and deliverer. Your shield. Your stronghold. The horn of your salvation. He is worthy to be praised!
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Matthew 5:38-42 | Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth?
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What's Wrong With The World | Who will rescue me from this body of death?
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God Loves Sinners | JOHN 3:16 KJV
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten
Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but
have everlasting life.
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Speak To Your Mountain | MARK 11:23 NKJ
23 "For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain,
`Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in
his heart, but believes that those things he says will come to
pass, he will have whatever he says.
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Rejoice In Trouble
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Maybe you have been forsaken by your spouse. Or are struggling
with the death of a loved one. Or facing the constant pain of
disease. Or the loss of a job or business. Or, maybe just the
daily grind of life.
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Hang On To Your Faith | The devil's whole strategy is to get you to turn loose of your
faith in God and His Word.
MARK 4:15 NIV
15 Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is
sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the
word that was sown in them.
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Focus On Jesus | True Christianity is not a religion based on rules and rituals
but a living relationship with Jesus Christ.
Many people reduce Christianity down to attending church
meetings and trying not to commit a list of certain sins.
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You Can Cast Out Demons | 17 "And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name
they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues;
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You Have Authority Over The devil | LUKE 10:19 NKJ
19 "Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
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What Are Alms? | "Alms" are not some kind of tree, but something you should know
about -- and do.
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The Cure For Weak Faith
| MARK 6:6 NIV
6 And he was amazed at their lack of faith. Then Jesus went around teaching from village to village.
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Why Read The Bible? | "I'm a busy person. I have a lot to do. Why should I spend my
time reading the Bible? I don't have time to do all I need to
do as it is."
"I already believe in Jesus Christ, that He's the Son of God
and my Savior. I've already heard the Gospel."
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Who Can Be Against Us? | ROMANS 8:31 NKJ
31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us,
who can be against us?
We all face opposition. No one likes it. But opposition is a
fact of life on earth.
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Should Poor People Give? | ACTS 20:35 NIV
35 . . . the Lord Jesus himself said: `It is more blessed to
give than to receive.'"
Giving benefits the giver. The poorer you are the more you have
a need to give.
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How Does God Bless Us? | Does God bless us by giving us everything we think we should have, even if it's bad for us?
Does God bless us by always letting us have our way -- whether it's the best way for us, or not?
Does God bless us by letting us get away with self-destructive behavior?
Does God bless us by letting us mistreat other people with impunity?
Does God bless us by giving us more responsibility, more money, or more fame, than we can handle?
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Another Helper | JOHN 14:16-18 NKJ
16 "And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever,
17 "even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.
18 "I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.
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Open Eyes | 2 KINGS 6:17 NKJ
17 And Elisha prayed, and said, "Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see." Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
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Be Who You Are | ROMANS 12:2 Wuest, An Expanded Translation
2 And stop assuming an outward expression that does not come from within you and is not representative of what you are in your inner being but is patterned after this age; but change your outward expression to one that comes from within and is representative of your inner being, by the renewing of your mind, resulting in your putting to the test what is the will of God, the good and well-pleasing and complete will, and having found that it meets specifications, place your approval upon it.
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Faith Is The Victory | 1 JOHN 5:4 NKJ
4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world--our faith.
We all love to win.
Victory is sweet. One reason it's so sweet is that it's usually not easy. Victory takes effort -- often great effort.
Effort is also required in the spiritual battle of good against evil we are all engaged in. But the effort required of us is to maintain our attitude of faith in God and His Word.
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Is Looking A Sin? | MATTHEW 5:28 NKJ
28 "But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
This Scripture seems to indicate that even seeing a woman, and having the slightest thought of her attractiveness, could be a serious sin.
We must remember that the New Testament was written in the Greek language, and all English versions are translations done by people who are fallible. Whenever a difficult verse confronts us, it can often be helpful to consult those who are expert in the Greek language. One way is to examine how other English translators have rendered the verse. Another way is to consult Bible commentaries.
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Lack Of Knowledge | HOSEA 4:6a NKJ
6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.
People wonder why Christians experience so much trouble in life. The reason, according to the Bible, is a lack of knowledge.
The Bible tells us the devil is out to destroy us, but it also makes clear that we can overcome his attacks. The real problem lies with our ignorance.
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Honor Your Parents | EPHESIANS 6:2-3 NKJ
2 "Honor your father and mother," which is the first commandment with promise:
3 "that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth."
Think about this: God himself promises that if you will honor your parents you will have a long and blessed life.
(Note that no exceptions are listed. Even if your parents were terrible, this is still God's Word to you.)
What a promise!
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