By-Election Warning.

This by-election is an ominous warning.

Labour has been outflanked by an alliance of progressives and socially conservative Muslims

For the new MP of a hard-Left party, Hannah Spencer used her speech at the Gorton and Denton by-election count to deliver an ostensibly surprising message. “Working hard used to get you something,” she said. “It got you a house. A nice life. Holidays. It got you somewhere. But now – working hard? What does that get you?” Not much, said the Green.

It is a sentiment that almost any working person in Britain would share, a lament to the broken connection between hard work and reward. But Ms Spencer’s solution gave the game away. She didn’t mention reducing the burden of regulation on business, or cutting the level of tax paid by workers, or loosening the constraints put on growth by government. 

Her answer for how to give everyone a “nice life” perfectly encapsulated the risible economics of the populist Left: raid the pockets of the billionaires. But this appears to be the direction in which Left-wing politics is going in Britain: hard socialist economics and demands for the expropriation of wealth, combined with a dangerous exploitation of sectarian prejudices to win the votes of minority groups. 

It was enough to deliver the worst possible result for Sir Keir Starmer in Gorton, with Labour pushed into third behind the Greens and Reform. Sir Keir’s already fragile control of his party is threatened again. A victory in Gorton would have vindicated his decision to block Andy Burnham, the mayor of Manchester, from standing. A narrow defeat to Reform could have given him an opportunity to rally his party against the Right.

Instead, Labour has been outflanked to its Left by an alliance of progressives and socially conservative Muslims, and many of Sir Keir’s MPs will feel that their biases have been confirmed. 

Plenty were already saying that the answer to Labour’s woes was to abandon the centre-Left and adopt more red-blooded socialist policies. Now they will think they have a stunning electoral defeat to bolster their argument.

The Prime Minister has said he will keep on fighting after the by-election defeat. But such is the reduced state of his authority, he will have little control over which direction he takes that fight, assuming he is even allowed to remain in office much longer.
The consequences for the country look grim. Many have seen the Gorton and Denton by-election itself as a chilling sign of where Britain might be heading. Labour’s response to it could make the situation immeasurably worse. DT.

Chickens coming home to roost?

 Chickens coming home to roost.

The Greens' by-election victory signifies a cultural and political emergency for Britain.

Melanie Phillips Feb 27 ∙ Preview

Britain’s new Green MP, and her election leaflet in Urdu

Britain has woken up to a victory by the Greens in the Gorton and Denton by-election. The Greens’ Hannah Spencer, a 34 year-old plumber, now becomes the Member of Parliament for the constituency which has been Labour since 1931. Labour was pushed into third place with Reform coming second.

There are claims that this election was corrupted by Muslims voting many times as families. Whether or not this charge of mass illegality turns out to be true, it’s clear that Muslims and disenchanted Labour supporters voted for the Greens as the party that unequivocally works for the destruction of Israel, and promises the kind of ludicrous, nihilistic, anti-western, left-wing agenda that accords with the total destruction of patriotism, knowledge and reason among young people.

The Green candidate in Gorton and Denton was photographed wearing a keffiyeh, and fronted a video produced entirely in Urdu which included shots of Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and India’s prime minister Narendra Modi meeting Labour politicians —smearing all of them as villains to chill the blood in the cartoon nightmare of the Greens’ political pitch.

Britain is now facing a red/black/green alliance — the left, the Muslims and the revolutionary, west-hating, Zionophobic Greens — versus Reform and the Conservatives, who are trying to destroy each other and thus risk wiping out in the process the defence of Britain and the west. It’s what might reasonably be thought a cultural and political emergency — otherwise known as chickens coming home to roost with a bang.

I have warned about this anti-west alliance for years. In my 2010 book The World Turned Upside Down: The Global Battle over God, Truth and Power, I devoted an entire chapter to “The Red-Black-Green-Islamic Axis”. “Black” in this case is the fascists, who have always been joined at the hip to the left and who today have become indistinguishable from them in a number of respects. These neo-fascists have emerged in America on the Tucker Carlson wing of the MAGA movement.

Because this chapter sheds considerable light on what has now emerged in Britain, and explains that the apparently baffling alliance between Islamists and “progressive” Greens and leftists is not an attraction of opposites but the expression of their common roots and shared goals, I reproduce an edited extract here.

The Red-Black-Green-Islamic Axis

One reason why people find it so difficult to acknowledge the resurgence of antisemitism in the west is that hatred of Jews is associated with ‘the far right’. Those who are deeply hostile to Israel are often also deeply hostile to the ‘far right’. They believe that this stands for obscurantism, irrationality, prejudice, a backward-looking attitude to a golden age in the past that never was. The left, by contrast in their view, stands for enlightenment and progress, liberalism, reason and modernity.

Thus those left-wingers and liberals who march against Israel and America, promote the green agenda and raise the standard of atheistic reason against religious superstition think of themselves as left-wing, progressive and enlightened. Their Manichean approach means they define themselves in large measure by what they are not.

So the left portrays itself historically as heroic fighters against fascism. Except it’s not as simple as that. Indeed, this division is itself ignorant, ahistorical and unsustainable. ...

Birdie of The Day.

 

The Gospel of God.

 

Suffering Faith?

Suffering faith requires a special kind of endurance.

 (Photo: Unsplash/Joshua Fuller)

Our faith in Jesus under trial requires a special kind of endurance. Are you weary of the suffering your faith keeps bringing into your life? Have you been a follower of Jesus Christ long enough that you are tired of suffering in partnership with Jesus’ calling on your life?

I have served as the Senior Pastor of the same Southern Baptist Church, Vanguard Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado, for the past twenty-nine years. I wrote a book called “The Good Pastor” that was published by Vide Press in 2022. The point of the book? “Don’t quit, don’t fornicate, you will be the only one left and you will be great.”

Since the publication of that book, the pastorate has been downright unbearable at times. So much so, that I experienced my most painful pastoral year of the twenty-nine just last year, in 2025. The only thing I wanted to do was quit. I begged God in May of 2025 to let me quit and His simple response to my soul was, “NO!”

I had a choice: obey or quit. God told me not to quit. I told God, “Let me quit!”

Honestly, had I not written "The Good Pastor" three years prior, I might have quit, even though God told me not to.

I am learning that suffering for my faith and calling for Jesus requires a special kind of endurance - a kind I am convinced I wasn’t born with. A kind that only comes from and through a real relationship with Jesus Christ. 

I can’t count how many times I have been discouraged as a pastor in the past almost three decades of my life and ministry for Jesus. We live through the chaos and consequences of suffering and then we suffer from the suffering. 

It is in these moments that I say to the Lord, “Is it time to let go of the rope? Is it time to give in to the critic of my soul? Is it time to raise the white flag and cave under the pressure without and within?” It is in these moments that life feels truly miserable. The emotions are hot, rapid, and torturous. The chamber of pain is like an inferno that has engulfed my every thought and consumed my every feeling. Paralysis by analysis begins to set in around me, above me, below me, and sadly within me. 

If you have never experienced this sort of cycle in your faith in Jesus, keep living. It is unbearable. The furnace of suffering gets so hot sometimes that the enemy’s lies seem like truth for a time. And it seems the furnace of suffering will consume the faith of my soul.

It is in these moments that I cry out and say to the Lord, “I can’t do this Lord.” But then I realize that is an incomplete prayer. And then I pray, “Lord, I can’t do this without you.”

Then where do we go? We go back to God’s Word and remember what He told the saints of the past, because those truths are still true for us today.

The book of Hebrews may be the most critical book in the Bible to remind us of the faith of the saints of old and to emulate their example in our lives today.

Hebrews 6:13 recalls the promise God made to Abraham when He said, “I will surely bless you and multiply you.”

Then, twenty-five years passed in Abraham’s life and the age of bearing children passed with it too. Sometimes the circumstances of our lives can make God’s promises feel cruel. But Hebrews 6:15 says, “Abraham having patiently endured, obtained the promise.”

After twenty-five years Abraham obtained the promise because of his patient endurance. I am convinced none of us are born with this kind of endurance. It is not human. It is not possible to muster this kind of endurance out of a human body apart from Christ.

What is patient endurance in Christ? Patient endurance is the active, steadfast, and calm perseverance through long-term trials, suffering, or waiting without becoming bitter, angry, or giving up. Rooted in faith, it involves trust in God's timing, active obedience, and maintaining hope despite difficult circumstances. It is often described as "remaining under" a heavy load while staying faithful. 

The writer of Hebrews gives us the recipe for patient endurance. These qualities must be continually mixed together by your everyday life as you examine the circumstances and the cruelty you must endure to be who God has called you to be and do what He has called you to do.

The writer of Hebrews says in Hebrews 10:23, “Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who has promised is faithful.”

Patient endurance is not perfect endurance. Abraham messed up with Hagar. Patient endurance is holding fast to our confession that God will fulfill what He promised in our lives. If He said it, He will do it. Patient endurance is rooted in trust of who God is to us and to His promises to us.

Don’t lose confidence in God’s promises because of your performance. It is not up to you. Patient endurance understands it is up to God. The writer of Hebrews reminds us in Hebrews 11:6, “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” You and I must trust God with the impossible otherwise it is impossible to please God. Hebrews 11:8-9 says, “By faith Abraham obeyed. By faith, he stayed.”

Abraham is not our only example. Moses gave us an example to follow too. The writer of Hebrews in Hebrews 11:26 says, “Moses considered abuse suffered for the Christ to be greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking ahead to the reward.” We must believe the cost now is worth the reward then. This requires faith and trust. No one can convince you of this, but many will try to convince you otherwise, including yourself at times, when the suffering is unbearable.

Where do we go for motivation in these times? The writer of Hebrews in Hebrews 12:3 says, “Consider Jesus who endured such hostility … so that you may not grow weary in your soul or lose heart.” Jesus is our example and our source for patient endurance in suffering. Hebrews 13:13 says, “Let us then go to Jesus and bear the abuse he endured.”

Jesus gets it! Jesus gets us!

In the meantime, what do we do? Hebrews 13:16 says, “Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.”

Patient endurance looks for ways to do good to others and to share what we have just as Christ did. This is why I believe none of us were born with this. It is a learned trait. It is a learned trait to be selfless in the face of cruelty done to us because of who God made us to be and what He called us to do.

I wish I could tell you that people won’t be cruel to you from time to time, but I would be lying to you if I did. They were cruel to Jesus, and they will at times be cruel to you. But remember this in Hebrews 11:29, “By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as if it were dry land, but when the Egyptians attempted to do so they were drowned.” 

Keep moving forward by faith through patient endurance and one day you will look back to see that you made it through the Red Sea and those chasing you, abusing you, falsely accusing you, were cut off. That’s up to God. Keep pressing on with patient endurance by doing good and sharing what you have with others. 

And you can rest assured Hebrews 11:16 will become God’s mantra of you, “God is not ashamed to be called their God.”

The reward will be worth it. He promises! Keep patiently enduring! CT.

Afghanistan.

Please Pray Afghanistan: A Release International partner for Afghanistan seeks to encourage healthy, accessible Christian fellowships in that country through a radio ministry project. Pray for the two-and-a-half hours of Christian radio programmes being broadcast into Afghanistan every day. Pray that many listeners will be touched and will contact our partners with questions about the Bible, Jesus and the gospel. Pray for the recording of a new series of programmes that will focus on the needs of women in Afghanistan and will provide a biblical response to those needs. Pray for the staff of our partner organisation. Give thanks to God for their commitment, and pray for his equipping of them as they seek to reach people in Afghanistan with the good news of Jesus Christ. Afghanistan To find out more about the challenges of being a Christian in Afghanistan, click the button below. LEARN MORE

Text: Revelation 1:10.

 Revelation 1:10

Search instead for Text: Revelation 1:10

Revelation 1:10 states"

I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet" (NIV/ESV). On the island of Patmos, John experiences a spiritual ecstasy on Sunday, hearing a voice instructing him to record his visions. 

The Number Of Possible Seats For Greens Will Only Be 20 As An Absolute Maximum. Reform Still Holds The Driving Seat.

 

Yesterday's Cheating Election Probably Did Not Change The Result - But There Are A Number of Seats In Which It Would Have.

Earlier, election observers said they witnessed "concerningly high" levels of "family voting" at polling stations - a claim disputed by the council.

Growth.

Thousands of Christians return to churches in north-east Nigeria despite years of terror.

Annual Stations of the Cross with Bishop Oliver Doeme at the Holy Mountain of the Cross pilgrimage Centre, Whuabazhi, Maiduguri Diocese. (Photo: Aid to the Church in Need)

Catholic churches in north-east Nigeria are witnessing a surge in worshippers, with bishops reporting that the faithful are returning “in their thousands, not hundreds” despite more than a decade of brutal violence.

Bishop Oliver Doeme and Bishop John Bakeni of Maiduguri Diocese in Borno State told Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) that congregations have grown beyond pre-insurgency levels, even after years of displacement, killings and destruction.

Maiduguri was the birthplace of Boko Haram, whose campaign of terror since 2009 has left an estimated 20,000 people dead and forced more than two million from their homes.

According to Bishop Doeme, during the height of the violence, over 90,000 Catholics were forced to flee the diocese and over a thousand were killed. In addition, over 210 churches were destroyed.

Yet today, the bishops say, the picture is markedly different.

“The faith of our people is unshakeable,” Bishop Doeme told ACN. “The number of Catholics we have in our diocese now is more than the number of Catholics we had before the Boko Haram crisis.”

He pointed to a rise in weddings, First Holy Communions and baptisms - with child baptisms alone reaching 1,000 - as evidence of renewed spiritual life.

One focal point of this revival is the Whuabazhi Pilgrimage Centre, established with ACN’s support, which is drawing record crowds.

The bishops said it was a place where “people come back healed” and that it is a centre that offers hope and direction, particularly for young people.

During the worst years of the insurgency, especially between 2009 and 2014, Christian communities in the region suffered organised attacks that emptied entire villages. A hundred out of the 279 people abducted, including children, have still not returned.

Some young men were forcibly recruited by extremists and remain missing, according to Biship Doeme’s account to ACN.

Even so, clergy continued to travel to rural communities to celebrate the sacraments, often at considerable personal risk.

Bishop Doeme said persecution had, paradoxically, strengthened the Church.

“The moment the church faces persecution, the people become more alive, their faith becomes more active” he told ACN. “Despite gunshots … bomb attacks … series of attacks … you will find them going to Masses for their sacraments.”

While security in Maiduguri has “improved” compared to some other regions, Bishop Bakeni warned that much of Nigeria remains deeply unstable.

“There is a cloud of fear, anxiety and insecurity hovering over our country,” he said. “Every day Nigerians are being killed, or abducted or kidnapped. This has become a reality.”

Elsewhere in the country, Catholic leaders have renewed calls for stronger government action to curb violence.

In Taraba State, recent attacks blamed on militant Fulani herdsmen left 10 villagers dead and entire communities devastated.

Clergy in Wukari Diocese report that over 100 people have been killed in recent months, with more than 200 churches and communities razed and tens of thousands displaced.

Pope Leo XIV has also voiced sorrow over the continued bloodshed and urged prayers for peace.

Against this backdrop, the resurgence of church life in Maiduguri has struck local leaders as remarkable.

“Ordinarily, when people are confronted with violence, the church should be less populated,” Bishop Bakeni said. “But what we are seeing is the opposite.”

He added: “As bad as the persecution is, this is the testimonies we have. It’s the testimonies of faith and the faith which is tested.

Birdie.

 

Fight The Good Fight.

 

Judging and Cleansing.

 It's undeniable: God is judging and cleansing His Church amid scandals.

It's undeniable: God is judging and cleansing His Church amid scandals An undeniably significant cleansing and correction is presently happening in the Body of Christ

https://www.christianpost.com/voices/its-undeniable-god-is-judging-and-cleansing-his-church.html

CP.