Morning Rundown: ‘I Forgive This Man! Hate Will Not Win,’ Grandfather Proclaims After Murder of 7-Year-Old Athena Strand
Here’s a quick summary of the top stories on cn.mycharisma.com:
The body of 7-year-old Athena Strand was found less than 10 miles from her father’s home where she was abducted in Wise County, Texas last Wednesday. The community is mourning her tragic death and her grandfather Mark Strand took to Facebook to share a message that has now gone viral.
In the post, Strand proclaims his forgiveness for 30-year-old Tanner Lynn Horner, the contract FedEx driver who is charged with capital murder and aggravated kidnapping in Athena’s death.
“A friend just asked me the other day if I believe God speaks to people? I happen to know He does, as He is speaking to me now,” the post reads.
Matt Chandler Acknowledges His Sin in Return to The Village Church Pulpit
At the end of Sunday’s service, Texas megachurch Pastor Matt Chandler brought his family on stage, and the church rose to its feet to give them a standing ovation.
Chandler, 48, was overwhelmed especially since it was his first Sunday back in the pulpit since August, when he took a leave of absence following what he had previously termed as an “inappropriate online relationship with a woman.” The relationship was not of a sexual nature nor romantic, but the church eldership was concerned about the frequency and familiarity of the messages between Chandler and the woman on Instagram.
It was decided in late August that Chandler, who has been the lead pastor at The Village Church since 2002, should step aside. He hadn’t preached since that time.
Multiple Faith Leaders Fired Over Secret Social Media Accounts
With the invention of social media and instantaneous, worldwide communication, the floodgates were opened for the gospel to spread to all parts of the world in a way that had never been possible.
It also brought with it snares for Christians to fall into and give in to the temptations of the flesh.
Faith leaders have always fought the battle of taming their tongue. By maturing the discipline of being slow to anger and slow to speak (James 1:19), Christian leadership set the example on not telling their congregations just how they felt about them at times. {eoa}
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