Toward the end of his life, Moses makes a fascinating declaration to the Jewish people that would seem so intuitive one has to ask why it’s even mentioned. In Deuteronomy 30:19-20 he charges, “I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants, by loving the LORD your God, by obeying His voice, and by holding fast to Him; for this is your life and the length of your days, that you may live in the land which the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them.”

On a harsh night in Bethlehem, two brave souls made their way through a crowded city. They were finally at the end of a rugged (and involuntary) 80 mile road trip from Nazareth. A baby was on the way, and the expectant mother needed a safe, clean place for the night. Unfortunately, Joseph and Mary were shut out. They were met with the hard reality of “no room in the Inn.”

Eastern North Carolina Administrative Bishop O. Wayne Brewer, along with nine ministers from the region, traveled to Guayaquil, Ecuador in November to assist in the planting of a new church. The Church of God leadership in Guayaquil has set an ambitious goal of planting forty new churches in their city by 2020 and welcomed the assistance from the North Carolina ministers.

Note: Larry Thompson is the Epiphany Prize-winning executive producer of Amish Grace. Along with producing, Thompson is a personal manager and has managed more than 200 artists, many of which are Hollywood A-listers. In the following story, Thompson recounts his personal journey, and how God changed his life through one movie.

The Supreme Court—the last stop for condemned prisoners such as Scott Panetti, a Texan who is mentally ill—appears increasingly wary of the death penalty.

Dec. 4, 2014 — International best-selling author, government consultant, pastor and lecturer Myles Munroe and his wife, Ruth, died Sunday, November 9, 2014 in a plane crash in the Bahamas. Munroe was on his way to chair the 2014 Global Leadership Forum, an annual three-day event that brings together experienced and emerging leaders from many fields.

Church of God General Overseer Mark Williams has declared January 4, 2015 as “Declaration of Faith Sunday.”

The Center — A Place of HOPE, the #1 Depression Center in the U.S., has announced the launch of their new depression-focused website www.aplaceofhopefordepression.com. The new website aims to provide support and resources for the over 350 million sufferers of depression worldwide.

At noon on Tuesday, December 2, 2014, the Springfield Nativity Scene Committee (SNSC) unveiled its annual display depicting the newborn Christ Child, lying in a manger inside a handcrafted wooden stable. For the seventh year in a row, the nativity scene will stand in the center of the Illinois State Capitol Rotunda, next to the Governor’s “Holiday Tree.” The Capitol building is located at South 2nd Street & East Capitol Avenue in Springfield, IL.