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The YWCA England and Wales, one of the country’s best-known charities, set up in 1855 to help young women going to London for the first time, has renamed itself as ‘Platform 51’ claiming that its original name ‘no longer stands for who we are or what we do’. YWCA managers say that the name was chosen to reflect the fact that 51 per cent of people are female and that they can use the charity as a platform ‘to have their say’ and ‘to move to the next stage of their lives’. YWCA’s chairman is a homosexual ‘rights’ activist and former equality quango manager. Officials at the World YWCA headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, told the media that none of the 124 branches in other countries will follow Platform 51's move. ‘We see our name as an opportunity for promoting Christian values and principles,’ a World YWCA official said.
Pray: that despite its name change the organisation’s Christian heritage will shine through its work. (Ro.3:28)
More: http://www.christianconcern.com/our-concerns/social/ywca-removes-link-to-christian-roots
A diet of 'Bible stories and rules to follow' is not preparing youngsters to deal adequately with the dilemmas of the real world and that's why many are leaving the Church. Churches not being outward-looking communities and a general lack of care once they had left the youth group were also cited as reasons for the departures. Instead churches should be looking at being inclusive communities for all, ensuring that all are cared for uniquely and where young people are given space to grow and question without fear of failure. These were some of the key findings of the Baptist Union of Great Britain's Younger Leaders' Forum, which met at King's Park Conference Centre, Northampton last weekend. 'Many people I spoke to said Church had not prepared them for the real world,' said Mr Eddison, YLF member from Yorkshire. 'They needed help in coming to moral choices, rather than being told what the answer is.’ Pray: for the good practice by some churches in meeting the needs of young people would extend nationwide. (Ps.144:12)
Young people across the UK and Ireland will be standing in solidarity with the persecuted church this November. They will unite in a 'blackout' for 48 hours to raise thousands of pounds for young Christians suffering because of their faith. From social media, to mobiles, to TV, gaming, eating or speaking, the challenge is to stay 'silent' in a symbolic gesture of the censorship and isolation experienced by many Christians on account of their faith. The creative fasting is being organised by Open Doors and the idea is to ‘make a big noise by keeping quiet’. Open Doors hopes the event will be just as well supported as last year's which raised £30,000 for child victims of persecution. Krish Kandiah, of the Evangelical Alliance and a Blackout supporter said: ‘Too often out of sight is out of mind for the persecuted church. This is an opportunity to give time to this important challenge.'
Pray: for a huge response to this challenge and for those who will be taking part. (Jas.1:2-4)
More: http://www.christiantoday.co.uk/article/youth.blackout.for.persecuted.church/30673.htm
Religion is largely irrelevant to most young people who rely instead on a ‘secular trinity’ of themselves, their family and their friends to give meaning to their lives, a new book claims. The study published by the Church of England concludes that people born after 1982 - known as ‘Generation Y’ - have only a ‘faded cultural memory’ of Christianity. For many young people, religious observance extends no further than praying in their bedrooms during moments of crisis, on a ‘need to believe basis’. Fewer than one in five young people believe in a God ‘who created the world and hears my prayers’, and teenagers were more likely to believe in the ‘nicer’ parts of religious doctrine than those about the devil and punishment. ‘It is undoubtedly the case that the Christian memory is very faint and in many respects Generation Y is a largely unstoried and memoryless generation,’ the study said. Pray: for outreach to young people to give them the true Gospel message. (Ro.1:17)
Nick Hurd, the Minister for Civil Society, believes young people are not getting jobs because they lack the confidence, self control and ‘grit’ needed in the workplace. His comments come as the number of 16-24-year-olds not working has risen to more than one million also revealing, almost half have never worked at all. Mr Hurd, son of former Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd, said a number of young people are out of work because schools are concentrating solely on education and ignoring the social skills employers look for. He said something was going wrong at schools that meant pupils were not being stretched and challenged to give them self confidence at a ‘critical time in their lives’ to prepare them for work. Latest figures show the number of young people not in education, employment or training (Neets) has risen to 1.09 million – with more than 600,000 having never had a job.
Pray: for young people who are without work that ways will be found to encourage them. (Rom.12:8)
The Message Trust prayer coordinator James Aladiran says ‘We have a heart to see God release a Great Awakening to the UK. We've got our next prayer gathering coming up on the 1st of May called Prayer Storm. The vision is to mobilise the youth of the Nation to a lifestyle of Intercession. With the Election coming up we believe this is a key moment for the church to rise in Intercession for the Nation. Have a look at this 1 minute video: youtube In Prayer Storm, explains James, ‘We believe God wants us to be a people who pray not just because we should, but because it has become a part of our lifestyle.’ Prayer Storm, taking place at Audacious City Church, Manchester will focus on the needs of our country at a time of massive political change and will ask for God’s blessing on the next Government.
Pray: that God would listen to the cries of His young people. (1Ki.8:52)
More than a third of young people in the UK aged 16 to 24 do not feel part of their local community, research by the Prince's Trust suggests. The study of more than 2,000 youngsters found one in 10 felt like an outcast. It said more than half ‘rarely’ or ‘never’ spoke to people over the age of 40 in their local community. And those who were not in education, employment or training were significantly more likely to feel isolated, the Trust said. Almost a third (30%) did not think there was a future for them in their local area. Almost a quarter (23%) felt ignored by older people. Martina Milburn, chief executive of the Prince's Trust, said: ‘It is a tragedy that so many young people feel separated from the people around them. ‘Being part of a community and interacting with a mix of people is a crucial part of a young person's development.’ Pray: for our young people and the opportunity for the church communities to engage with them. (Ps.148:12-13)
Many children aged nine to 11 are indulging in very risky behaviour online, suggests a survey. Many are sharing personal information and playing games rated for much older children, fhe survey drawn up by the ISC2 IT security group found in addition, 18% of the 1,162 children queried said they had arranged offline meetings with friends made via the web. Meanwhile, a second survey suggests 55% of young people in England accept cyber-bullying as part of everyday life. Security experts have urged parents to help their offspring stay safe by being more involved with what they do online. ‘Many primary school children know far more about the internet than their parents do,’ said Tim Wilson, an information security worker who carried out the survey for the ISC2 organisation which helps schools educate children about web safety. In total, 15 schools in south-east London, Kent and Guernsey took part in the survey.
Pray: for our young people that they will be protected against the evil elements that pervade the internet. (Am.5:14)
There's hardly a young person out there without a mobile phone and the HOPE movement is tapping into their technological dexterity with a new campaign encouraging young people to text about their faith. Textify was recently launched by Hope Revolution, the youth arm of HOPE, at the Redeemed Christian Church of God's Festival of Life in Manchester. As part of the campaign, hundreds of young people will use their mobile phones and social networks to begin conversations about Jesus. The campaign takes 1 Peter 3:15 as its inspiration, encouraging young people to use Textify as a way to ‘always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have’. Textify challenges young Christians to spend a week praying for three friends and then text them each a question or 'God-thought' as a conversation starter.
Pray: that the message of the Gospel would be spread in every way possible. (Ac.15:31)
More: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/young.christians.texting.their.faith/28432.htm
Christian Concern's fourth Wilberforce Academy brought together students and young graduates at Trinity College, Oxford last week. The academy is held annually by the advocacy group to equip the next generation of Christian leaders in public life. The former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey opened the three-day gathering with a call to "maintain a public witness and stand just as much as Wilberforce was called upon to do in his day". "You are like shock troops who are called to lead in the battle… You are here to take the fight wherever it leads," he said. Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali expanded on the themes of his new book, Triple Jeopardy for the West, in which he warns of the challenges posed by aggressive secularism, radical Islamism and multiculturalism. Roger Trigg, Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at the University of Warwick, highlighted the importance of religious freedom as a cornerstone for other vital freedoms.
Pray: for tall those who attended this event that they will respond to the call to leadership to 'fight the good fight'. (Eph.6:14-15)
More: http://www.christiantoday.co.uk/article/young.christians.inspired.to.speak.of.jesus.in.public.life/32040.htm