Displaying items by tag: Praise

Pope Francis is making a monumental trip to Iraq in order to bring healing to the war-torn society. As the very first pope to set foot on Iraq's soil, he plans to meet with key Christian and Muslim leaders to address issues faced by both groups. This event is being heralded by the Iraqi government as a ‘historic event, symbolising a message of peace to Iraq and the whole region.’ Peace indeed is needed for the small remnant of Christians left in Iraq. Christian communities were scattered by the Daesh onslaught in 2014, further shrinking the country’s already dwindling Christian population. Their struggle to endure will get a boost from the historic visit in March, his first foreign trip since the coronavirus pandemic and a sign that ‘You’re not alone, there’s someone who is thinking of you, who is with you’.

Acknowledging a need to restrain the abuse of ‘blasphemy’ laws and protect victims of false accusation, forced marriages to Muslims and forced conversions, the government has appointed a special assistant to the prime minister on religious harmony and Middle East. It is hoped this appointment will end the social structure where Christians are inferior to Muslims, confined to low-paid menial jobs such as street sweeping and latrine cleaning. A significant government statement affirmed that minorities living in Pakistan are ‘not second-class citizens’, and guarantees they will be protected under the rights and privileges enshrined in Pakistan’s constitution. Also, there is now a grievance helpline set up to report false accusations of ‘blasphemy’.

When Iranian authorities arrested and executed his 18-year-old brother for a minor political crime. Hormoz wanted revenge. But God spoke to his heart: ‘Those people who killed your brother are not your enemies. They are victims in the hands of your enemies. When you see Muslims killing others they are victims.’ Today house churches in Iran celebrate with satellite broadcasts of Hormoz. He is now an evangelist in the tsunami of salvation washing over Iran. While Iran’s regional ambitions and nuclear programme dominate the news, widespread underground unseen revival is occurring.

As the cold lockdown season comes to an end, the church will have opportunities to attend online conferences to connect with God and each other as well as hear from encouraging speakers. New Wine has created a digital journal to accompany its programme, and from 1 March is releasing a thought for the day from different New Wine leaders, to help delegates to come together prepared, hungry, and ready to encourage each other. See Meanwhile the usual huge Spring Harvest events at Minehead and Skegness have been cancelled to make way for a safe socially distanced and online event that delivers what it should in a new way. These are just two of a new season of Easter celebrations that are about to break out across the nation.

2020 was a year that disrupted workers in Asia Harvest, a non-denominational Christian ministry working in various countries. Covid made them suddenly twice as busy as usual. The lockdowns saw mission workers helping people in their churches and communities to survive. A great harvest of new believers was reaped in many locations. In some places, believers were excluded from food distribution by callous officials and villagers. When Asia Harvest provided help, the Christians not only welcomed the crucial aid but gave some to their persecutors. This attracted many to the truth of the Gospel and the love of Jesus. Asia Harvest never asks for anything except prayer, as they believe the Holy Spirit leads people to give financially if he wants them to give. Remarkably, in a year of global economic stress, the Lord provided more support than any year in its history.

IJM Thailand was informed by the Myanmar embassy of a potential human trafficking and forced labour case. 18 Myanmar workers needed rescuing from a confectionery factory in Bangkok. They were illegally brought in and wanted to leave, but could not. IJM personnel, embassy staff, and other agencies went to a residential neighborhood and attempted to call out to the workers locked in the upper floors of a building behind locked gates. Eventually, one worker began to climb out over the gate and a ladder was brought to help him escape. 17 other migrant workers followed him to freedom. They will undergo Covid testing and continue to receive IJM legal and aftercare support in a safe location. Pray for the successful prosecution of their captors and traffickers.

One For Israel (OFI), the world’s only Hebrew Bible college, is challenging the rabbis, in a way they cannot limit,v by posting a series of videos backing Yeshua’s messianic claims on the internet. OFI’s president said, ‘We have seen how ready many hearts are to receive Him, once they hear in a relevant and understandable way. This awakening has largely been brought about by Covid. People forced to stay home are bored and are confronted with a dangerous disease that makes them think about eternity. Revival has started among the Jews in Israel. This is only the tip of the iceberg.’ OFI are also hosting discipleship videos for those still too shy to join a local congregation as Messianic Jews.

Now is an exciting time for Bible translation because God has provided the tools to accelerate the translation process and share His Word to the ends of the earth. Wycliffe Associates’ development of robust Bible translation technology, paired with streamlined methodology for Bible translation workshops, means that more people than ever before are able to have God’s Word at their fingertips. Millions live in communities where their language is unwritten. Also, many in the developing world cannot read. They often experience extreme isolation and marginalisation because of illiteracy and their oral language traditions. Bible translation recording kits make it possible for national Bible translators to produce audio recordings of the Scriptures, so their people can hear and come to know the truth of God’s transforming Word.

Cocaine worth £76 million was discovered in a shipment of bananas by officers during a routine inspection at Southampton. The class A drugs, weighing almost a ton, were placed in the cargo in Colombia and bound for Belgium. Home secretary Priti Patel said, ‘This was drug-smuggling on an industrial scale’. She is delighted that Border Force prevented such dangerous goods from reaching our streets to devastate communities, line the pockets of criminals, and ruin young lives across the country. On the same day as the cocaine discovery a gangster hit squad was jailed for dousing a rival drug dealer in petrol, setting him on fire, and leaving him to burn to death in his own flat. See

Evangelical Christians and Orthodox Jews in Washington have united to offer their sacred spaces for vaccine distribution to assist government and private companies to combat the pandemic. Walter Kim, of the National Association of Evangelicals, and Rabbi Moshe Hauer, of the Orthodox Union, stated, ‘Anyone in need of vaccination, whether or not they are members of our congregations or of our neighborhoods, is welcome.’ They offered to help with coordinating appointments and providing the medically trained volunteers to administer the shots, as well as spreading awareness to our communities about the importance of vaccination. Hauer said that everything about his faith compels him to contribute to the historic vaccination effort. His tradition teaches that not only is life the greatest gift from God, but it is an obligation to care for the well-being of others.