Displaying items by tag: Praise

The partial federal government shutdown is in its fourth week. When a Baptist pastor in Memphis, Donald Johnson, realised that people in his congregation would be affected by what the president was doing, he stepped in to help them weather an uncertain period of missed paychecks. Having found eight people on the church's database who were federal workers, he collected an offering and had the church's financial board match what was collected. He was able to raise $8,000, enough for $1,000 each.

Stoke City F C’s new manager, Nathan Jones, has been praised by the Bishop of Stafford: ‘It's so impressive that Nathan is able to talk openly and honestly about his faith, and it's particularly great that he has found strength from this during times of adversity’. Jones, who regularly attends church and has Christian-themed tattoos, has described how God keeps him ‘grounded’ and helps him persevere against temptation: ‘Through hard times I've always had the stability of the Lord in my life.’ Billy Vunipola, regarded as one of England's best rugby players, has spoken about how his faith is helping him get back to fitness after suffering three broken arms in just over a year. For his interview with the Daily Telegraph, see

Recent weeks have seen answered prayer and God’s protection over His people. Pakistan’s police foiled an attack on Christmas worship in Karachi. A police officer tragically lost his life when the bomb he was defusing detonated outside a Cairo church, but his brave intervention thwarted Islamist plans to take many more lives a few days before Orthodox Christians’ Christmas Day. Iraq’s government made a landmark announcement declaring Christmas Day a national holiday for all Iraqis, wishing its Christian citizens a ‘happy Christmas’. Meanwhile, an anti-Christian tirade by the Grand Mufti fell flat when the country’s Sunni authority condemned it as irrational and offensive, pointing out that Christians don’t try to prevent Muslim celebrations. In Egypt, the Ministry of Justice produced a remarkable animated public information video cautioning Muslims not to ‘fall prey to the extremists’, and encouraged them to extend greetings to their Christian neighbours during the Christmas holidays.

In late December 2015 God gave the vision of a prayer relay on New Year's Day to an Australian intercessor. She saw people holding Olympic relay flames at seven high points around the Illawarra. The vision then zoomed out and she saw flames spread across Australia, and then around the world. She knew this was a prayer relay, and shared the vision with Warwick Marsh from National Day of Prayer (Australia). With only twelve days until 1 January 2016 they shared the vision; many believers joined them to pray across Australia and around the world. On New Year's Day 2017, believers prayed in over 23 nations. 2018’s relay continued to grow with believers praying in at least 50 nations, including 172 locations in Australia. On 1 January 2019 the prayer declaration across Australia and the nations was ‘Wherever you are at sunrise on New Year’s Day, pray for souls to be saved’. See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAq7YT6eXoE

Joel Edwards received a CBE for tackling poverty and injustice. Mervyn Thomas, founder and chief executive of CSW, was made a CMG, for working for religious freedom and advocacy on behalf of persecuted Christians globally. Stephen Addison received an OBE for services to young people in London; he founded Box Up Crime after leaving gang life behind. Gary Streeter, an MP since 1997, is the chairman of Christians in Parliament, mentors younger MPs, and is about to be knighted. Rev Paula Vennells received a CBE for services to the Post Office and charity. Margaret Atkinson received the MBE for services to the church and community in Huddersfield, and Rev Janet Lesley Jackson received an OBE for services to bereaved families.

In Toronto’s main square, a giant Christmas tree illuminated by over 300,000 lights shines from dusk until 11 pm. In the Philippine city of San Fernando, on the Saturday before Christmas, huge elaborate lanterns made from a variety of materials create a kaleidoscope of patterns in the sky. In Colombia, people place candles and paper lanterns in windows, and gardens, lighting up entire towns and cities with elaborate displays in honour of Mary and the Immaculate Conception. Neighbourhoods compete for who can create the most impressive arrangement. Each person entering Ethiopian churches on Christmas Day is given a candle. Dressed in white, hey walk around the church three times in a solemn procession, holding the flickering candles. See

The trailer for a Franklin Entertainment faith-based film Breakthrough broke records with 40 million views in one week. It is a real-life story of an adopted son falling through ice into the freezing waters of a Missouri lake. He lay without any signs of life for over an hour. His mother began to pray fervently for a miracle. Miraculously, his heart started beating again, astounding everyone present and defying every scientific prediction. Only days after the accident, he left the hospital, fully healed. The author, who is also CEO of Franklin Entertainment, said, ‘It's a testament to God's power, and proof that people are hungry for hope and inspiration’.

Rabbi Jason Sobel recently spoke on the significance of baby Jesus being placed in swaddling clothes after his birth, as announced by the angel to the shepherds. He believes these shepherds weren’t ordinary shepherds. He believes the lambs they were raising needed to be without blemish, because they would be offered as sacrifices in the temple. So these ‘Levitical shepherds’ would wrap the lambs in swaddling clothes to protect them. In that case, swaddling would have been an important connection point for the shepherds. ‘What did they see? A baby born in the same place that the Passover lambs were born, swaddled like a Passover lamb, pointing to the fact that Messiah was the Lamb of God who would take over the sins of the world.’

Just days after the Archbishop of Canterbury called on the Government to do more to aid Christian communities in regions facing ‘imminent extinction’ (see), Prince Charles has praised their ‘extraordinary grace and capacity for forgiveness’. Speaking at a special Advent service for persecuted Christians at Westminster Abbey, he said he had been ‘deeply humbled’ by meeting Christians from the Middle East ‘who, with such inspiring faith and courage, are battling oppression and persecution’. He said, ‘Extremism and division are by no means inevitable. In this season of Advent, as we celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, who himself knew exile, injustice and suffering, I can only assure you of our steadfast support and most heartfelt prayers as you take forward your works of restoration, justice and healing, so that God's will might be done on earth as it is in heaven.’

US artist Chance the Rapper has revealed he is taking a ‘sabbatical’ to ‘learn the word of God’. He said he made the decision in order to set a good example to his newborn nephew. In an Instagram post liked by over 1.3 million people, the I'm the One hit maker said, ‘I'm on a plane headed out of the country on my first sabbatical. I'm going away to learn the Word of God, which I am admittedly very unfamiliar with. I've been brought up by my family to know Christ, but I haven't taken it upon myself to really just take a couple of days and read my Bible. We all quote scripture and tell each other what God likes and doesn't like, but how much time do we spend as followers of Jesus to really just read and KNOW his Word?’ Earlier this year he won three Grammy awards, and when accepting one of them he said, ‘Glory be to God. I claim this victory in the name of the Lord.’