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An online giving charity set up by the Archbishop of York in 2010 has responded to its 2,000th request for help. Acts435.org.uk connects those in need with those who can help, while protecting donor anonymity and applicant confidentiality. Donors around the country are giving on average £7,000 a month through the platform, more than triple the level of donations this time last year. Since its launch, Acts435 has provided over £175,000 in donations to people needing help with things like school uniforms, furniture, food and debt relief orders. The charity says many of the applicants are people struggling to cope after a relationship breakdown, redundancy or a change to their benefits. ‘As the country goes through tough economic times, many people are struggling to cope with unexpected expenses and even everyday ones. Acts 435 is bringing real hope for these situations.’
Praise: God for the success of Acts435.
More: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/christian.giving.charity.responds.to.2000th.request.for.help/32831.htm
The orphanage for children infected by HIV/AIDS operated by the Isaev family under the auspices of the Pilgrim Charity Fund in Mariupol (South-Eastern Ukraine) was nominated for ‘Pride of the Country,’ one of the most prestigious Ukrainian prizes, reports Christian Telegraph in reference to Pilgrim Charity Fund press centre. The national ‘Pride of the Country’ prize is presented to common people for their uncommon deeds. It was established by the Victor Pinchuk Foundation. In 2007 Svetlana and Evgeniy Isaev adopted their first child. Today they have 11 children, 7 of whom are HIV/AIDS positive. They called the family orphanage ‘Home of Dreams.’ In 2009 Svetlana Isaeva was awarded The Order of Princess Olga of Third Class. In 2011 the family won the nomination ‘Big Heart’ in the ‘Crystal Heart’ national programme.
Praise: God for the Isaev family and the Pilgrim Charity Fund. (1Jn.5:10)
More: http://www.christiantelegraph.com/issue15801.html
The Lebanese Center for Human Rights recently granted Juliana Sfeir, on behalf of SAT-7, the Human Rights Journalism Award. According to a news release from SAT-7, Sfeir is a special projects manager at SAT-7 Lebanon and an executive producer of social impact programmes for SAT-7. The Lebanese Center for Human Rights granted the award to five recipients ‘for their dedication to promoting Human Rights through the media.’ SAT-7 said it has produced programming advocating for human rights since 2003. The Human Rights Journalism Award specifically recognizes the efforts of two campaigns - the inclusion of people with disabilities and advocating for the rights of female heads of households. SAT-7 said it is honoured to be recognized for its work, alongside several other organizations such as L'Orient le Jour, The Daily Star and IRIN, and blogger Salim al Lawzi.
Praise: God for the work of SAT-7 and its Human Rights programming. (Pr.31:9)
Prominent Chinese human rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng was confirmed alive on Sunday after more than a year without reliable information on his whereabouts. ‘I am tremendously relieved that my husband is alive,’ said Gao’s wife, Geng He, in a statement issued by Freedom Now, a group that represents prisoners of conscience. ‘My children and I have not seen their father since January 2009,’ she said. ‘We urge the Chinese government to allow Zhisheng to leave the country and be reunited with us in the United States.’ Gao, who is one of China’s most famous lawyers and human rights activists, was last seen in February 2009 when a dozen police officers reportedly seized him in public. Gao elicited the ire of the Chinese government by defending groups oppressed by authorities, such as underground churches, practitioners of the spiritual movement Falun Gong, and farmers evicted from their land. Gao himself is a Christian who worships in a house church. (See Prayer Alert 1309, 1509)
Praise: God for the news that Gao is alive and pray now for his release. (Is.42:6-8)
More: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/missing.chinese.lawyer.confirmed.alive/25591.htm
Three decades ago, China's Cultural Revolution saw some of the most dramatic restrictions on the practice of religion ever seen. But today's communist rulers have radically altered their views about religion and have granted substantial freedom to Christians prepared to worship within state-sanctioned churches. Within these boundaries, Christianity is growing in China as never before - and doing so supported by millions of dollars of government funding. On the outskirts of Nanjing, a building site illustrates the scale of the communist state's commitment to supporting the development of Christianity. Local officials say that the building under construction will become China's largest state-sanctioned church - with space for 5,000 worshippers. It represents just one example of the strategy to encourage the development of religion in China. Praise: God for this growth of His Church in China but also remember the huge numbers of Christians meeting in house churches still faceing persecution. (Zec.8:12)
Remarkable news from China is that Alpha’s Marriage Course has been approved for distribution and use throughout the country. The news came as Marriage Course founders Nicky and Sila Lee were invited to China to run a two-day marriage conference in Beijing. Nearly half the delegates were government employees involved in selecting and training foster parents for projects across China. The vision to use The Marriage Course to train foster parents has created an extraordinary opportunity for The Marriage Course and Marriage Preparation Course to be used in China. National and local governments are interested in using the courses to strengthen marriage and family life across the country. There are currently over 1.8 million divorces each year in China.
Praise: God for this opportunity and pray that it will lead to a wider acceptance of Christian marriage principles. (Ps.48:10)
More: http://joelnews.org/
An Englishman now living in China has revealed that the company he works for has now brought out 110 Christian books – with the full permission of the government. This surprising fact was revealed by David Wright, General Manager of ZDL Books, during a recent interview at NRB 2011 in Nashville, Tennessee. ‘I work for an organization called ZDL and we are based in Beijing and are focused on bringing Christian content legally to China,’ Wright began. ‘We have worked since 2003 to do that and today we have around 110 legally approved books that are being distributed all over the country. We also have a number of websites that have been built and are distributing content all over the country and we’re running training events which again are all open and legal.’ Praise: God for the spread of His Word. (Rom.10:15)
At first glance, it looks as though it could be any other factory driving the rapid development of the Chinese economy. But this is no ordinary enterprise because here religious faith is as important as profit. In fact, the owner of the Boteli Valve Group in Wenzhou would like to see all his staff convert to Christianity. And such a factory is not a one-off: it is part of a growing number of businesses run by Christian entrepreneurs whose success is now being studied by the Chinese government. Every Monday morning, the senior managers gather together and pray about the business. Once a week, members of staff are encouraged to attend an on-site Christian fellowship meeting, where they read the Bible and pray for each other. Praise: God for this development and pray that this example would lead to many more. (Mt.25:20)
‘The World Prayer Assembly in Indonesia in May was the most significant international prayer gathering I have ever been part of,’ says Brian Mills of the International Prayer Council, a collaborative network of prayer movements around the world. As one of his personal highlights he mentions the Prayer Tower in Sentul City, where Indonesian believers pray 24-7 throughout the year. ‘Every time I looked in there, hundreds were praying,’ says Mills. ‘And this is only one of the many hundreds of prayer towers throughout Indonesia.’ This was also inspiring the 600 strong Chinese delegation. ‘The Chinese were deeply touched by God's Spirit,’ reports Mills. ‘China is establishing 6,000 houses of prayer, which they call Walls of Prayer. One ministry alone has seen a 726% increase in the number of people coming to Christ in the past seven years compared to the previous seven years, and this has happened ever since they started to emphasize prayer.’ Source: IPC Connect newsletter.
Praise: God for the growth of His church in China. (1Ki.8:29)
More: www.wpa2012.org
As I’m sure most of the world knows, 33 Chilean miners have been rescued having been trapped underground for more than two months, waiting to be rescued. God has heard our prayers. Lots of prayers from lots of people! Baptist Press News reports that when the mine collapsed, three of the miners - including José Henríquez who has been leading a Bible study underground - were Christians. Since then, two more have made professions of faith. The report notes that when Pastor Marcelo Leiva arrived at Camp Hope he didn't know anyone, but Henríquez's family quickly connected him with other families. ‘That connection allowed a lot of other people to hear the Word,’ Leiva says, ‘and to know that in the midst of this catastrophe, God is in control, and it is the Lord who has kept their family members alive.’ The wife of one of the miners who became a Christian met with Leiva over the past two weeks has also accepted Christ. Praise: God for the success of this rescue mission and for the new believers and pray that the experience will bring many more to accept the Lord as saviour. (Ps.22:5) More: http://www.openheaven.com/forums/forum_posts.asp?TID=34420&PN=1&TPN=1