Displaying items by tag: church

Friday, 06 October 2017 09:01

Scotland bans fracking

A decision by the Scottish government to ban fracking has been welcomed by the Church of Scotland. Church leaders said the vast majority of congregations oppose this controversial practice. They have now called for more opportunities to exploit greener energy sources, like wind. Adrian Shaw, the Church of Scotland's climate change officer said the Church is against fracking ‘primarily because of a need to build a low carbon economy’, adding, ‘Continuing dependence on fossil fuels, coal, and gas delays a low-carbon economy.’ He also said that the Church believes in the potential for Scotland to be fully green. ‘Our resources for wind power, hydropower, and tidal power are enormous here.’

Published in British Isles
Friday, 28 July 2017 09:10

Canada: a call to prayer

Pray for Canadian young people to experience a true move of God, calling them to faith. Cry out for the new edition of Youth Alpha which will be launching this autumn; may the Lord use this tool and many like it to encounter a generation. Intercede also for businesses which are dedicated to kingdom purposes to have favour, breakthrough and supernatural activity. May they have divine strategies for wisdom and timing. It is vital that the Church becomes more Christ-centred. Pray for this summer to be a season of restoration, health, relationships, unity and faith. May whatever has been worn down over the past season receive supernatural restoration. It is time to see signs and wonders following and confirming gospel preaching. Cry out for these powerful, supernatural confirmations to be released from heaven. May healings be as common in the Canadian Church as they were in Jesus' day and the Book of Acts.

Published in Worldwide

Americans have become less likely to identify with an official or formal religion in recent decades, and nowhere is this more evident than in the dwindling percentage who identify with a specific Protestant denomination. In 2000, 50% of Americans identified with a specific denomination; by 2016 that figure had dropped to 30%. The result of the poll showed that ‘while many Americans remain religious in a broad sense and may continue to seek spiritual guidance and community experience, a formal structure in which to do so has become less important’.

Published in Worldwide
Friday, 30 June 2017 15:05

Youngest bishop to be new Primus

The Scottish Episcopal Church has elected Rt Rev’d Mark Strange, Bishop of Moray, Ross and Caithness, as Primus. Bishop Mark, 56, the youngest of the bishops, was consecrated in his current diocese in 2007. He said: ‘I am humbled by the confidence shown in me by my colleagues, and I will seek to serve the Church with love and strength. It has been 82 years since a Bishop of Moray became Primus, and I pray that I may be worthy of this trust. I will continue to serve in my beloved Highlands while I also step out into new and exciting journeys of faith in both Scotland and the wider international church.’ He takes up this role as a Primate within the Anglican Communion at a time when the General Synod of his Church has voted to permit same-sex marriage. That decision is expected to be on the agenda of the forthcoming Primates’ meeting in Canterbury, which he will attend. He is married to Jane, a teacher, and they have a son and two daughters.

Published in British Isles
Friday, 09 June 2017 12:33

Going to church good for your health

We live in a stressful world. It is stressful to hear that British authorities are currently investigating 500 active terrorist plotters, 3,000 persons of interest, and 20,000 others with links to militancy. Security officials say the number of radicalised individuals has become unmanageable and the latest terrorist attacks in Great Britain are ‘just the tip of the iceberg, and it’s an enormous iceberg. Meanwhile a transgender man who stopped taking testosterone is now pregnant, and the CofE is to vote on creating a liturgy to celebrate sex changes (see article above). Are your stress levels increasing when you read the news? A new report indicates that those who attend church services may reduce their mortality risk by 55%. The remedy for stress is not found in our fallen culture but in our risen Lord.

Published in British Isles
Friday, 02 June 2017 00:26

Happy birthday, Church

Pentecost Sunday is when many celebrate both the power of the Spirit and the birthday of the Church. The Spirit’s power and the life of the Church are always intertwined. On the day of the Spirit’s spectacular arrival among the disciples, 120 Jesus-followers became a church of over 3,000 (over 2,500% growth in one day)! It is because Pentecost is the Church’s birthday that many congregations include church-belonging rituals (confirmations, first communions, baptisms and dedications) in their celebrations. When a congregation commits to celebrating Pentecost, they are declaring that ‘the church is God’s plan A for the world - and there’s no plan B.’ Our individual journeys matter, but they are always part of the larger story God is telling through the people gathering in His name. Pentecost is the birthplace of global missions.

Published in Praise Reports
Friday, 19 May 2017 13:05

Thy Kingdom Come - ten days of prayer

From 25 May to 4 June individuals and churches around the nation will join in a global ‘wave of prayer’ for the ten days leading up to Pentecost. There is a rich variety of activities taking place, and it is exciting to see many ways in which we can engage with God in praying for our communities and nations. Below are some of the events for which we can intercede in advance:- Ask God that many will attend city-wide praise/prayer events, and that events being held in public locations will draw many shoppers into the God-filled space. Pray for prayer breakfasts to be filled with spiritual tastes of Kingdom. Pray that the 24/7 prayer chains organised by church communities will have all slots filled, creating a mighty canopy of prayer over their communities. May those setting up prayer rooms be blessed with God-inspired fresh ideas that draw people closer to Him.

Published in British Isles
Friday, 05 May 2017 10:38

USA: pornography in the Church

In the USA, 68% of men in church regularly view porn. New research has now revealed that ‘of young Christian adults 18-24 years old, 76% actively actively seek out pornography’. These latest statistics show that the Church has a dirty secret. Chances are that on any given Sunday morning, either the person sitting to your left or to your right will be struggling with pornography. Never before has such a large portion of the Church lived in contradiction of what we believe. Jesus didn’t mince words when he said, ‘But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.’ At that point in time, adultery was punishable by death! If we don’t confront the issue of pornography, the church is going to continue dying from the inside.

Published in Worldwide
Friday, 31 March 2017 11:30

Friday Focus: unity in prayer and mission

The Apostle Paul refers to himself and his brothers and sisters in Christ as ‘co-workers’ with God. If communicating the gospel of Jesus Christ is a task, the team to accomplish that task is the Church. If the team doesn’t pull together the job won’t get done. Pray for the Church across Britain, that we will work together with great effectiveness to complete the task of sharing Jesus with every man, woman and child in this land.

(Lyndall Bywater, Salvation Army)

Published in British Isles
Friday, 10 March 2017 11:29

100,000 evangelicals in new prayer initiative

Unprecedented evangelical unity across the UK will run from April to October with 100,000+ Christians taking part in '17:21'. The initiative is named after Jesus prayer in John 17:21: 'May they all be one that the world might believe'. Christian groups, conferences and festivals will read the same Bible reading, prayer of commitment, and declaration of a shared life in Christ, and play the same worship song. Malcolm Duncan, representing Spring Harvest, added, 'The 17:21 initiative calls all of us who stand under the shadow of the Cross to link arms in the great responsibility that God has given us – presenting a living Saviour to a dying world. I have been humbled and thrilled to be part of this call to the festivals, conventions and Bible weeks in the United Kingdom to declare that we are united by far more than what divides us. May God take us beyond structural and mechanistic unity and give us the boldness and courage to stand together for Christ.' The initiative comes in the year of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.

Published in Praise Reports