Olympics: The Church’s response
Churches across the UK served their communities, welcomed visitors and blessed people just as Jesus would have done. An estimated 500,000 attended church-organised community festivals. The More Than Gold Athlete Family Homestay Programme hosted 280 guests from 20+ nations in 160 homes for 2,000 nights of free hospitality. The athletes supported won a total of 45 medals including 8 gold. 300 Games Pastors provided 13,000 hours of service to travellers at 24 locations including ten major rail stations, two airports, a coach station and key tourist sites. 30+ teams of 350 musicians and creative artists from 30 nations in 40 venues contributed 440 hours of live performance and 434 days of exhibitions. Over 2,100 volunteers from 40+ countries worked with about 300 churches distributing 225,000+ Olympic and Christian pin badges during conversations, water distribution and as a gift to travellers. And much much more.
Praise: God and give Him thanks for answered prayer throughout the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
More: http://www.worldprayer.org.uk/files/2012/10/Answered-Prayers-from-The-Prayer-Baton-Relay.pdf
Olympics: The Church’s response
Churches across the UK served their communities, welcomed visitors and blessed people just as Jesus would have done. An estimated 500,000 attended church-organised community festivals. The More Than Gold Athlete Family Homestay Programme hosted 280 guests from 20+ nations in 160 homes for 2,000 nights of free hospitality. The athletes supported won a total of 45 medals including 8 gold. 300 Games Pastors provided 13,000 hours of service to travellers at 24 locations including ten major rail stations, two airports, a coach station and key tourist sites. 30+ teams of 350 musicians and creative artists from 30 nations in 40 venues contributed 440 hours of live performance and 434 days of exhibitions. Over 2,100 volunteers from 40+ countries worked with about 300 churches distributing 225,000+ Olympic and Christian pin badges during conversations, water distribution and as a gift to travellers. And much much more.
Praise: God and give Him thanks for answered prayer throughout the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
More: http://www.worldprayer.org.uk/files/2012/10/Answered-Prayers-from-The-Prayer-Baton-Relay.pdf
Christians are being beaten and threatened in several places in Pakistan. The majority is making false blames of blasphemy against them, and they are being put in jail. One boy has been murdered in Essanagri and today I am going to share the message in his memorial service where thousands will attend this meeting.
One of the Christian Scholars who is the 2nd person after me doing nearly the same work as I am doing has been threatened and fanatics made firings at his house. In Lahore openly Christians are being threatened and being asked to embrace Islam. The situation is very critical and it is dangerous for me too because I am the one who came out of them and then preaching to them. So I need your prayer support as well. Thanks for already being on your knees. It seems that Pakistan will be broken into pieces soon. Too much violence is here. So we need encouragement in this tough time. God bless you and use you for the betterment of Christians here in Pakistan.
Brother David
"We went through the fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance" (Psalm 66:12)
Please uphold our brothers and sisters in Christ in Pakistan who are enduring a very difficult and dangerous time in their nation’s history. Agree in prayer for the binding of spiritual forces of darkness and death that want to destroy this nation and for the overthrow of fanatical groups that are being used by these forces. Pray for the government to take a strong stand to protect the minorities, including especially Christ’s people.
Key Players in Pakistan's Tribal Belt: Update
North Waziristan in Pakistan has become a haven for militants. Tribal and local intelligence sources say some 15,000 militants shelter in this semiautonomous tribal belt. A number of Taliban leaders and others have been killed in drone strikes; however they have a refuge along the border inside Pakistan and from there they continue to mount attacks on Afghan and Coalition forces inside Afghanistan, keeping that nation in perpetual war and instability. It is essential that we pray before the foreign forces are withdrawn in 2014 that the Taliban will dissolve and be defeated and that the Pakistani government will aggressively combat them, not allowing them any more safe-haven in their country.
A friend who with a great burden to pray for these two countries, wrote: “Two weeks ago in one of our prayer meetings the Lord reminded us that he told us clearly in 2001 that we must proclaim “Taliban-time is over” and we faithfully did it and there was a powerful anointing on us when we did this. ..The message was: “spring time is coming”…And the Taliban regime began to crumble. In 2002, so many Christians came into the country and it looked like the Taliban movement was over but it was not destroyed. It regrouped and came back again and now it has become a powerful force that even NATO admitted that they can’t win this war. … We feel that we must proclaim again what the Lord told us at that time and also the other scriptures that the Lord gave us like Ps 37.
Also the word was given to us clearly about King Joash coming to Elisha and he told the king to strike the ground and he did it only 3 times and stopped. Then the man of God became angry with him. You know the story, he should have struck five or six times 2 King 13.18 ff. We did the same, proclaimed for a while and then we stopped. This word came clearly to us and we repented, also on behalf of others that have just turned away from the land and thought “it was done”. Let’s proclaim again and strike the ground again. It is not too late even though in the natural things look like a big disaster coming... The key is also to pray against the demon powers that rule over and through the Pashtun. About 20 Christian workers were lost in the last 6 – 7 years, and all were killed by Pashtun.
Many times the Lord spoke to us to pray against these demonic alliances like between the Pakistan government/army and certain Taliban groups, Haqqaanis, Gulbadin and Al Qaeda. These groups work together and build a strong unity against the government of Afghanistan… This needs to be broken.
Let’s pray also that their power would be broken. That the people themselves would stand up against the Taliban and say: enough!! This happened in a few areas and may it become a movement. Pray that many Pashtun Tribal leaders would stand up and turn against the Taliban. God can do it. As quick as this movement came the Lord can cause it to die out. We must specially pray for that…
More workers are needed for the Pashtun and also in general. Many workers have left and organisations pulled out. We need strong people that know how to stand against such pressures and know how to pray. Also that many of the Pashtun would come to the Lord and they would see signs and miracles and many visions and dreams. Keep praying against lawlessness and for real peace and security in Pakistan.
The situation in Pakistan is getting worse almost on a daily basis. Al Qaeda and the Taliban are carrying out more and more activities, with a weapon of fear, in an effort to bring down the country. Fanatics are also using this weapon of fear and using every way possible to force people to their way of thinking. The blasphemy law (misuse of the Koran with its death sentence) is being falsely used against Muslims and Christians. Most recently against a young Christian girl in the capital city (Rimsha Masih). It was an effort by the fanatics to see how far they can go.
Pakistan elections are formally to take place next February. The government that will most likely be next is promising Muslim law. Unrest is everywhere. A change of government usually takes place through discord and fightings in an effort to close down the government and businesses. Parties who are trying to seek leadership often do so by bringing discord and nasty demonstrations.
PRAY now for these elections, for the spirit of fear to be broken: Government, fanatics, Taliban, Al Qaeda. The world is afraid of one Iranian nuclear bomb being made. Pakistan has hundreds of these bombs. May they not fall into the wrong hands.
Call to Asia’ is the Asian Prophetic Intercessors Conference that is happening from 25th-27th October 2012 @ Bangalore, India. While you prayerfully consider attending this conference…we also would like you to:
• Please keep this event in prayer individually and through your prayer network
• Pass this information to al your Asian Christian friends, Bible Colleges, and & Prayer Networks
We are believing that God will bring to the conference those people whom He has prepared from all the nations in Asia, and we are expecting around 300 participants. If you have any queries, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call +91-8105378435.
‘Call to Asia’ Team
Archbishop marks the beginning of Hate Crime Awareness Week
The Archbishop of Canterbury has spoken out to mark the beginning of Hate Crime Awareness Week. He said, ‘Hate crime is a fundamental challenge to an individual’s dignity and identity. As such it should have no possible place in a society that respects the dignity of all and it should find no possible justification in any kind of religious belief. Christian faith has at its core the conviction that God values each of us infinitely and it should spur us on to combat hatred and prejudice wherever we encounter them.' An act of remembrance for the victims of hate crime was held in St Paul’s Cathedral last Saturday and was supported by 17-24-30, an organisation founded to support the victims of the London nail bomb attacks in 1999.
Pray: for God to change the hearts of mankind to quench hatred and nurture caring love towards one another. (1Jn.2:9)
PM warned not to ignore Christian voters
The head of Britain's largest Christian broadcaster has warned the Government that it would be ill-advised to ignore the rights of Christians. Peter Kerridge, Chief Executive of Premier Christian Radio, has written to the Prime Minister reminding him that the number of regular church attendees across Britain outnumbers the combined membership of the three main political parties by nearly 10 to one. ‘Politicians would do well to heed the views of Christians who are, quite clearly, more faithful to their beliefs than the dwindling numbers of party members,’ said Mr Kerridge in his letter. He said the attendance at the three main party conferences had been ‘embarrassingly low’ this season and that the ‘deserted conference halls’ were an accurate reflection of the declining membership of the three main parties from a total of around 1.4 million in 1991 to less than half a million in 2012.
Pray: that politicians would heed the rights of Christians and the power of the Church. (Ps.74:23)
More: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/dont.ignore.christian.voters.pm.warned/30823.htm
Universal Credit: Disabled people 'to lose out'
Up to half a million disabled people and their families stand to lose out under the government's proposed Universal Credit, a report says. The Children's Society, Citizens Advice and Disability Rights UK say 100,000 households with children could have incomes reduced by up to £28 a week. They are urging ministers to reconsider their plans. But the government called the report ‘highly selective’ and said it could lead to ‘irresponsible scaremongering’. The Universal Credit will replace Jobseeker's allowance, tax credits, income support, employment and support allowance - formerly known as incapacity benefit - and housing benefits with a single payment. The system will be ‘piloted' in parts of north-east England next April and will come into force across Britain for new claimants from October 2013. Existing claimants will be transferred to the new system in stages until 2017. Universal Credit will be capped at £26,000 per household.
Pray: that the Government will reconsider their plans affecting disabled and children and adults from low income families. (Job.6:29)
Churches meeting growing demand for emergency food
More people in the UK are turning to church-run food-banks to cope with the rising cost of living. The Trussell Trust said 100,000 people had received emergency food from its network of foodbanks in the last six months. New food-banks are being opened by the Christian charity at a rate of three a week to meet the demand. The network has fed almost 110,000 people across the UK since April 2012, compared to just under 129,000 people during the whole of the 2011 to 2012 financial period. Trussell Trust is expecting to feed over 200,000 people by the end of the 2012 to 2013 period. The increase in demand is being put down to rising food and fuel costs, together with static incomes, high unemployment and changes to benefits. With winter just around the corner, the Trussell Trust said it feared more Britons would be so hard up that they cannot afford to eat.
Pray: that the ability of the Church to provide for the needy will match the demand. (Ps.20:2)
More: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/churches.meeting.growing.demand.for.emergency.food/30821.htm
Scottish teen abortion percentage second highest in world
Scotland has the second highest percentage of teenage abortions in the world, new statistics show. A study from researchers in the US revealed 24 per cent of all abortions in Scotland occurred in the under-20 age group. Only Cuba had a higher proportion of teenage abortionsfigure, at 29 per cent. Report author Gilda Sedgh, of the Guttmacher Institute in New York, said: ‘We can only speculate that the levels of unprotected intercourse among adolescents are relatively high in Scotland’. The study showed that 15 to 19-year-olds make up just 15 per cent of the total population of Scotland, and yet account for almost a quarter of all Scottish terminations.
Pray: that the trend for teenage abortions be reversed and adolescent education improved.
More: http://www.christian.org.uk/news/scots-teen-abortion-percentage-second-highest-in-world/
French government ready to redefine marriage
On 31st October, Francois Hollande’s cabinet will assess a draft copy of legislation which, if approved, would redefine marriage in France despite growing opposition. The French president has promised that same-sex ‘marriage’ will be introduced by mid-2013. The draft legislation will propose a redefinition of marriage so that it is ‘contracted between two persons of different sex or of the same sex’, according to French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault. The document will also set out provisions for same-sex couples to adopt children. These provisions will not be extended to unmarried same-sex couples. Ayrault said: ‘After a very broad consultation process that, of course, involved religious leaders, I've made up my mind. This is about ensuring fairness and equality that reflects the evolution of our society’. However, many mayors and deputy mayors across France have warned that they will not preside over same-sex ceremonies if the law is changed. Over 1,200 of them have signed a petition against redefining marriage.
Pray: against this legislation and further moves to redefine marriage. Pray that the mayors speaking out against such moves will hold fast to their beliefs. (Heb.13:4)