Don’t be ashamed, Franklin Graham tells UK’s Christians
Franklin Graham has called on Christians to be faithful in preaching the Gospel message as he visited the UK to launch this year’s Operation Christmas Child an annual Christmas initiative aiming to deliver 8 million shoeboxes filled with Christmas gifts for children in impoverished communities around the world, including parts of Europe. ‘Secularism has conquered much of Europe and the West and it came in overnight,’ he told reporters. ‘As evangelicals and Christians we need to be more outspoken than we’ve ever been about our faith and not be ashamed.’ Mr Graham said some schools in the UK had dropped out of the project because they were upset about the Christian faith being shared with children receiving the boxes. However, he said: ‘I don’t apologise for sharing Christ. This is who we are. This is what we do.’ Mr Graham encouraged everyone giving a box to say a prayer for the child receiving it. ‘For many of these children, it’s the first gift they’ve had in their lives.
Pray: for all those involved in Operation Christmas Child and for the children as they receive their gifts. (Ps.100:5)
More: http://www.christiantoday.co.uk/article/dont.be.ashamed.franklin.graham.tells.uks.christians/30714.htm
National Day of Prayer – 29 September
The Bishop of Pontefract, the Rt Rev Tony Robinson has backed a call for a month of prayer for the Street Angels network which will be launched at a National Day of Prayer event at Wembley Stadium on 29 September. Tens of thousands of people are expected to gather at the stadium to pray for our nation in an event which features artists including Matt Redman, Tim Hughes and Noel Robinson. Street Angels founder, Paul Blakey from Halifax, said: ‘Following on from the fantastic day at Wembley, when tens of thousands of people will gather specifically to pray for our nation, we want to encourage people to pray for the communities where our local projects are making a massive difference. We also want to encourage prayer for new opportunities to open up, for a greater reduction in crime, for those we partner with and those who volunteer.’
Praise: God for the gathering of His people in prayer.
More: http://www.wakefield.anglican.org/news/story/national_day_of_prayer_29_september
National Day of Prayer – 29 September
The Bishop of Pontefract, the Rt Rev Tony Robinson has backed a call for a month of prayer for the Street Angels network which will be launched at a National Day of Prayer event at Wembley Stadium on 29 September. Tens of thousands of people are expected to gather at the stadium to pray for our nation in an event which features artists including Matt Redman, Tim Hughes and Noel Robinson. Street Angels founder, Paul Blakey from Halifax, said: ‘Following on from the fantastic day at Wembley, when tens of thousands of people will gather specifically to pray for our nation, we want to encourage people to pray for the communities where our local projects are making a massive difference. We also want to encourage prayer for new opportunities to open up, for a greater reduction in crime, for those we partner with and those who volunteer.’
Praise: God for the gathering of His people in prayer.
More: http://www.wakefield.anglican.org/news/story/national_day_of_prayer_29_september
South Korea: Taxis drive passengers to Christ
Moon-ja Kang is one of 450 Christian drivers who belong to the Missionary Taxi Club in Busan, South Korea. They have devoted themselves to telling their passengers about the Lord by playing Christian radio programmes and through personal testimony. ’Each day we spread the gGspel on the road,' said the group's president, Myeong-Woong Ban. ‘If a driver gives us the name of any contacts they make, we'll pray for them, embrace them in our heart, and have them connected to a church so they can get to know Jesus.’ The taxi missionaries see the streets of Busan as a mission field. Their goal is to deliver all of their passengers safely to an eternal destination. ‘I consider serving God as my primary job, and the rest of what I do in this world, secondary,’ explained driver Gil-hong Jin.
Praise: God for the work of the taxi missionaries and pray for those that God calls to himself. (Is.55:6)
More: http://ausprayernet.org.au/newsletter/DisplayNewsletter.php
South Korea: Taxis drive passengers to Christ
Moon-ja Kang is one of 450 Christian drivers who belong to the Missionary Taxi Club in Busan, South Korea. They have devoted themselves to telling their passengers about the Lord by playing Christian radio programmes and through personal testimony. ’Each day we spread the gGspel on the road,' said the group's president, Myeong-Woong Ban. ‘If a driver gives us the name of any contacts they make, we'll pray for them, embrace them in our heart, and have them connected to a church so they can get to know Jesus.’ The taxi missionaries see the streets of Busan as a mission field. Their goal is to deliver all of their passengers safely to an eternal destination. ‘I consider serving God as my primary job, and the rest of what I do in this world, secondary,’ explained driver Gil-hong Jin.
Praise: God for the work of the taxi missionaries and pray for those that God calls to himself. (Is.55:6)
More: http://ausprayernet.org.au/newsletter/DisplayNewsletter.php
Youth 'blackout' for the persecuted
Young people across the UK and Ireland will be standing in solidarity with the persecuted church this November. They will unite in a 'blackout' for 48 hours to raise thousands of pounds for young Christians suffering because of their faith. From social media, to mobiles, to TV, gaming, eating or speaking, the challenge is to stay 'silent' in a symbolic gesture of the censorship and isolation experienced by many Christians on account of their faith. The creative fasting is being organised by Open Doors and the idea is to ‘make a big noise by keeping quiet’. Open Doors hopes the event will be just as well supported as last year's which raised £30,000 for child victims of persecution. Krish Kandiah, of the Evangelical Alliance and a Blackout supporter said: ‘Too often out of sight is out of mind for the persecuted church. This is an opportunity to give time to this important challenge.'
Pray: for a huge response to this challenge and for those who will be taking part. (Jas.1:2-4)
More: http://www.christiantoday.co.uk/article/youth.blackout.for.persecuted.church/30673.htm
Tory MPs targeted by US gay marriage campaigners
Tory strategists have held meetings with US lobbying experts ahead of a drive to try to win hesitant Conservative MPs around to supporting gay marriage. It is understood that senior Tories met a group of lobbying experts, who have worked with the US campaign group ‘Freedom to Marry’, ahead of a renewed charm offensive within the party. ‘From what we know, the battle that there is, is really to try to convince Conservatives,’ said Benjamin Cohen, co-founder of the Coalition For Equal Marriage, which campaigns in support of same-sex unions. ‘We are working with them to try to determine the best way of presenting the argument to conservative backbenchers.’ The drive is expected to focus less on arguments about equality and rights and more about gay marriage as something which could be ‘good for society’. David Cameron has repeatedly stressed his determination to bring in same-sex marriage by 2015.
Pray: for an honest debate that addresses people’s concerns rather than one that tries to bully people into submission. (1Pe.3:15)
Joel Edwards to challenge Labour Party on poverty
A special church service with a focus on poverty will be taking place at the start of the Labour Party's annual conference. Joel Edwards, leader of the Micah Challenge anti-poverty movement, will challenge Labour MPs and conference delegates to commit to ending poverty. The Christian movement is mobilising the church worldwide to hold governments accountable to the Millennium Development Goals to eradicate extreme poverty by 2015. Edwards will tell the Labour Conference delegates about The Jesus Agenda, which examines Jesus' mission statement and calls upon Christians to become advocates of the poor and vulnerable. The service takes place at St Ann's Church, Manchester, on 30 September and is being organised by the Christian Socialist Movement. It is a traditional and well-attended gathering point for Christians from all around the country to be a prophetic voice and pray for the Labour Party.
Pray: that the message that Joel will bring will be heard and accepted widely by the delegates. (1Cor.1:18)
More: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/joel.edwards.to.challenge.labour.party.on.poverty/30669.htm
Hope and Fusion help churches build on Olympics success
Share Jesus International, Hope and Fusion will be touring the UK this autumn to help churches stay at the heart of their communities. The Time of Our Lives tour is heading to Weymouth Prayer-house and New Covenant Church on 17 October, with more dates to be announced. It has been a bumper summer for the UK, with the Diamond Jubilee, the Olympics and Paralympics. The events saw thousands of Christians get stuck in to serve their local communities with free family events, festivals and live screenings. The tour will give churches advice on how they can create a 'rhythm of mission' throughout the year using key seasons in the church calendar. The organisations will share simple steps for engagement with some of the big national events on the horizon, including the Commonwealth Games in 2014, Hope 2014, Pentecost Festivals 2013 and 2014, and the Rugby World Cup in 2015.
Pray: that the Hope and Fusion tour will encourage the Church to link mission and community activities to large national events. (Gen.28:3)
German Catholics lose church rights for unpaid tax
Germany's Roman Catholics are to be denied the right to Holy Communion or religious burial if they stop paying a special church tax. A German bishops' decree which has just come into force says anyone failing to pay 8% of their annual income tax will no longer be considered a Catholic. The bishops have been alarmed by the increasing number of German Catholics leaving the Church in recent years. They say such a step should be seen as a serious act against the community. All Germans who are officially registered as Catholics, Protestants or Jews pay a religious tax of 8-9% of their annual income tax. The levy was introduced in the 19th Century in compensation for the nationalisation of religious property. Catholics make up around 30% of Germany's population but the number of congregants leaving the church swelled to 181,000 in 2010, with the increase blamed on revelations of sexual abuse by German priests.
Pray: for the Catholic Church that it will not deny rights to those who cannot afford these taxes.