Displaying items by tag: Praise

One For Israel (OFI), the world’s only Hebrew Bible college, is challenging the rabbis, in a way they cannot limit,v by posting a series of videos backing Yeshua’s messianic claims on the internet. OFI’s president said, ‘We have seen how ready many hearts are to receive Him, once they hear in a relevant and understandable way. This awakening has largely been brought about by Covid. People forced to stay home are bored and are confronted with a dangerous disease that makes them think about eternity. Revival has started among the Jews in Israel. This is only the tip of the iceberg.’ OFI are also hosting discipleship videos for those still too shy to join a local congregation as Messianic Jews.

Now is an exciting time for Bible translation because God has provided the tools to accelerate the translation process and share His Word to the ends of the earth. Wycliffe Associates’ development of robust Bible translation technology, paired with streamlined methodology for Bible translation workshops, means that more people than ever before are able to have God’s Word at their fingertips. Millions live in communities where their language is unwritten. Also, many in the developing world cannot read. They often experience extreme isolation and marginalisation because of illiteracy and their oral language traditions. Bible translation recording kits make it possible for national Bible translators to produce audio recordings of the Scriptures, so their people can hear and come to know the truth of God’s transforming Word.

Cocaine worth £76 million was discovered in a shipment of bananas by officers during a routine inspection at Southampton. The class A drugs, weighing almost a ton, were placed in the cargo in Colombia and bound for Belgium. Home secretary Priti Patel said, ‘This was drug-smuggling on an industrial scale’. She is delighted that Border Force prevented such dangerous goods from reaching our streets to devastate communities, line the pockets of criminals, and ruin young lives across the country. On the same day as the cocaine discovery a gangster hit squad was jailed for dousing a rival drug dealer in petrol, setting him on fire, and leaving him to burn to death in his own flat. See

Evangelical Christians and Orthodox Jews in Washington have united to offer their sacred spaces for vaccine distribution to assist government and private companies to combat the pandemic. Walter Kim, of the National Association of Evangelicals, and Rabbi Moshe Hauer, of the Orthodox Union, stated, ‘Anyone in need of vaccination, whether or not they are members of our congregations or of our neighborhoods, is welcome.’ They offered to help with coordinating appointments and providing the medically trained volunteers to administer the shots, as well as spreading awareness to our communities about the importance of vaccination. Hauer said that everything about his faith compels him to contribute to the historic vaccination effort. His tradition teaches that not only is life the greatest gift from God, but it is an obligation to care for the well-being of others.

‘The Iranian media, schools, everything you see and hear is Islamic’, said Ramin Parsa. ‘They brainwash you. We had no magazines or books. We saw caricatures of Israeli soldiers killing Palestinian babies. They sowed hatred in our hearts.’ Ramin went to the mosque every morning to pray. Every morning at school, they shouted, ‘Death to Israel! Death to America!’ Although it is illegal, every house has a satellite dish - an alternative to non-stop religious propaganda on government channels. On the Trinity channel he heard about Jesus. Ramin didn’t immediately believe. ‘If you give Jesus your heart, he will change your life. He loves you,’ the man was saying. ‘He died for you and rose again from the dead.’ Then Ramin relented. Asking to be forgiven, he started weeping. He felt God move in his body, providing heat and warmth. He rushed to see his mother, ‘Why is your face so shiny?’ she asked, bewildered.

The Prayer Shield is a 365-day prayer initiative for God's plans and purposes to be manifest in the UK. The vision is to unite thousands in a shield of prayer over the nation for 365 days. Leaders of diverse denominations and expressions will lead daily prayers, declarations, and blessings for the nation. Christians across the country are invited to join this initiative for a few minutes each day to say a short prayer, make a declaration from God’s Word, and pronounce a blessing for the United Kingdom. At a time when issues of racial injustice and discrimination are causing so much pain in our society, intercessors are catching the vision of God changing things.

English children will be able to access free books online during school closures via a virtual library. After schools moved to remote learning, internet classroom Oak National Academy (ONA) created the library, which will provide a book a week from its author of the week. The aim is to increase access for young readers, particularly the most disadvantaged, to ebooks and audiobooks. ONA is funded by the Department for Education and has provided over 28 million lessons since 4 January. The National Literacy Trust said many children's literacy skills had been profoundly affected by the first lockdown and school closures. ‘We will do everything in our power to support children, families and teachers during this new lockdown period.’

The sister of a young Christian woman in ICU fighting for her life said their family has been spiritually strengthened by the amount of people that are praying for a miracle. Hannah Montagu suffered a brain haemorrhage on 10 January and is in a coma. Her sister Abbie said doctors gave Hannah two days to show improvement, otherwise they would start end of life care. Then, after surgery, Hannah showed improvements by moving her arms and legs, so she has been given more time so that she can rest and fight. Hannah’s family haven’t been able to visit her in hospital. All they could do was pray and invite people to join in. On 21 January she came off the ventilator and now breathes on her own. There are daily prayer meetings, which anyone can join, for Hannah on Zoom at 10am and 8pm. Now thousands are praying for her brainstem to be restored.

The National Association of Evangelicals denounced the ‘Christianity’ displayed at the Capitol Hill riots recently. When images emerged of people holding crosses or signs displaying faith-based messages and engaging in violence they said, ‘They are not representing Christ's teachings. Followers of Jesus are peacemakers. Some protest images demonstrate a disturbing conflation of Christianity and a nationalist ideology that is far from the way of Jesus. Christians are commanded to seek the peace of the cities where they live, to love their enemies, to seek unity and to proclaim a message of peace.’

Hope is on the horizon. Health secretary Matt Hancock predicted that every adult would be offered a Covid vaccine by the autumn, as regular rapid testing for people without coronavirus symptoms started this week. Some high street pharmacies started vaccinating people from priority groups on 14 January, with 200 providing jabs in the following two weeks. The chemists will offer appointments to those invited by letter. Anyone who does not want to travel to these sites can still be vaccinated by their local GP or hospital service, but they may have to wait longer. Over 2.6 million people have now received their first dose.