Drugs to devotion - life turned around
20 Sep 2019
She attended church but didn’t know what it meant to seek God. She smoked weed on Friday and sang in the choir on Sunday, without thinking she did anything wrong. After graduation she went for drinks with a man and was date-raped. She reported it to the police, but was told there was not enough evidence. ‘I was depressed and drove down the road thinking, I could run into this tree and people won’t think it was suicide.’ Fortunately, she didn’t do it. A few weeks later she shared her troubles with a friend who told her that Christ could heal her heart. ‘When he talked sincerely about his life and relationship with God, I felt my eyes open, I started crying. I got it. I’d been wrong.’ She rededicated herself to Christ, and her life has turned around.
GATHER
20 Sep 2019
All over the UK, God has been doing a hidden work through GATHER - a network of over 120 movements in villages, towns and cities across the UK with Christian leaders and churches forming vibrant mission-focused unity movements based on prayer and friendship. These networks are taking the prayer of Jesus seriously: ‘May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me’ (John 17:23). Tired of working in isolation from, or in competition with, other churches in their area, these networks are laying aside theological and cultural differences for the sake of reaching their local area with the love of Christ. GATHER is building a growing movement, not an organisation, which encourages and supports unity movements to grow and develop in their prayer, fellowship and missional transformation activities.
Prayer for families and addicts
20 Sep 2019
The following is a prayer from Transformations Ireland: ‘Our Father in heaven, may Your name be honoured in families. May Your kingdom come into homes, meeting needs and revealing Your blessings. Father, please heal relationships and build Your kingdom, manifesting Your glory in homes and across the land. Father, we are thankful for Your mercy and Your abounding love. In the Name of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, we come on behalf of families and communities bound by many strongholds and strategies of the Evil One; we confess and repent of partaking in sins associated with addictions. We ask that, by the blood of the cross and the power of Your Holy Spirit, You will have mercy and set men and women free from all addictions so that they may follow You in fullness of life. As Your church, give us courage and strength as we now take our stand against them.’
‘Wall of Answered Prayer’ update
20 Sep 2019
In April 2016 Prayer Alert intercessors prayed that a vision to build a wall of one million bricks, each brick representing an answered prayer, would become a reality. The land has now been secured: the wall will be positioned by a busy motorway, with 50,000+ people driving past every day. What a wonderful testimony that Jesus is alive and has answered a million prayers! Hundreds of people are becoming involved each month. God has been providing generously. Please pray that the organisers continue to receive wonderful testimonies that will encourage and remind others of God's goodness and raise the money needed to finalise the planning phase. See also
Supreme Court justices
20 Sep 2019
The hearing by the members of the Supreme Court regarding the Prime Minister’s move to prorogue parliament for five weeks will declare their ruling next week. Let us pray for God’s wisdom and revelation to inspire the decisions of Lady Hale, the president of the Supreme Court; Lord Reed, her deputy; Lord Carnwath, who opposed the Article 50 agreement; Lord Kerr, a former lord chief justice of Northern Ireland and a liberal member of the court; Lord Wilson, who practised in the family courts, Lord Hodge, an expert in property and land law; and a Scottish justice, Lady Black, who has expertise in family law. Lord Lloyd-Jones is a Welsh speaker; Lady Arden judges in the European court of human rights; Lord Kitchin’s expertise is patents, copyright and intellectual property; Lord Sales sat on the high court in the Article 50 case.
Climate change fears must be listened to
20 Sep 2019
Rev Dr Richard Frazer has said, ‘Climate change will change the lives of children growing up today, and they will experience profoundly the impact in decades to come. It now casts a long shadow over their lives, and they have responded to the inspiring example of the Swedish schoolgirl Greta Thunberg and want to be heard. We are mindful of the many arguments for and against schoolchildren “striking”, and appreciate the strong feelings this evokes. Rather than taking a stand for or against climate strikes, we urge churches and congregations to listen to children in their communities. Churches can provide a safe space in which to express their concerns and aspirations. By listening to them we can learn and understand better, and this will in turn help us to respond more effectively to the climate emergency.’ Dr Frazer spoke ahead of a series of school strike events planned in many Scottish cities on Friday 20 September.
They are not spies
20 Sep 2019
Dr Kylie Moore-Gilbert, an Australian-British lecturer in Islamic studies at Melbourne University, was arrested last September, tried, and imprisoned for ten years for espionage. She is in solitary confinement in Tehran’s Evin prison, with no contact from family or friends. The British and Australian governments have kept the identity of their arrested citizens out of the public domain, believing diplomatic efforts for release would be more effective if conducted behind closed doors. Others argue that publicity will generate international, community and political support, providing impetus for release negotiations. Meanwhile, Jolie King, a British-Australian woman and Cambridge University honours graduate in Middle Eastern studies, and her Australian boyfriend Mark Firkin were arrested ten weeks ago near Tehran for flying a drone near military installations. They were shooting pictures for a travel blog of their overland journey from Perth to London. Also, please continue praying for Nazanin Ratcliffe.
New envoy for freedom of religion
20 Sep 2019
Rehman Chishti MP is to be the new Prime Minister's envoy for freedom of religion and belief. CSW has congratulated him on his appointment, saying, ‘He has always been outspoken on issues relating to freedom of religion or belief, and we look forward to working with him as he takes on this new role.’ Mr Chishti, a Muslim, was previously the vice-chairman of the Conservative party covering faith and communities, and was an outspoken critic of the Government's handling of Aasia Bibi's appeal for asylum. Foreign secretary Dominic Raab said, ‘A staggering 83% of the world's population live in nations where religious freedom is threatened or banned. It is an area where the UK can and must make a difference.’