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The BBC will air a new dramatisation in prime time on BBC 1 of all the events surrounding the birth of Jesus Christ in the week leading up to Christmas. Four half-hour episodes at 7pm will follow the biblical narrative and highlight the identity of Jesus God’s Son coming to earth in fulfilment of God’s promise. It is expected to attract audiences of several million. Andrew Marsh will debate the nativity on Radio 5 Live Praise: God for enabling modern technology to reveal the reality and relevance of Jesus Christ to our nation. (Is.35:5)
Masud grew up in a strict Muslim home in a remote part of Bangladesh. Not only was his family strict, but his father was also an Imam. Masud grew up with full knowledge of the Quran and considered himself to be a radical Muslim. As he grew, however, he began to wonder about the Jesus he read about in the Quran and asked his father many questions: ‘Who is Jesus? Is the Quran true? The Quran says we must study the teaching of Jesus because he was more than a prophet. Why don’t we?’ These questions made his father, the Holy Religious Leader, very angry and he would beat Masud and say: ‘Stop asking questions. You must not question Islam.’ One day, Masud was sitting with friends when a Christian pastor came and shared the Gospel, using the Quran as a tool to point them to Issa (Jesus). Masud was moved in his spirit and recognized that the Gospel was the truth.
Praise: God for Masud and his wife as they live and work for the Gospel in a country where as a religious minority they face danger and persecution for their devotion to Jesus. (Rom.8:35)
More: http://blog.godreports.com/2013/05/son-of-imam-becomes-underground-pastor/#more-3533
A Scottish schoolgirl who raised money for a Catholic charity by posting photos of her school lunches online has beaten an official ban trying to prevent her from doing so, reports Catholic News Agency. Nine-year-old Martha Payne, who attends Lochgilphead Primary School, began posting photos in late April of her daily lunch on her blog titled ‘NeverSeconds.’ She gave each one a score for healthiness, tastiness and the number of mouthfuls it took to consume. Her aim was to raise $11,000 for Catholic charity Mary’s Meals to allow them to build a kitchen in a school in Malawi in Africa. Within a few weeks, Martha’s site had received more than two million hits and a third of the donations required to build the kitchen. However, after the success of Martha's blog was highlighted in a national newspaper June 14 – under the headline ‘Time to fire the dinner ladies’ – she was told to stop her activities by school officials.
Praise: God for this young lady's' initiative to raise money for those in need. (Pro.22:1)
More: http://www.christiantelegraph.com/issue16614.html
Unsung Christian heroes from across the UK were recognised for their community work at the Inspire Awards last week. More than 120 nominations were whittled down to just three winners who were awarded during a ceremony at the Houses of Parliament attended by Christian MPs. The award for the Inspiring Individual went to Christine Deponio, who runs Emmanuel House in Gateshead, a free service to those suffering with terminal cancer. Lifeline Church, in Essex, was presented with the Inspiring Church award for its Open Doors project. The project has been running for 10 years and offers friendship and care to vulnerable and isolated women. Green Pastures, which provides accommodation for 200 formerly homeless people in Southport, received the award for Inspiring Project. The annual Inspire Awards are hosted jointly by Inspire magazine and the Evangelical Alliance.
Praise: God for all those recognised for their gifts as they reach out to those in need. (Ac.10:4b)
More: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/awards.recognise.unsung.christian.heroes/28920.htm
Flash floods and a powerful cyclone have taken a toll on Australia this year, but in the midst of their hardship, many residents have found the ‘good news.’ Pockets of revival are breaking out in the country and miracles have been reported as a result of the prayer movement ‘Rise Up Australia.’ Australia was once considered a Christian nation, but aggressive secularization has caused many people to grow cold to Christianity. Only about 10 per-cent of the population regularly attends church, yet a number of churches and ministries are becoming more resolute in praying for the nation and desperately crying out to God. ‘Rise Up Australia’ was started in 2000 by pastor Daniel Nalliah, president of Catch the Fire Ministries. Now, more than 10 years later Christians are gathering for monthly prayer meetings in 75 Australian cities.
Praise: God for the stirring of His Spirit and the growth of prayer across Australia. (Ro.12:12)
More: http://www.openheaven.com/forums/forum_posts.asp?TID=35639&PN=1&TPN=1
Twenty of Australia’s senior church and denominational leaders have urged the Government to protect the definition of marriage in Australian law. The Joint Statement on the Significance of Marriage follows: Marriage is the lifelong commitment and faithful union of one man and one woman. As such, marriage is the natural basis of the family because it secures the relationship between biological parents and their children. As Christian leaders representing different denominations or churches, we join together and affirm our shared commitment to promote and protect marriage. We honour the unique love between husbands and wives; the vital place of fathers and mothers in the life of children; and the corresponding ideal for all children to know the love and role modelling of a father and mother. We call on ourGovernment to: protect this definition of marriage in Australian law, and not change the meaning of marriage by adding to it different kinds of relationships.
Praise: God for this stand by the church and that the Government will protect traditional marriage. (Jer.29:6)
More: http://ausprayernet.org.au/newsletter/DisplayNewsletter.php?e_id=00000002315#st2
Christian doctors and medical professionals will be travelling from many different countries around the world to prescribe ‘spiritual healing’ as an answer to sickness in the 21st Century, during a unique conference in Brisbane, Australia from June 11-12, 2011, reports Assist Ministries. The doctors will examine actual case studies of miracles presented by various respected doctors as they search for evidence of Divine Healing at the 8th Annual International ‘Spirituality and Medicine’ Conference to be held for two days at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre. Brisbane plans to welcome hundreds of Christian medics who will be examining data presented by their peers about ‘miracles’ that they believe prove that God has intervened in impossible situations. The event is being sponsored by the World Christian Doctors Network (WCDN), an interdenominational organization composed of Christian medical professionals from around the world who believe in divine healing.
Praise: God for this conference and that it will bring glory to God and greater understanding within the medical profession. (Jer.8:22)
More: http://www.christiantelegraph.com/issue13030.html
Five more Audio New Testaments have been completed and released to reach tens of thousands of people with the Gospel, reports Mission Network News. These new Audio New Testaments represent 184,000 people throughout Mexico, Guinea, Papua New Guinea and Colombia. The five new releases bring the number of audio Scripture recordings released by Faith Comes By Hearing to 521. The Audio New Testaments that have now been made available are: Chinanteco de Tepetotutla, Ipili, Mazateco de Ayautla, Ticuna, and Yalunka. The production of these five audio Scriptures will not only make the Gospel available to a host of people, literate as well as illiterate, but it also brings Faith Comes By Hearing closer to its goal of recording audio Bibles in 2,000 languages by the year 2016. People often receive Audio New Testaments from Faith Comes By Hearing in the form of solar-powered Proclaimers, which contain the entire New Testament and can be hand-cranked or set in the sun to work. Praise: God as the people receive audio Scriptures that they would understand and embrace the His Word. (Heb.4:12)
MSP’s were given a free vote yesterday, allowing them to vote according to their consciences rather than along party lines. The End of Life Assistance Bill was crushed by 85-16. Gordon Macdonald, of the Care Not Killing alliance said it was a fantastic result and a ‘victory for the most vulnerable in our community’. In rejecting the controversial legislation, he said MSP’s recognised that legalising assisted suicide would ‘seriously endanger public safety’ and had instead given a ringing endorsement to palliative care. ‘The sheer magnitude of the Bill’s defeat should settle this issue in Scotland for a generation,’ he said. ‘The key argument that decided this vote and the similar votes in the House of Lords in 2006 and 2009 is a simple one. The right to die can so easily become the duty to die.’ (See Prayer Alert 4710) Praise: God for this answered prayer. (Mt.10:30-31) More: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/scottish.parliament.rejects.assisted.suicide.bill/27178.htm
he United Bible Society has reported a sharp increase in the number of Christian Scriptures distributed in some of the countries where believers suffer the highest levels of persecution. Statistics suggest that Christianity is the most persecuted religion in the world and Baroness Warsi made headlines recently when she warned that Christianity could be wiped out in the Middle East. (See Prayer Alert 47-2013) However, recent figures released from Bible Societies around the world indicate that more Christian Scriptures were distributed than ever before in 2012. Global Scripture distribution rose from just over 381 million in 2011 to more than 405 million in 2012; an increase of 6%. Of the 405 million distributed, 32.1 million were whole Bibles, which matched 2011's record-breaking year of Bible distribution. Surprisingly, the highest increase was in Syria, with over eight times more Scriptures distributed by the Bible Society, through a network of church volunteers, in 2012 than 2011; 163,000 in total last year.
Praise: God that His Word still speaks and brings life. (Dt.32:2)