Over 25,000 churches are participating in the project, which is the culmination of the "My Hope America with Billy Graham" project.
After spending a lifetime reaching 215 million people in 185 countries, Billy Graham will spend November 7 working on one more crusade, this time using the televised film "The Cross" to reach unbelievers.
Over 25,000 churches are participating in the project, which is the culmination of the "My Hope America with Billy Graham" project.
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Christian prayer-warriors in Canada's Armed Forces, both serving and retired, are becoming "more aggressive" in letting their comrades and their families know that they are there for them in times of need. Anton Topilnyckyj, the Halifax-based prayer coordinator of the Military Christian Fellowship of Canada, sees the number of people seeking spiritual help keep growing. In the next few days, the Billy Graham organization is involving several hundred thousand Christians around the country in what they believe is the biggest evangelistic thrust of the famous evangelist’s career. You’ll be seeing a lot in the media as well as programs aired on national TV. Here is a link to a list of stations so you can view it in your area. It’s called "My Hope With Billy Graham," and there is a powerful video accompanying it. The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association is encouraging people to invite friends into their homes to participate. It has presented this program for 11 years in 57 countries, resulting in an estimated 10 million decisions for Christ. In the November of issue of Charisma, I’ve encouraged our readers to participate, and I’ve encouraged our staff and even my own pastor. Over half a million churches in 150 countries will join to pray on Sunday, November 10, 2013 for Christians around the world who are suffering and even dying for their faith. IDOP Canada, a group of Canadian charities which supports the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church is calling Canadians to join this annual prayer event. In recent days, a suicide bombing at a Pakistan church in Peshawar left 85 dead and over 140 wounded. And in Northern Nigeria the Boko Haram, an Islamic extremist group, opened fire in a church, killing the pastor and his two children before setting fire to the church building. Such attacks are drawing long overdue attention from mainstream media regarding the random cruelty of extremists who increasingly are focusing their attacks on Christians. As Americans gather to pray this Sunday (November 3) during the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP), they should remember Christians in the world's most persecuted country. Rev. Eric Foley, CEO of Seoul USA, says instead of praying for members of the North Korean underground church, Americans should pray with them. "They don't ask God to deliver them from persecution. They pray they'll remain strong and faithful in the midst of their suffering." Foley says Americans may be surprised to learn that North Korean Christians often pray for people of the USA and South Korea. "They pray for us because they feel we are persecuted by our prosperity and it distances us from God. They pray that we will remain faithful to the Lord." Around the world, more than 200 million Christians are currently experiencing persecution. Amid their suffering, the annual International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP) calls people of faith to remember, and pray for, their brothers and sisters. "These staggering numbers alone are reason enough to pray diligently for the lives of Christians whose only crime is courageously declaring 'Jesus is Lord,'" says Anita Levesque, coordinator for IDOP Canada Partnership. "IDOP Sunday plays a vital role in answering the cry of oppressed believers. It encourages and strengthens the persecuted Church and brings awareness to their plight." Was this really happening? In the concourse outside Iceland’s Laugardalshöll Arena, Bryndis Stefánsdóttir pumped both fists in the air, jumping up and down like a schoolgirl on Christmas morning. Only Bryndis is 49. But she had just led 18-year-old Erna to Christ. “Wow—an 18-year-old girl responding to the gospel,” Bryndis says. “Her life is now changed. Totally.” Bryndis just couldn’t stop smiling. “I’ve never done this before,” she says, recounting the counseling session. “She was looking straight into my eyes. She was looking at me with her whole face.” Bryndis will tell you she is not an evangelist by nature. She’s not bold. She's rather passive, actually, with her faith. But she felt God tugging and tugging and tugging. And this weekend was a big deal in Reykjavik, not just for her church but for all 41 churches that are participating in the Franklin Graham Festival of Hope. The wife of the American pastor imprisoned in Iran for his Christian faith says her husband remains bold for Jesus Christ in prison. Saeed Abedini's wife, Naghmeh, recently spoke to students at Liberty University about her family's plight. She said in spite of being tortured and asked to deny his faith in Christ and return to Islam, Pastor Saeed is a light for Jesus in Evin Prison, one of the worst in the world. Starting next Monday, the North Korean underground church will lead Christians around the world in 100 days of worship in the common places. Daily, through Dec. 31, Christians are invited to follow the lead of their North Korean Christian brothers and sisters to do what led to their persecution in the first place: gathering together in small groups for daily public worship in the common places of life—their homes, schools, workplaces, parks, libraries, bus stops and more–using the historic four pillars liturgy of the North Korean underground church. Rev. Eric Foley, CEO of Seoul USA, says while Americans are pledging to join in the effort, their goal is not to evangelize others. More than 10 years after they started a ministry to help transform their home country of Nigeria for the better, 'Segun and Titi Olude continue to be astounded by the ways God works in their lives. The Oludes visited the western states of the West Africa nation for five weeks this past spring as part of Promisedland Ministries, an organization they founded in 2002 in an effort to encourage Nigerian-Canadians to make a difference in their home country, as well as to educate Nigerian pastors and community leaders in faith-based community development. |
Walter Blackwood
Associate Pastor with The Bridge Community of Faith in Kelowna BC Canada. Archives
May 2017
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