How Can We Know Syrian Conversions to Christ are Real?

(Photo Syrian refugee via Christian Aid Mission)Amie Cotton (Feb 7, 2014)

“When they become followers of Jesus you can see a huge difference in their lives. The way they share their faith sometimes would help us determine how they are thinking. After all, God looks inside the heart and knows all the details. We also can determine [their heart] because last year we had more than 1,200 baptisms. Do you think a Muslim would get baptized just to get a food package?” -Christian Aid Mission worker in Lebanon

(Charlottesville, VA)—Are the conversions real?

That was the question posed by Cynthia Finley, president of Christian Aid Mission, after staff received another round of encouraging, if not glowing, reports from Middle East ministries that stated “thousands” of Syrians have committed their hearts to Jesus Christ.

Christian Aid Mission is a U.S. non-profit organization that assists hundreds of ministries overseas that have tens of thousands of indigenous missionaries in the field. These ministries are currently engaging more than 1,000 unreached people groups in over 100 countries around the world. Christian Aid Mission is a 60-year-old organization and one of the first to support native missionary ministries overseas.

Challenged to dig deeper, Christian Aid Mission staff contacted ministries they assist in the region, ministries that have invested wholeheartedly in outreach to war-weary Syrians through personal interaction.

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Excellent radio interview with Pr Daniel / Live webcast this Sunday 16th Feb on Christians & Politics with Guest Speaker Pr Asoka Perera

Dear friends & family in Christ, 1)  You may click the following links to listen to an excellent radio interview (92.9 Voice FM in Toowoomba, QLD) with Pr Daniel. https://reformationharvestfire.com/events/interview-with-92-9-voice-fm-part-1/…

Continue ReadingExcellent radio interview with Pr Daniel / Live webcast this Sunday 16th Feb on Christians & Politics with Guest Speaker Pr Asoka Perera

This Pastor Made a Box for Unwanted Babies, and You’ll Praise God for What Happened

This Pastor Made a Box for Unwanted BabiesBy Eric Corpus – January 8, 2014

Every year, hundreds of unwanted babies are abandoned on the streets of Seoul, South Korea. To do something about the crisis, Pastor Lee Jong-rak at the Jusarang Orphanage created the Baby Box.

The Baby Box is a drop box on the side of the orphanage where someone can safely leave an unwanted infant. Lined with blankets, the box is heated to keep the baby warm. When an infant is placed in the box, an alarm alerts a staff member to bring the baby inside.

The culture in South Korea places heavy value on physical perfection, so many of the infants left in the Baby Box were born with disabilities, including deafness, blindness, cerebral palsy and Down syndrome.

Since 1998, the orphanage has taken in dozens of children, and raised and loved them. That’s dozens of miraculous stories of faith and love, dozens of tragedies averted.

“One of the mothers told me that she had poison to kill both herself and her baby,” Lee said. “So I told her, ‘Don’t do that. Come here with your baby.'”

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SCOTUS puts the chill on activist judge’s decision to overturn Utah’s marriage amendment

Unanimously, the nine U.S. Supreme Court justices agreed that one person shouldn't have the power to create same-sex marriage in a state that democratically outlawed it.by Tony Perkins  – Jan 08, 2014 18:08 EST

While the country shivered through frigid temperatures Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court put something else on ice: the same-sex “marriages” of Utah couples. After two weeks of chaos, America’s most powerful court put the brakes on one rogue judge’s decision to single-handedly overturn the state’s marriage amendment.

The December 20th ruling took several people by surprise — including Governor Gary Herbert (R), who called out District Court Judge Robert Shelby as an “activist” who jeopardized the state’s right “to define marriage through ordinary democratic channels.” For Utah, it was the second major marriage headline in less than a month — thrusting the state back into the spotlight it left when Judge Clark Waddoups stunned everyone by decriminalizing polygamy.

Unanimously, the nine U.S. Supreme Court justices agreed that one person shouldn’t have the power to create same-sex “marriage” in a state that democratically outlawed it.

Of course, marriage has always been a hot-button issue in Utah, dating back to the state’s earliest days. And that isn’t likely to change now, as Utah becomes the venue for the first challenge to a state marriage law since the Supreme Court struck down part of DOMA (the Defense of Marriage Act) last June. When Governor Herbert gears up for an appeal to Judge Shelby’s overreach, he’ll have new state attorney general, Sean Reyes, to lead the charge. Picked to take over the post when his predecessor resigned, Reyes promised, “My intention … is to continue to defend the laws that have been passed by the people of Utah.”

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Report: 9 out of 10 Top Christian Persecution Countries Due to Islamic Extremism

Photo REUTERS Thaier Al-SudaniBy Michael Gryboski, Christian Post Reporter – January 9, 2014

WASHINGTON – Nine out of the ten countries ranked the most oppressive for Christians to live in were due to Islamic extremism, according to Open Doors’ annual World Watch List, which was released Wednesday.

With the exception of North Korea – ranked No. 1 for the 12th year in a row – every other country on the top 10 list had as its source of persecution, Islamic extremism. North Korea’s persecution of Christians was due to communist oppression and dictatorial paranoia, explained Open Doors in its 2014 World Watch List. According to the report, the countries with the most extreme persecution besides North Korea are: Somalia, Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Maldives, Pakistan, Iran, and Yemen, respectively.

Open Doors announced the rankings for its 2014 World Watch List, which documented the 50 nations least tolerant of their Christian population, at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. The Christian persecution watchdog group’s methodology involved measuring the level of Christian freedom found in five spheres of life: private, family, community, national, and church. A sixth sphere regarding degree of violence also factors in to the rankings.

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Crying wolf? – Is free speech being suppressed in the UK?

Crying wolf – Is free speech being suppressed in the UK3 January 2014  |  David Robertson

It’s happened again. Another high profile case of a street preacher being arrested in the UK simply for seeking to spread the Word of God. As previously reported in Christian Today and numerous Christian websites, podcasts and American Christian radio shows, Tony Miano was arrested in the city of Dundee on 8 of January. (You can read the account here).

Unlike his previous arrest in London, this time he has been charged and the case will go to trial in April. The case is therefore Sub Judice and it would be inappropriate for me to go into detailed comment about what actually happened. But as a pastor based in the City of Dundee it would be wrong to leave this situation alone, especially as it has been reported all over the world as another example of how lunatic and intolerant the UK in general and Scotland in particular has become towards the Gospel.

One commentator declared: “It’s alarming that in a country such as the UK which helped spread Christianity to the world, we’re seeing police oppression of God’s word being preached in the streets of our towns and cities.” Another slightly more extreme Facebook poster excitedly observed “and you wonder why helicopters fall out of the sky in your country?!”

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Adelaide Fringe Festival – blasphemous anti-Christ show / Urgent: Letter to the Board & Complaints Officer of BSA

Dear friends & family in Christ,

For your urgent prayer and action, we’re forwarding the following emails from Salt Shakers regarding the Adelaide Fringe Festival – blasphemous anti-Christ show from 14th Feb – 16th March 2014.

Adelaide Fringe Festival – blasphemous anti-Christ show

A huge furore has erupted in Adelaide, where the Adelaide Fringe Festival includes a show called ‘Come Heckle Christ’. It involves a person playing ‘Christ’ – people are encouraged to heckle and ask questions of the figure. The event is advertised as suitable for a variety of people, including ‘disgruntled Christians’!

Family groups have protested, including Family Voice Australia and the NCC. Rev Fred Nile voiced his concern, as did SA Catholic Archbishop Philip Wilson and Family First MPs Robert Brokenshire and Dennis Hood. The Islamic Society of SA also expressed their opposition to the show.

But the Festival organisers are unmoved and say it will continue (source)!

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Nepal: Christian homes and church in arson attack

A Nepalese man reads a newspaper as a woman walks in an alley of Katmandu, Nepal, Wednesday, Nov 27, 2013. AP Photo Niranjan ShresthaCHRISTIAN TODAY – 10 January 2014  |  Carey Lodge

A church building and the homes of four Christian converts in a Nepal village were set alight on December 23, according to Barnabas Fund.

It is thought that Hindu extremists, who see the growth of Christianity in Nepal as a threat, carried out the attacks which targeted the homes of Ganga Lama Tamang, Lama Bahadur Tamang, Lama Bokta and Bikram Lama.

Though some residents tried to prevent the violent attack, they were powerless to stop the nine arsonists who then went on to target the local church building.

Though physical attacks on Christians are generally an uncommon occurrence in Nepal, this violence follows the murder of a church leader last October. Debelal was killed by a Hindu man who tricked him into believing he wanted prayer before beating the Christian with an iron rod and slitting his throat.

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US Evangelicals Work to End Prostitution in Thailand

Mint, a former sex worker, now makes jewelry that helps support the work of NightLight International. (RNS photo by Bear Guerra)Charisma News – 1/7/2014 – Ruxandra Guidi/RNS

Mint, a former sex worker, now makes jewelry that helps support the work of NightLight International. (RNS photo by Bear Guerra)

A small delicate silver cross hangs around Mint’s neck, a charm she reaches for nervously from time to time as she speaks.

Mint is her nickname, an Anglicized version of the long Thai name she was given and would rather not make public. As a former prostitute, the 24-year-old is concerned about bringing shame to her family, though she says everyone in her village in the northeastern province of Issan —a poor agricultural region along the border with Cambodia and Laos—would assume, or simply know, she had to be doing sex work to send money back home.

Everyone in Bangkok knows how it works. Many of the countless massage parlors, go-go bars and karaoke joints peppered throughout the city are frequently thinly veiled fronts for prostitution. Heavily made-up girls hang around in the periphery of joints catering to Western tourists. Most of the Asian customers, including Thai men, head to brothels and bars elsewhere, away from the sex tourism districts.

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U.S. State Department condemns Nigeria for banning same-sex ‘marriage,’ gay clubs

The Obama administration has made promoting homosexuality around the world a priorityby Kirsten Andersen – Wed Jan 15, 2014

WASHINGTON, D.C., January 15, 2014 (LifeSiteNews.com) – U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and other top diplomatic brass are criticizing the African nation of Nigeria after President Goodluck Jonathan signed a new law banning same-sex “marriage.”

Both Secretary Kerry and his predecessor, Hillary Clinton, have said that promoting the gay “rights” agenda around the world is a “top priority” for U.S. foreign policymakers.

“The United States is deeply concerned by Nigeria’s enactment of the Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act,” Secretary Kerry said in a statement Monday.   “It is inconsistent with Nigeria’s international legal obligations and undermines the democratic reforms and human rights protections enshrined in its 1999 Constitution.”

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Help save true marriage – PM Tony Abbott’s Federal Coalition party room next Monday or Tuesday 10-11 February

Dear friends & family in Christ, Following is a very important email from Roslyn Phillips of Family Voice Australia for your urgent prayer and action. Please note that you can…

Continue ReadingHelp save true marriage – PM Tony Abbott’s Federal Coalition party room next Monday or Tuesday 10-11 February

Christians & Politics – A seminar not to be missed with Guest Speaker Pr Asoka Perera 14th – 16th Feb 2014 / Newspaper article about CTFM

Dear family & friends in Christ, 1) At the recent Rise Up Australia Party National Conference in Melbourne, all who came were tremendously blessed by the message given by the…

Continue ReadingChristians & Politics – A seminar not to be missed with Guest Speaker Pr Asoka Perera 14th – 16th Feb 2014 / Newspaper article about CTFM

South African president Zuma reveals he used to practice witchcraft against white people

Revelation - South Africa's president Jacob Zuma has told how he used to practise witchcraft against white peoplePUBLISHED: 9 January 2014  – By Dan Newling

South Africa’s president Jacob Zuma has told how he used to practise witchcraft against white people.

Speaking in his native Zulu language at a pre-election rally in the country’s rural north, he told a crowd of his voodoo past.

‘I used to practise witchcraft around here, bewitching the Boers during apartheid’, Zuma reportedly said.

Revelation: South Africa’s president Jacob Zuma has told how he used to practise witchcraft against white people

President Zuma spoke in the village of KaNyamazane, in South Africa’s Mpumalanga province on Wednesday.

He promised the crowd that if his African National Congress (ANC) party was re-elected into power with over 90 per cent of the popular vote, he would come back to the village to slaughter cows in celebration.

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Evangelist Benny Hinn’s Return to India for Prayer Conference Sparks Protests, Allegations of ‘Hidden Agenda’

Evangelist Benny HinnBy Nicola Menzie , Christian Post Reporter – January 7, 2014|

Benny Hinn, controversial evangelist known for his “miracle healing crusades,” is one of the main speakers at a Christian Prayer Conference being held this month in Bangalore, India. As with his last visit in 2005, Hinn’s engagement has set off protests among locals concerned that the charismatic preacher will be flying into the country with “a hidden agenda.”

An estimated 2,000 Hindus gathered in Bangalore, in the State of Karnataka, on Friday, Jan. 3 to demand that government officials bar Hinn from attending the Christian Prayer Conference. The event, scheduled for Jan. 15-17, is being hosted by the local Bethel Assembly of God Church.

“Hinn is coming to Karnataka with a hidden agenda of converting Hindus to Christianity as he did when he visited Bangalore in 2005. Several organizations are secretly working for the success of the event,” representatives of protesting groups were quoted as saying.

Bethel Assembly of God Church organizers insist that the Christian Prayer Conference will not be a “healing crusade,” but that ministry participants will provide prayer for the sick, according to the Bangalore Mirror. The publication notes that the entry fee for the prayer meeting is $13 (850 Indian rupees), less than seven percent of the average monthly income in India.

When Hinn visited Bangalore in 2005 for a “Festival of Blessings” event, several court cases were reportedly filed against the evangelist with plaintiffs claiming his purpose for being in the country was to convert locals to Christianity. The U.S. evangelist’s presence was so disturbing to some that protesters reportedly set fires throughout the city, and 10,000 law enforcement officials were deployed at the Jakkur airfield where the crusade was attended by more than 7 million people.

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Project Rescue Setting Sex-Trafficked Captives Free in India

Project Rescue co-founder David Grant at a safe house for children affected by slavery. (Project Rescue)1/6/2014 Gina Meeks

Though many think slavery is a thing of the past, more than 29.8 million people are held captive as slaves today, according to a comprehensive report from Australia-based Walk Free Foundation. The majority of victims are located outside the U.S., with nearly half—14 million—in India.

That’s why Project Rescue focuses on rescuing and restoring sex-trade victims in India. Since its founding in 1997, in the red light district of Mumbai, the ministry has helped more than 24,000 women and children affected by sexual slavery and now serves in 15 locations throughout India, Nepal, Moldova, Bangladesh, Tajikistan and Spain.

Lucy, the director of a girls’ home in North India who did not share her last name for security reasons, explains that mothers who work in brothels often give their children to Project Rescue to temporarily provide custody of the children and bring them to a safe house. There, the children are cared for around the clock and attend Christian schools.

“Every time we take a child out of the brothels, it is physically and spiritually bringing them out of darkness into light,” Lucy says. “It’s been amazing to see the transformational power of Jesus—to see a child who was abused, scared and angry, and watch them over the course of months blossom.”

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