http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/ The International Daily Prayer Bulletin is distributed to many people all across the world via standard mail, and electronically. It seeks to bring together the work that God is doing all over the world, and how, though we are daily surrounded by bad news, there are many good encouraging things happening. Despite the troubled times we live in, God is still in charge. en-us 2005 Tue, 03 Oct 2006 10:57:00 GMT http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=9 http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=9 The BBC website carried the following story in December: "A woman who claims she was healed by prayer had to battle the benefits system to stop her disability payments. Officials said the computer did not 'have a button for miracles'. June Clarke, 56, from Plymouth, Devon, slipped on a wet canteen floor at work in January 2000 and badly damaged her hip, pelvis and lower spine... For six years she experienced progressive, intense pain and was unable to walk more than a few steps... Last year she says she received healing at a Christian conference and within hours she was able to fold away her wheelchair and stop taking painkillers. She says medics were amazed by her recovery... When Mrs Clarke realised she was completely healed she contacted the Industrial Injury Department to put a stop to the benefits she had been receiving, but the payments continued. Mr and Mrs Clarke sent letters and made phone calls, but officials told them the system was unable to recognise an apparently miraculous recovery... After six months, she saw an official government doctor who registered her as fully fit. The allowance was stopped and Mrs Clarke repaid the money. Mr Clarke said: 'We would have loved to have used the money for a good cause, but it wasn't ours to spend.'" Fri, 09 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=8 http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=8 "Adam will never walk again. His legs bear the scars of many operations to repair devastated muscle, tendon, and bones. He suffered these injuries when he was thrown off a fourth-floor balcony at a shopping mall. It's a miracle he survived. What's more shocking is that the person who ordered the attack was his own mother. 'I received a letter from my mom, threatening that she was going to kill me if I did not go back to Islam,' he said. Adam was born and raised a Muslim in Morocco. 'I was raised in a very strict family, I was punished all the time if I failed to comply with the teachings of Islam...' At age 20, Adam moved to Canada and met many Arab Christians. He also started watching Christian TV programmes that challenged the teachings of Islam. That led him to an Internet chat room, called Pal Talk. 'That's when I started gaining a lot of information about Islam... and that's when I was convinced that this religion cannot be from God,' Through Pal Talk and the ministry of father Zakaria Boutrous, Adam discovered the Bible and Jesus Christ. 'I finally felt like I found what I have been looking for all my life. I found a loving God, who died for me on the cross. I dedicated my time to study the Bible and pray and that's how I found my way to Jesus Christ.' In most cases, that would be the happy ending of the story, but fFor (Adam) it was the beginning of many trials. His wife of six years left him and his family began a campaign to force him to return to Islam. They even had him arrested when he went to Morocco for a visit. 'I was tortured every day... after 21 days my mom came and asked me if I have changed my mind, I said that I would never forsake Christ even if she wanted to kill me.' But the most vicious attack came after he returned to Canada. A young Moroccan man, who said he was new in town, asked Adam to take him to a mall downtown so he could meet his cousin. At the mall, Adam shared his faith with the two men. As he was preaching the Gospel, they pushed him off a balcony and he plunged four-stories to the hard floor below. He has spent the last seven months in hospitals. Doctors say he'll be confined to a wheelchair for life. But Adam is not angry with the men who attacked him or his family. 'Even with all the pain, hurt and suffering I still rejoice because I know that I'm believing in the real God,' he said. 'What hurts most (is) knowing that my mom and my whole family believe in the wrong God.' He has a special message for former Muslims now following Jesus Christ. 'Jesus did not promise us virgins and he did not promise us rivers of wine. Instead he said "In the world you will have tribulations but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world." Believe me I felt the hand of God working through all the troubles I went through., I was denied by parents, friends and country, but w With Christ all things are better.'" Thu, 08 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=7 http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=7 "Adam will never walk again. His legs bear the scars of many operations to repair devastated muscle, tendon, and bones. He suffered these injuries when he was thrown off a fourth-floor balcony at a shopping mall. It's a miracle he survived. What's more shocking is that the person who ordered the attack was his own mother. 'I received a letter from my mom, threatening that she was going to kill me if I did not go back to Islam,' he said. Adam was born and raised a Muslim in Morocco. 'I was raised in a very strict family, I was punished all the time if I failed to comply with the teachings of Islam...' At age 20, Adam moved to Canada and met many Arab Christians. He also started watching Christian TV programmes that challenged the teachings of Islam. That led him to an Internet chat room, called Pal Talk. 'That's when I started gaining a lot of information about Islam... and that's when I was convinced that this religion cannot be from God,' Through Pal Talk and the ministry of father Zakaria Boutrous, Adam discovered the Bible and Jesus Christ. 'I finally felt like I found what I have been looking for all my life. I found a loving God, who died for me on the cross. I dedicated my time to study the Bible and pray and that's how I found my way to Jesus Christ.' In most cases, that would be the happy ending of the story, but fFor (Adam) it was the beginning of many trials. His wife of six years left him and his family began a campaign to force him to return to Islam. They even had him arrested when he went to Morocco for a visit. 'I was tortured every day... after 21 days my mom came and asked me if I have changed my mind, I said that I would never forsake Christ even if she wanted to kill me.' But the most vicious attack came after he returned to Canada. A young Moroccan man, who said he was new in town, asked Adam to take him to a mall downtown so he could meet his cousin. At the mall, Adam shared his faith with the two men. As he was preaching the Gospel, they pushed him off a balcony and he plunged four-stories to the hard floor below. He has spent the last seven months in hospitals. Doctors say he'll be confined to a wheelchair for life. But Adam is not angry with the men who attacked him or his family. 'Even with all the pain, hurt and suffering I still rejoice because I know that I'm believing in the real God,' he said. 'What hurts most (is) knowing that my mom and my whole family believe in the wrong God.' He has a special message for former Muslims now following Jesus Christ. 'Jesus did not promise us virgins and he did not promise us rivers of wine. Instead he said "In the world you will have tribulations but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world." Believe me I felt the hand of God working through all the troubles I went through., I was denied by parents, friends and country, but w With Christ all things are better.'" Wed, 07 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=6 http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=6 The daughter of a British imam is under police protection after she received death threats from her family for converting to Christianity. Hannah, aged 32, who uses a pseudonym to hide her identity, told The Times that she became a Christian 15 years ago after she ran away from home at 16 to escape an arranged marriage. The threats against her became more serious last November, prompting police to offer protection... Dr. Michael Nazir-Ali, Bishop of Rochester, who himself had to flee religious persecution in Pakistan, said that the "freedom to believe" is threatened by negative Islamic attitudes to conversion." "I know the Koran says that anyone who goes away from Islam should be killed as an apostate so in some ways my family are following Islam to the word. But I do not think every Muslim would actually act on that," Hannah said. Earlier this year, a Policy Exchange study found that 36 per cent of British Muslims aged between 16 and 24 believed those who converted to another religion should be punished by death." Tue, 06 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=5 http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=5 Revival's Christmas advertising campaign, carried on Asian radio networks, in the Muslim News, and in the free papers in London's East End and Bradford, gave rise to all time record response. The Christmas offer this year was the JESUS Film on DVD – a special edition in eight languages, including Arabic, Urdu, Punjabi, Farsi, and, of course, English. "With over 400 orders at time of going to press, and many requests for a follow-up New Testament, we are overjoyed to see the interest in knowing more about Jesus among the Muslim community", says campaign director, Ian Milmine. The Imam of a West London Islamic centre phoned to ask for, "several copies to show to my students at the mosque." Requests have come in from Muslim schools, doctors and businessmen. Staff at an immigration centre near Dover asked for copies for the inmates awaiting deportation. Several people have already written giving thanks for "such a beautiful film." "Our fervent prayer is that the Lord Jesus Christ will be lifted up in the eyes of these dear people – who are so eager to see the film. Every film was anointed in prayer as it was sent out – we believe the Holy Spirit will do the rest", stressed Ian. Mon, 05 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=4 http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=4 "Three Muslims recently convicted in Indonesia for beheading three teenage Christian girls have been forgiven by the families of their victims. The girls were attacked on Oct. 29, 2005, when they were walking to school. They were beheaded and their heads were left in plastic bags outside a church, along with notes vowing to murder more Christian teenagers. The murderers were recently given sentences ranging from 10 to 19 years. According to Paul Estabrooks, a minister with Open Doors International, the families of the victims have forgiven the murderers despite the lightness of the sentences. Estabrooks said that a fourth victim who survived despite being slashed also forgives the killers. 'Even now' she says, 'I can still feel anger sometimes but it helps me to pray for the killers. I pray that their hearts would be open to God and they'd repent from their sins to never kill again.' Estabrooks encourages Christians to pray for believers in Indonesia, which has been the scene of increasing violence between Muslims and Christians since the late 1990s." Sun, 04 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=3 http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=3 With a population of just over 47 million, Myanmar has isolated itself from the rest of the world for many years, under the rule of an oppresive dictatorship. Around two-thirds of the Burmese people are Bamar. The Bamar are almost entirely Buddhist – only 0.1% are Christian. In addition there are many indigenous minorities with their own languages and cultures. Large proportions of these minorities are Christian (about 3 million), especially the Karen and Chin, many of whom live in isolated areas, and are severely persecuted by the Armed Forces, and forced to flee their homes - many are murdered. Missionaries were expelled in 1966. However, the national church not only survived, it thrived! When the last Assemblies of God missionary left in 1963, the national fellowship had 225 churches with 13,000 members and 105 national ministers. Today it has 1,883 churches, more than 250,000 members and over 2,400 ministers. It's enough to prompt Voice of the Martyrs' Todd Nettleton to urge prayer. "Pray for our Christian brothers and sisters in that country, they are active, they are working, they're spreading the Gospel and I think that's part of why the government is uncomfortable with the growth of the church, because Christians are reaching out and being effective." Sat, 03 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=2 http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=2 The Amity Printing Company, which is affiliated to the Amity Foundation, printed their 50 millionth Bible in mid September, in addition to 9 million New Testaments. In recent years, about 3 million copies of the Bible rolled off the press every year, the company said. The Amity Foundation, the only company authorised to print Bibles in China, said it has 74 sales offices throughout the country, which channel Bibles to nationwide Christians. Bishop Kuang-hsun Ting, chair of the board of the Amity Foundation, said that the printing company would not only produce Bibles for his fellow Christians, but also donate its earnings for charity. Ye Xiaowen, Head of the State Administration for Religious Affairs said that, during the Beijing Olympics 2008, local religious groups will provide help and service to overseas tourists, including Bibles. Ye said that the Chinese government 'respects and protects religious freedom and he "supports printing and publishing Bibles in China.'" Fri, 02 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=1 http://prayerbulletin.revivalmedia.org/index.php?PBNO=1 "Gospel for Asia (GFA) missionaries in Kerala, India, conducted a first-of-its-kind outreach to GFA Radio listeners. It all began in September when GFA radio staff in Kerala decided to conduct a meeting in one of the towns where GFA Radio is heard. They invited hundreds of their listeners to the New Initiative event, and about 100 of them came. Five GFA missionaries, including the district leader, led the programme. The group discussions focused on how to develop a deeper relationship with Christ. The people who attended the meeting were excited and actively participated in the discussions. Many expressed a desire to start a fellowship group, so arrangements were made to have prayer meetings each Saturday in this town. A GFA missionary who works in the area will lead these meetings. In the past, fellowship groups that formed after similar GFA Radio listener meetings have grown into fully-fledged churches within months. GFA Radio broadcasts programmes in 103 languages in 10 countries in and around the Indian Subcontinent. Each year, some 1 million listeners flood GFA's field offices with responses after hearing these radio programmes. Their responses range from expressing interest in learning more about Jesus to requesting prayer for themselves or someone in their family. Gospel for Asia workers pray over each response and reply personally to each individual who contacts the ministry as a result of the broadcasts." Thu, 01 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200