Post by JEM on Nov 24, 2013 15:42:42 GMT
The Lighthouse Prayer Ministry[ MCCPF ] Founded 1954
PRAYER NEWS DECEMBER 2013
From John E Maddams Administrator The Lighthouse Prayer Ministry [ MCCPF ]
35 Four Acres. SAFFRON WALDEN. CB11 3JD jem.lhm@btinternet.com 01799 521529.
The LORD knows those who are His [ 2 Timothy 2 vv 19 ] The military commander leading an attack on the heavily fortified city of Jericho during the campaign led by Joshua to occupy Canaan, felt the need for accurate intelligence on the state of the enemy forces so it was no surprise that Joshua should send in 2 spies to scout out the land especially around the city., [ Joshua 2 v 1 ] But God's strategy for conquering the city did not need such intelligence, so did those spies risk their lives unnecessarily in entering enemy territory [9 vv 2-7] ?
God led the spies to the house of Rahab the Prostitute one of the most despised people there to make contact with a woman who confessed “The LORD your God is the supreme God of the heavens above and the earth below” Rahab's faith, proved genuine by her helping the spies, brought her into the family of God [ Hebrews 11 v 31 ] for she later married Salmon whose son Boaz married Ruth the great grandfather of King David and an ancestor of Jesus Christ. She was on the LORD's side and the LORD sent His men in to rescue her.
The LORD knows his own, and He cares for those who trust him [Nahum 1 verse 7 NIV ] God sent the 2 spies to save Rahab “For the Lord...will not forsake His faithful ones” [ Psalm 37 v 28 NIV ] and their inheritance will endure for ever [ v 18 ] We all are in enemy territory. We are in the world but not of it, for we are citizens of another Kingdom, the Kingdom of Heaven, working behind enemy lines. Let us make sure we are wearing the invisible armour of the forces of God. [ Ephesians 6 ]
PASTOR JACKSON CHANDA
is a pastor evangelist in Zambia who 11 years ago went with his young wife to pioneer a new church in the Nchelenge area of Northern Zambia and whom God has led to establish since 4 congregations, one on the mainland and the others on 3 islands on Lake Mweru in the area that drains the lake into the river that is one of the tributaries of the great River Congo.
After about 6 years evangelising his mainland congregation, a community church, was established with elders and then trained lay preachers then they began a series of now 4 annual missions on the lake islands
The 3 congregations each have a pastor in charge and lay preachers. Nchelenge is the name of a town and a district of villages. There are a few other churches and a lot of Jehovah's witnesses congregations and in the 2013 Spring Mission 50 of those JW's converted to Christ and it was necessary to provide them with an accurate Bible translation to replace their New World heretical version. We have been enabled to fund Bibles and Hymnals for them. This area was evangelized by Brethren missionaries in colonial times. We were involved from the beginning providing evangelistic literature and cassettes for use in the outreach. For several years we have helped fund the education of 10 Aids orphans children, and funded a bore hole for another home of orphans after an outbreak of typhoid. The lady who led that has since died and her orphans passed on to other foster parents.
Since then God has enabled us to provide Bibles in English and in Bemba, hymnals, books, Bible study commentaries, cassettes and payment for medical care for the pastor and help in funding food for the orphans. Most of those who 3 years ago offered to help the orphans have since moved on leaving us with £450 a year to find to educate 6.
3 years ago we funded the freight and overland haulage costs for a delivery of equipment and skill teaching aid packs from Tools With A Mission at Ipswich in Suffolk, from which they created a scheme of vocational training of young people in a number of small centres teaching them craft and trading skills.
The Bemba Bibles are obtained from the Scripture Gift Mission Bookshop in Zambia from stock funded by a Christian Publishing Trust in Scotland. We have been enabled to supply 50 more for other converts from the Spring Mission but still 100 more are requested and they will cost £650. WE HIT A SNAG. The bank their Director Kelvin drove to in order to collect the money refused to encash to Moneygram transfer we had sent. All due to some petty official not being willing to co-operate. We had no trouble last time using that bank.However the money has now been successfully retrieve and sent on to Kelvin at his request through the Brethren mission, Echoes of Service based at Bath with which he and his wife have a credit account. We will now be able to use this method in future to send money for further Bibles, and we still have 100 more to provide for people who made commitments at the Spring Crusade last March, That will be another £625 needed.
BELOW IS AN INSPIRED WORD OF CHALLENGE FROM PASTOR JACKSON CHANDA
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THE REASON FOR PROCLAIMING GOD'S MESSAGE TO ANYONE WHO WILL LISTEN TO IT by any means,
From the Prophecy of Ezekiel chapter 33 v 7 – 9 "Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me. When I say to the wicked, `O wicked man, you will surely die,' and you do not speak out to dissuade him from his ways, that wicked man will die for his sin, and I will hold you accountable for his blood. But if you do warn the wicked man to turn from his ways and he does not do so, he will die for his sin, but you will have saved yourself.
You don't hire a watchman to fight off robbers single-handed; he is responsible for sounding the alarm. God assigns Ezekiel the watchman's role, here and earlier (3:18). It's tragic when someone dies for his or her sins, but when he or she dies without being warned, that is inexcusable--for the watchman was assigned to offer a chance to repent.
Shake off your spiritual lethargy . Work with all your might to save souls in your land, and our own souls here in Zambia. It is not time now to cry “Peace and safety” It is not silver tongued orators that are needed to give this message and warning to this dying world , The truth in all it's pointed severity must be spoken. Men and women of action are needed, who will labour with earnest ceaseless energy for the purifying of the Church and the warning of the world. A great work is to be accomplished: broader plans must be laid; a voice must go forth to arouse the nations. People whose faith is weak and wavering are not the ones to carry forward the work at this important time of crisis. We need the courage of heroes and martyrs!
NCHELENGE - TOGETHER WE SURVIVE GROUP - IN ZAMBIA
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In April 2013 we funded the freight and haulage costs of a consignment of tools, equipment and training sets to this group in Northern Zambia from Tools With A Mission at Ipswich in Suffolk. They arrived in July and are making a difference to unemployed and disabled young people. Nkuba Davies Chola their Secretary has now upgraded from a pen to a typewriter and his last letter to us was one of his first efforts. The Group now operate centres in 11 villages and more people are being attracted to them. They will clearly need more help as time goes on and are looking for organisations and individuals that could help them.
ANGOLA Please pray during November 2013 for Brian Howden of Helion's Bumpstead Gospel Mission who has gone out to Angola again on missionary service. He spends some time of most years there but last year was ill some time with malaria. So pray for his health and that his work there will be helpful. He has many practical and spiritual works that he will be looking to complete. There's a lot of bush travel involved this time round, so he will definitely value our prayers Contact their mission on www.hbgospelhall.com
NIGERIA.
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We have been enabled this autumn to supply 100 Bibles, at £1 each from the Christian bookshop in Ibadan recommended to us by George Verwer, founder of Operation Mobilization to a new congregation set in a market in Ibadan converted earlier this year from evangelistic work by one of the city centre churches.
We have supplied another 120 to the student group at Ibadan University and Pastor Peter Nzem requires 300 Bibles for the outreach of his church in Delta State and Evangelist Emekas Samuel needs 300 for his ministry where many Muslims are defecting to Christ as they became disillusioned with Islam in the wake of the violent Islamists. To meet each of these would cost £650 on top of the £750 we need to complete requests from Spring 2013.
MALAWI
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We also help an Orphanage in Malawi through the SPAC in Scotland and have been supplying about 10 Bibles a year from a £50 grant that becomes available in December. It is a never ending struggle though as they took in 40 new orphans this year and their hostels have over 300 in all.
GHANA
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We were asked by PATRICK GYAM for £250 for a replacement wheel chair. ROBERT AMUZU a Christian business man we helped through school 20 years ago hopes to visit him in late January being prevented from doing so in October to see what could be done locally without need of money from UK. He hopes to send him some money meanwhile and his phone number so someone can ring him back and make contact.
ATTAH DWOMOH BOATENG of 3128,ADUM-KUMASIGHANA Is a young Christian, aged 25, who engages in a ministry to children in the city of Kumasi at a Methodist Church. Attah has been studying Early Childhood Education at University of Education, Winneba and has just entered the second year but has run out of money and has been expelled. If anyone has a solution to this problem please contact Attah by email to atta.dwomohboteng@facbook.com
He wrote in October “ There comes a time in life when you'll have to leave everything behind and start something new. But never forget the ones who stood by your sides, especially the ones who never gave up on you.“
ETHIOPIA
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We had request from PASTOR KIBRU DADA for computer equipment for 4 churches he is responsible for in Ethiopia and we passed that to REV. DR WAKSEYOUM the President of the Evangelical Ethiopian Mekane Yesus Church which has about 5 million members and he is visited them in early October and he has sorted the matter out and we will not be contacting Pastor Dada or Ayele Haliso anymore.
SOMALI
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Please continue praying about S, a little girl who was about to be removed from RHA School in order to become the main carer for her grandmother. The Head Teacher has had a conversation with her mother Mrs A . She has promised to try to organise things so that she and her two daughters can return to Hargeisa early in January. She sees the wisdom of allowing both girls to continue their education. She will try to arrange for an adult to take care of her mother.
Let's thank the LORD for the timings involved which made it possible for the Head Teacher to speak with the mother face to face before the family leaves for Mogadishu and that Mrs A was willing to be persuaded to give both her daughters to proceed with their education.
Please do continue to bring the matter of S's future before the LORD in prayer. Pray that, having made up her mind what is best for S, Mrs A will not be persuaded otherwise in the course of her sojourn in Mogadishu, that mother and two daughters will return to Hargeisa on 10th January as promised and that in due course the operation on S's eye will be successful.
Please also continue to pray against Female Genitalia Mutilation. A Channel 4 programme brought it to attention again. Please pray that we will know what steps we can take to try to ensure that the girls at RHA School are not subjected to it.
Thank you so much for praying and thank You LORD for hearing and answering our prayers.
With all good wishes, Margaret
ZAMBIA
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We have received a request for people to write as pen friends to a murderer probably doing “life”
FRANK CHILUFYA. He is a young married man with two children, whom he may never see again nor they him. He is incarcerated in the Maximum Security Prison in Kabwe, hundreds of miles from where he lived.
His wife and children cannot afford to visit him, and the children are destitute and unable to attend school. Frank is a Christian now but was not when he murdered. He is filled with remorse for what happened
He had attended a party with a friend. They had both got drunk and then they quarrelled and then that led to a fight, and Frank's fist knocked his friend's head against a wall, On arrival at hospital the friend was dead. In UK it would have been a charge of manslaughter, But there it was capital murder and Frank is on Death Row, They have not executed anyone for over 20 years but to be on this level of security is certain to result in a long sentence in prison. Further more his children are called names by locals on the streets, mocked bullied, abused and humiliated because of what their father did. In prison Frank was introduced to Jesus Christ for the first time in his life and has become a Christian, All he has asked for is that I write to him as a mentor from time to time, and could he have a reference study Bible, and could anyone send him Christian magazines to inspire and encourage which when read he can share with other prisoners. I have written and a Bible has been sent. If anyone else can help with inspirational magazines please send them by printed paper direct to FRANK CHILUFYA. Maximum Security Prison. Death Row Ward, P O Box 20915, Kabwe
Zambia. Central Africa. Sent by surface rate they should get there in 8-9 weeks.
JOSEPH S MUSONDA, is another Christian long term prisoner also at the Maximum Security Prison in Kabwe, where he is a trusty, working in the education and training centre teaching English and Science to GCSE standard. We send him a diary and a calendar each year and recently we able to afford to send him some second hand Bible Study commentary booklets which he makes available at their Christian library. He could use more such material but if you can help please send it direct and not through us as we can seldom afford the costs. He would appreciate a thick warm shirt size 16, socks, and a pair of shoes size 9 – 10, a towel, and some soap, disposable razors, and packets of milk powder. If anyone feels like helping him. The address is through the Roman Catholic chaplain to:- JOSEPH S MUSONDA. c/o Father George Biju, S.V.D. Formation House, PO Box 81158, Kabwe, ZAMBIA. Central Africa.
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FACEBOOK MINISTRY
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We now put quite a lot of material linked to our web board site www.lhpm.proboards.com on FACEBOOK Social network through my account on it and to accompany posts on other web site user pages, and on other Websites on the Internet. Including teaching material, slogans, texts, pictures. It is useful means of ministry. Friends noting anything to do with me, us, or Saffron Walden Baptist Church or Sewards End Baptist Mission on BEBO.com should avoid accessing it as your monitor screens are likely to freeze up. BEBO.com has been bought out and is being reconstructed and material on it previously may well be put back on it but it is not at present accessible.
INDIA. On FACEBOOK we are also linked to VIJAY KUMAR SINGH at his request. He lives in New Delhi is much into the ideas of one world government, and green issues to save the planet. But he receives out Christian material, He is 48, married, works as a lawyer, has 2134 Facebook friends, and is a Sanatan Hindu.
OPERATION UTTLESFORD has continued as Ken Bedward and I have delivered VIA Gospel magazine to as many homes as we can throughout Uttlesford. Over 22,000 in 5 years.
VIA is published, one edition per year, but in millions of copies in several languages funded by Christians in Canada We pay carriage costs from Yorkshire to Walden at £23 for 2000. Each copy provides 18 pages of stories and testimony linked to Scripture Verses from the New King James Version Bible that proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ, and offers to any enquirer to contact the depot in Yorkshire for a free New Testament with Psalms, and a free Bible Study Course.
We also offer on a label on the front the services of the Christian Enquiry Agency which is funded by the main stream UK denominations and provide an address to write to for a gospel and advice, an email address and a phone number . We promote Premier Christian Radio and a Telephone ministry with follow-up facility based in Northern Ireland and 10 Christian websites including Churches Together in GB Looking for God, which is the site of. the UCB Christian Radio who publish The Word for Today quarterly Bible Study booklets, Christian Apologetics Research Ministry, VIA Magazineonline with a lot of previous editions of VIA available, Bring the Word of Life who offer a lot of teaching material in various languages and our own web board site www.lhpm.proboards.com, and usually a local church or ecumenical site. From the hits to our site we can get some idea of the response.
The normal daily average hits to the site is 40. Mainly to archives and the family tree. After each visit over the two 24 hour periods afterwards this always increased markedly varying from an increase of
from a minimum of 3 to a maximum of 189 and an average increase of 56.
On August 23 we had 229 hits on the site, the first time it has passed 200 in a 24 hour period since we launched the site.
Annually we monitor and audit all the articles and all show an increase showing people looking at a wide range of material.
Three Reasons Why You Need Jesus is one of the most popular with 740 hits.
Seeking Christians in Saffron Walden 455 . The message in Polish has had 600 hits'
Story of Sewards End Baptist Mission 956 hits.
Our site link to Dunmow Baptist Church registered 118 hits apart from appearing on our labels to 3200 homes.
We have delivered to the new Parish of Flitch Green with close on 650 homes there. An estate begun 10 years ago with a Community Hall and a Junior School but still awaiting a promised pub, post office, surgery, shops, and playing fields
All the hundreds of houses on the Woodlands Park Estate West Dunmow have been delivered to and hundreds more have yet to be built there. Work continues including setting out of the foundations of more.
North of Dunmow in the future a new town for 9000 people is planned on the Easton Lodge estate now owned by a developer. Beyond the Uttlesford border a lot of building is taking place overwhelming many small village parish churches
The Parish Church at Takeley & Lt Canfield now hold a monthly service at the school at PRIOR'S GREEN, and deliver monthly magazine to all 500 homes in 1 of which a Men's Fellowship meets monthly. The new curate lives on the estate.
At Felsted ,Colin the vicar holds an after school club at the school at FLITCH GREEN and Felsted Church are expanding their premises
After Watchouse Green, Bannister Green and High Roding during October we have suspended operations until the Sprig of 2014, probably April, we will be targeting Leaden Roding, Good Easter. Willow Green, Ford End, Helions Bumpstesd, and Wimbish Green and
We are also covering new homes in Saffron Walden as they become occupied . So most of the homes off Peaslands Road have been done except the former Bell College apartments which are security sealed. Recently Water Tower Place and Vanoli Close have been completed. We are ready to do those as yet unoccupied or still being built including the Churchill Retirement Apartments in Radwinter Road, The Avenue off Debden Road, the former Sun Inn site in Gold Street, the Caton's Lane development and the estate opposite De Vigier Avenue.
We also left modern Gospels of John in bus shelters village produce stands, and kiosk libraries linked for the purpose of follow up with the Open Air Mission.
After completing Uttlesford next Spring, we hope to go just over the border and do Great Bardfield Great Chishill, Heydon, Duxford, Whittlesford and Linton by car, and when Ken is away on holiday etc I may do some of the housing estates at Sawston getting there with my bus pass.
We have sent a few packets abroad this year as small donations have come in but at the moment we have no balance in hand now. Earlier in the summer we supplied 50 Hymnals bought within Zambia for the converted JW's in Nchelenge. We have stocks yet to send and don't need anymore.
Donations may be made payable to The Lighthouse Prayer Ministry and sent to 35 Four Acres Saffron Walden CB11 3JD
To gain Gift Aid make payable to Saffron Walden Baptist Church and send them to Mr Quentin Dawe, 2 Beeches Close Saffron Walden CB11 4BT. Advising him to pas the money on to The Lighthouse Prayer Ministry
ARAB VISION We ask you to learn more about this vitally important work by accessing www.arabvision.org
While the eyes of the world are focused on countries in the Middle East such as Syria and Egypt, developments elsewhere in the Arab World are left almost unnoticed. For more than 10 years Arab Vision has been producing evangelistic TV programs for Algeria, many of them in the language of the Kabyle people who live in the mountainous region in the north east of Algeria known as Kabylia.
The Kabyle people are often more open to learn about and accept the Christian faith partly because, as a minority, they have never welcomed the Arab majority nor the Arabic language and the accompanying religion, Islam. Reports about the numbers of Christians vary greatly. Some estimates count hundreds of thousands of new believers in the last decade and a minimum of 300 new churches.
Islamic scholars however state that the ‘problem of Christianization’ is not limited to Kabylia only, but is growing in the rest of the country as well - a problem we would like to reword as a blessing!
The Algerian government prefers to trivialize the growth in the number of Christians, and emphasizes that particularly youth are easily influenced temporarily, enticed by scholarships abroad inexchange for converting to Christianity.
Our faith influenced by Early Church History?
Our books on church history have a tendency to focus on Europe in regard to the beginnings of our history. After looking at the history of the early church in the bible itself, we often quickly jump to ‘Rome’ as if that is where our history began. Are we aware at all of the deep influence of the African theologians on our church history and on our Christian beliefs today?
Arab Vision is planning the production of a TV program series in the Arabic languages of Libya and Tunisia, presenting major church leaders who originated in those countries. North-Africa, now predominantly Islamic, can be proud of its Christian heritage. This has deeply influenced the
theology of the whole Christian church. The apostle Mark was born in Libya; just like the heretical Arius by the way. St Augustine was from Tunisia; Tertullian and bishop Cyprian were from Carthage, Tunisia as well.
By presenting the history and ideas of these and other church leaders, we have a great opportunity to present the Gospel to the Arab world. Major themes like original sin, Trinity, redemption through Jesus Christ, can be explained to the audiences in a very natural way, in the context of presenting the objective history of the North African church. Not only will we be able to present the Gospel naturally and clearly to the audience, but we can also show how these countries flourished while still being Christian nations, and that Tunisians, Algerians and Libyans can be proud of their own Christian history.
Also Check out www. theresurgence.com and www.pastor-training.org [ they are doing excellent work training pastors in Madagascar, South Sudan, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Zambia,and India.
LANGUAGE RECORDINGS UK, P O Box 197 High Wycombe, Bucks HP1 3YY have in the past 4 years enabled us, as God has led people to fund, to supply 8 clockwork Cassette/CD Players with cassettes and CD’s and illustrated posters,for Angola , Cameroon, Ethiopia, Malawi, Kenya, Senegal [2] and Zambia. for teams willing to reach out to remote places by reaching communities in native dialects . These teams reach jungle regions where the people cannot read nor write, where the forest canopy prevents using solar panels, where there is no electricity, and batteries are unavailable. opportunities out there for 300 more machines. The Senegal machines also have solar panels.
SOUTH AFRICA BREADLINE AFRICA buys up from Shipping Freight Companies old storage containers and cuts out window spaces and makes them into Classrooms. Libraries. Toilets, Soup Kitchens for use in Africa. We helped them last year and hope to do so again. Interested in helping them? Then contact 29 Lower Brook Street. IPSWICH Suffolk, IPA 1AQ , 01473 .259048 Email info@breadlineafrica.org.uk
TIBET We have funded GOOD NEWS a short wave weekly programme in Tibetan to Tibet, Bhutan and North India
UGANDA. We were able to fund the planting of some more trees at the end of 2011, and hope to do so again later in 2012 through AFRINSPIRE whose General Secretary is a former Baptist Minister They supply computers and agricultural equipment to Uganda. Our interest is in trees. We already have two small woods on the Congo-Ugandan border, We've funded a total in 15 countries of 7265. Afrinspire operates in Uganda, Zambia, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Sudan and Tanzania. They also supply medicines, & school supplies, and support literacy and education. Charity No 1095001. 22 Melvin Way, Histon. Cambridge. CB24 9HY. www.afrinspire.org.uk email office@afrinspire.org.uk ( 01223 233367
Let us continue to pray for Mwenya Uganda meaning Smile Uganda, a NGO agency set up to provide a mobile dispensary with dental and medical clinics. P O Box 9237 Kampala Uganda. Any sum would be appreciated £2
would provide a mosquito net. In the UK contact I_cuddon-large@hotmail.co.uk or via the Facebook page www.facebook.com/Mwenya-Uganda.
Let us continue to pray for Richard and Sarah Lubale of Alpha Childcare & Community Development PO Box 1306 Jinja Uganda which helps the victims of AIDS providing a caring service for victims, hostels and education for Aids orphans, and running Aids Awareness Courses in schools, colleges and factories. We encouraged the founders of this ministry to form an NGO to attract overseas support, and Spurgeon's Child Care, Work Aid, Christian Relief UK and a Dutch charity came to their aid. They also have 2 sons and a daughter to raise.
UKRAINE Let us continue to pray for Sergie Ivaniuk who after a 3 year silence wrote to say he had been working in the Crimea. He was living in a tent and each evening read the English Bible we sent him years ago. He acquired a Welsh one and wants to learn Welsh. Earlier this year his Mum died. We have not heard from him lately. .
ZAMBIA
Pastor Dominic Mulalambuka is a Chaplain with the Zambian army who can recycle Gideon New Testaments or any other pocket size NT's If anyone can supply him direct do so to Pastor Dominic Mulalambuka. C/O TUG-ARGAN BARRACKS, ALPHA COMPANY , POSTAL AGENCY NDOLA ZAMBIA
NORTH KOREA We have started 2013 by sending a grant to Open Doors Mission for a 48 hour Bible Study Course for a North Korean Christian refugee converted in China going back into the Communist Republic to witness at great personal risk. North Korea 1st on the list of countries of severe persecution to Christians. Continue to pray for that agent behind enemy lines.
SECOND HAND POSTCARDS for sale to raise money to keep Mission Aviation Fellowship Aircraft in the air are still acceptable by Mrs Heather Yule 10 Calverden Road RAMSGATE Kent CT12 6JU.
BRAZIL Charlotte Piek born and brought up in South Africa whose parents are members of Thaxted Baptist Church is with her husband a member of Bishop's Stortford Community Church and works at the Christian School at Takeley where she also runs a Youth Alpha Course.
She is UK Co-ordinator of MENINADANCA [ UK Charity number 10956638 ] The Lord has laid upon her a passion to save vulnerable girls from Prostitution in the towns of Brazil along Highway BR 116.. The name of this mission means Girl Dance and includes a Dancing Training Centre at a safe house called the Pink House established at one of the smaller towns between the great cities on this Highway where girls as young as 6 are bought or abducted by trafficker gangs and groomed and raped and prepared for a life of perverted sex, drug addiction, and sexually transmitted disease including AIDS, She shared her shock of seeing men piling out of a Church service and picking up such vulnerable kids to go and have sex with them.
Like many Christians in Britain at the height of the Afro-American slave trade who saw no wrong in selling and owning black savages unaware that they were fully human, people for whom Christ died,so these men in Brazil have yet to be re-educated,
MENINADANCA seeks to give these girls a sense of their real value and change their lives for the better and bring salvation through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. It is hard because some come from families of 4 or 5 generations of prostitution. To maintain the Pink House work needs £4000 a month, and they would like to establish similar safe houses in 2 more towns for which they will need to recruit new staff.
Their work has been highlighted on a Panorama programme and in a book out this autumn HIGHWAY TO HELL They can accept Gift Aided donations, to MENINADANCA PO Box 11116 Stansted, CM24 8WL and supply a weekly email update for prayer supporters Website www.meninadanca.org Email charlotte.piek@menindanca.org Phone +44(0) 7738 234042.
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC of CONGO From the AIDS pandemic and the long civil wars there are hundreds of thousands of orphan children many of whom have congregated in Kinshassa the Capital. Pastor Assan Biruli of SPAC has a vision to take over from a developer a large building and furnishing it as an orphanage and centre for street children. We have sent a donation and can convey any others This project is to be in Eastern Congo where the Civil war has finally come to an end.
GIFT AID.
If giving us cheques If you wish to have Gift Aid added please make them out to Saffron Walden Baptist Church put them in an envelope instructing that Gift Aid is to be added and that it is for The Lighthouse Prayer Ministry and send it then to me [ or place in the SWBC offering bag ] . Cheques at other times from people not able to add Gift Aid can be made out to The Lighthouse Prayer Ministry. Send to me at 35 Four Acres, Saffron Walden, CB11 3JD.
With my kindest regards & appreciation. All praise & credit to God for enabling us. JOHN
We close with this article passed on to us.
We ought to be encouraged to seek the increase of the church of God.
I have brought this subject forward because I may be addressing some brothers and sisters who see the tide running out in their churches, and they are very sad as they watch the ebb. I have not seen much of that sort of thing, myself, but the least ebb troubles me and I go before God in prayer about it. I cannot bear to lose one of the members of my church, or to see one of them turn aside from the company of the faithful. Yet there is another side to this picture and we must not shut our eyes to it.
IN THE CHURCH WE SHOULD LOOK FOR INCREASE
There are new converts yet to come in, as says my text—these children which Zion is to have, after she has lost the others.
And, brothers and sisters, these new converts are necessary. No church can be healthy without the constant infusion of fresh blood. Unless there are new converts, you cannot see the church built up.
1.Increase is needful, or what will become of the church?
2.Increase is prayed for, and God hears prayer.
3.Increase can only come through God, but he will give it, and be glorified by it.
4.Increase is promised in the text, and in many other Scriptures.
5.Increase is to be labored for with agony of heart. “As soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth children.”
So you see that the church needs new converts and, therefore, she ought to have every preparation for their reception.
IN THE CHURCH INCREASE SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR
There should always be an arrangement in every church to afford a welcome to the coming ones. Everything should be in readiness for the reception of the newborn converts.
1.By intense united prayer for it.
2.By the preaching of the gospel, which is the means of it.
3.By every form of Christian effort which may lead to it.
4.By enlarging our bounds: “The place is too narrow for me.” To provide a larger audience-chamber may be a true act of faith.
5.By welcoming all true-born children of God: who say, each one, “make room for me to dwell in.”
Churches need converts and they should be on the lookout for them, and all who love the Lord should labor earnestly on their behalf. All of us who believe in Jesus should seek, as God helps us according to our individual talent, to bring others to the dear Savior's feet.
IN THE CHURCH INCREASE OFTEN CAUSES SURPRISE
Take comfort then, beloved, from the fact that whatever the decreases in the church may be, we may also expect increase—and in their number, the converts will surprise us—and in their being converted at all, we shall greatly marvel!
1.Because of the time: “Behold, I was left alone.”
2.Because of their number: “Who has borne me these?”
3.Because of their former character: “These, where had they been?” They were not after all so very far off. Some of them were quite near to us and near to the kingdom, in the family, school, class, congregation, or inquiry-room. Others were far off in irreligion, and open sin. Others were opposed through rationalism, superstition, or self-righteousness.
4.Because of their good nurture: “Who has brought up these?”
5.Because of their eagerness and courage. “Will yet say in your ears, the place is too narrow for me.”
6.Because of their constancy. “Make room for me to dwell in.” They come to remain.
Where had they been? Say rather, “Where had we been?” that we had not long ago looked after them, and welcomed them.
This post was adapted from Charles Spurgeon’s sermon, Church Increase.He originally preached this message on August 18, 1881, at the Metropolitan Tabernacle.
PRAYER NEWS DECEMBER 2013
From John E Maddams Administrator The Lighthouse Prayer Ministry [ MCCPF ]
35 Four Acres. SAFFRON WALDEN. CB11 3JD jem.lhm@btinternet.com 01799 521529.
The LORD knows those who are His [ 2 Timothy 2 vv 19 ] The military commander leading an attack on the heavily fortified city of Jericho during the campaign led by Joshua to occupy Canaan, felt the need for accurate intelligence on the state of the enemy forces so it was no surprise that Joshua should send in 2 spies to scout out the land especially around the city., [ Joshua 2 v 1 ] But God's strategy for conquering the city did not need such intelligence, so did those spies risk their lives unnecessarily in entering enemy territory [9 vv 2-7] ?
God led the spies to the house of Rahab the Prostitute one of the most despised people there to make contact with a woman who confessed “The LORD your God is the supreme God of the heavens above and the earth below” Rahab's faith, proved genuine by her helping the spies, brought her into the family of God [ Hebrews 11 v 31 ] for she later married Salmon whose son Boaz married Ruth the great grandfather of King David and an ancestor of Jesus Christ. She was on the LORD's side and the LORD sent His men in to rescue her.
The LORD knows his own, and He cares for those who trust him [Nahum 1 verse 7 NIV ] God sent the 2 spies to save Rahab “For the Lord...will not forsake His faithful ones” [ Psalm 37 v 28 NIV ] and their inheritance will endure for ever [ v 18 ] We all are in enemy territory. We are in the world but not of it, for we are citizens of another Kingdom, the Kingdom of Heaven, working behind enemy lines. Let us make sure we are wearing the invisible armour of the forces of God. [ Ephesians 6 ]
PASTOR JACKSON CHANDA
is a pastor evangelist in Zambia who 11 years ago went with his young wife to pioneer a new church in the Nchelenge area of Northern Zambia and whom God has led to establish since 4 congregations, one on the mainland and the others on 3 islands on Lake Mweru in the area that drains the lake into the river that is one of the tributaries of the great River Congo.
After about 6 years evangelising his mainland congregation, a community church, was established with elders and then trained lay preachers then they began a series of now 4 annual missions on the lake islands
The 3 congregations each have a pastor in charge and lay preachers. Nchelenge is the name of a town and a district of villages. There are a few other churches and a lot of Jehovah's witnesses congregations and in the 2013 Spring Mission 50 of those JW's converted to Christ and it was necessary to provide them with an accurate Bible translation to replace their New World heretical version. We have been enabled to fund Bibles and Hymnals for them. This area was evangelized by Brethren missionaries in colonial times. We were involved from the beginning providing evangelistic literature and cassettes for use in the outreach. For several years we have helped fund the education of 10 Aids orphans children, and funded a bore hole for another home of orphans after an outbreak of typhoid. The lady who led that has since died and her orphans passed on to other foster parents.
Since then God has enabled us to provide Bibles in English and in Bemba, hymnals, books, Bible study commentaries, cassettes and payment for medical care for the pastor and help in funding food for the orphans. Most of those who 3 years ago offered to help the orphans have since moved on leaving us with £450 a year to find to educate 6.
3 years ago we funded the freight and overland haulage costs for a delivery of equipment and skill teaching aid packs from Tools With A Mission at Ipswich in Suffolk, from which they created a scheme of vocational training of young people in a number of small centres teaching them craft and trading skills.
The Bemba Bibles are obtained from the Scripture Gift Mission Bookshop in Zambia from stock funded by a Christian Publishing Trust in Scotland. We have been enabled to supply 50 more for other converts from the Spring Mission but still 100 more are requested and they will cost £650. WE HIT A SNAG. The bank their Director Kelvin drove to in order to collect the money refused to encash to Moneygram transfer we had sent. All due to some petty official not being willing to co-operate. We had no trouble last time using that bank.However the money has now been successfully retrieve and sent on to Kelvin at his request through the Brethren mission, Echoes of Service based at Bath with which he and his wife have a credit account. We will now be able to use this method in future to send money for further Bibles, and we still have 100 more to provide for people who made commitments at the Spring Crusade last March, That will be another £625 needed.
BELOW IS AN INSPIRED WORD OF CHALLENGE FROM PASTOR JACKSON CHANDA
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THE REASON FOR PROCLAIMING GOD'S MESSAGE TO ANYONE WHO WILL LISTEN TO IT by any means,
From the Prophecy of Ezekiel chapter 33 v 7 – 9 "Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me. When I say to the wicked, `O wicked man, you will surely die,' and you do not speak out to dissuade him from his ways, that wicked man will die for his sin, and I will hold you accountable for his blood. But if you do warn the wicked man to turn from his ways and he does not do so, he will die for his sin, but you will have saved yourself.
You don't hire a watchman to fight off robbers single-handed; he is responsible for sounding the alarm. God assigns Ezekiel the watchman's role, here and earlier (3:18). It's tragic when someone dies for his or her sins, but when he or she dies without being warned, that is inexcusable--for the watchman was assigned to offer a chance to repent.
Shake off your spiritual lethargy . Work with all your might to save souls in your land, and our own souls here in Zambia. It is not time now to cry “Peace and safety” It is not silver tongued orators that are needed to give this message and warning to this dying world , The truth in all it's pointed severity must be spoken. Men and women of action are needed, who will labour with earnest ceaseless energy for the purifying of the Church and the warning of the world. A great work is to be accomplished: broader plans must be laid; a voice must go forth to arouse the nations. People whose faith is weak and wavering are not the ones to carry forward the work at this important time of crisis. We need the courage of heroes and martyrs!
NCHELENGE - TOGETHER WE SURVIVE GROUP - IN ZAMBIA
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In April 2013 we funded the freight and haulage costs of a consignment of tools, equipment and training sets to this group in Northern Zambia from Tools With A Mission at Ipswich in Suffolk. They arrived in July and are making a difference to unemployed and disabled young people. Nkuba Davies Chola their Secretary has now upgraded from a pen to a typewriter and his last letter to us was one of his first efforts. The Group now operate centres in 11 villages and more people are being attracted to them. They will clearly need more help as time goes on and are looking for organisations and individuals that could help them.
ANGOLA Please pray during November 2013 for Brian Howden of Helion's Bumpstead Gospel Mission who has gone out to Angola again on missionary service. He spends some time of most years there but last year was ill some time with malaria. So pray for his health and that his work there will be helpful. He has many practical and spiritual works that he will be looking to complete. There's a lot of bush travel involved this time round, so he will definitely value our prayers Contact their mission on www.hbgospelhall.com
NIGERIA.
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We have been enabled this autumn to supply 100 Bibles, at £1 each from the Christian bookshop in Ibadan recommended to us by George Verwer, founder of Operation Mobilization to a new congregation set in a market in Ibadan converted earlier this year from evangelistic work by one of the city centre churches.
We have supplied another 120 to the student group at Ibadan University and Pastor Peter Nzem requires 300 Bibles for the outreach of his church in Delta State and Evangelist Emekas Samuel needs 300 for his ministry where many Muslims are defecting to Christ as they became disillusioned with Islam in the wake of the violent Islamists. To meet each of these would cost £650 on top of the £750 we need to complete requests from Spring 2013.
MALAWI
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We also help an Orphanage in Malawi through the SPAC in Scotland and have been supplying about 10 Bibles a year from a £50 grant that becomes available in December. It is a never ending struggle though as they took in 40 new orphans this year and their hostels have over 300 in all.
GHANA
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We were asked by PATRICK GYAM for £250 for a replacement wheel chair. ROBERT AMUZU a Christian business man we helped through school 20 years ago hopes to visit him in late January being prevented from doing so in October to see what could be done locally without need of money from UK. He hopes to send him some money meanwhile and his phone number so someone can ring him back and make contact.
ATTAH DWOMOH BOATENG of 3128,ADUM-KUMASIGHANA Is a young Christian, aged 25, who engages in a ministry to children in the city of Kumasi at a Methodist Church. Attah has been studying Early Childhood Education at University of Education, Winneba and has just entered the second year but has run out of money and has been expelled. If anyone has a solution to this problem please contact Attah by email to atta.dwomohboteng@facbook.com
He wrote in October “ There comes a time in life when you'll have to leave everything behind and start something new. But never forget the ones who stood by your sides, especially the ones who never gave up on you.“
ETHIOPIA
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We had request from PASTOR KIBRU DADA for computer equipment for 4 churches he is responsible for in Ethiopia and we passed that to REV. DR WAKSEYOUM the President of the Evangelical Ethiopian Mekane Yesus Church which has about 5 million members and he is visited them in early October and he has sorted the matter out and we will not be contacting Pastor Dada or Ayele Haliso anymore.
SOMALI
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Please continue praying about S, a little girl who was about to be removed from RHA School in order to become the main carer for her grandmother. The Head Teacher has had a conversation with her mother Mrs A . She has promised to try to organise things so that she and her two daughters can return to Hargeisa early in January. She sees the wisdom of allowing both girls to continue their education. She will try to arrange for an adult to take care of her mother.
Let's thank the LORD for the timings involved which made it possible for the Head Teacher to speak with the mother face to face before the family leaves for Mogadishu and that Mrs A was willing to be persuaded to give both her daughters to proceed with their education.
Please do continue to bring the matter of S's future before the LORD in prayer. Pray that, having made up her mind what is best for S, Mrs A will not be persuaded otherwise in the course of her sojourn in Mogadishu, that mother and two daughters will return to Hargeisa on 10th January as promised and that in due course the operation on S's eye will be successful.
Please also continue to pray against Female Genitalia Mutilation. A Channel 4 programme brought it to attention again. Please pray that we will know what steps we can take to try to ensure that the girls at RHA School are not subjected to it.
Thank you so much for praying and thank You LORD for hearing and answering our prayers.
With all good wishes, Margaret
ZAMBIA
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We have received a request for people to write as pen friends to a murderer probably doing “life”
FRANK CHILUFYA. He is a young married man with two children, whom he may never see again nor they him. He is incarcerated in the Maximum Security Prison in Kabwe, hundreds of miles from where he lived.
His wife and children cannot afford to visit him, and the children are destitute and unable to attend school. Frank is a Christian now but was not when he murdered. He is filled with remorse for what happened
He had attended a party with a friend. They had both got drunk and then they quarrelled and then that led to a fight, and Frank's fist knocked his friend's head against a wall, On arrival at hospital the friend was dead. In UK it would have been a charge of manslaughter, But there it was capital murder and Frank is on Death Row, They have not executed anyone for over 20 years but to be on this level of security is certain to result in a long sentence in prison. Further more his children are called names by locals on the streets, mocked bullied, abused and humiliated because of what their father did. In prison Frank was introduced to Jesus Christ for the first time in his life and has become a Christian, All he has asked for is that I write to him as a mentor from time to time, and could he have a reference study Bible, and could anyone send him Christian magazines to inspire and encourage which when read he can share with other prisoners. I have written and a Bible has been sent. If anyone else can help with inspirational magazines please send them by printed paper direct to FRANK CHILUFYA. Maximum Security Prison. Death Row Ward, P O Box 20915, Kabwe
Zambia. Central Africa. Sent by surface rate they should get there in 8-9 weeks.
JOSEPH S MUSONDA, is another Christian long term prisoner also at the Maximum Security Prison in Kabwe, where he is a trusty, working in the education and training centre teaching English and Science to GCSE standard. We send him a diary and a calendar each year and recently we able to afford to send him some second hand Bible Study commentary booklets which he makes available at their Christian library. He could use more such material but if you can help please send it direct and not through us as we can seldom afford the costs. He would appreciate a thick warm shirt size 16, socks, and a pair of shoes size 9 – 10, a towel, and some soap, disposable razors, and packets of milk powder. If anyone feels like helping him. The address is through the Roman Catholic chaplain to:- JOSEPH S MUSONDA. c/o Father George Biju, S.V.D. Formation House, PO Box 81158, Kabwe, ZAMBIA. Central Africa.
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FACEBOOK MINISTRY
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We now put quite a lot of material linked to our web board site www.lhpm.proboards.com on FACEBOOK Social network through my account on it and to accompany posts on other web site user pages, and on other Websites on the Internet. Including teaching material, slogans, texts, pictures. It is useful means of ministry. Friends noting anything to do with me, us, or Saffron Walden Baptist Church or Sewards End Baptist Mission on BEBO.com should avoid accessing it as your monitor screens are likely to freeze up. BEBO.com has been bought out and is being reconstructed and material on it previously may well be put back on it but it is not at present accessible.
INDIA. On FACEBOOK we are also linked to VIJAY KUMAR SINGH at his request. He lives in New Delhi is much into the ideas of one world government, and green issues to save the planet. But he receives out Christian material, He is 48, married, works as a lawyer, has 2134 Facebook friends, and is a Sanatan Hindu.
OPERATION UTTLESFORD has continued as Ken Bedward and I have delivered VIA Gospel magazine to as many homes as we can throughout Uttlesford. Over 22,000 in 5 years.
VIA is published, one edition per year, but in millions of copies in several languages funded by Christians in Canada We pay carriage costs from Yorkshire to Walden at £23 for 2000. Each copy provides 18 pages of stories and testimony linked to Scripture Verses from the New King James Version Bible that proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ, and offers to any enquirer to contact the depot in Yorkshire for a free New Testament with Psalms, and a free Bible Study Course.
We also offer on a label on the front the services of the Christian Enquiry Agency which is funded by the main stream UK denominations and provide an address to write to for a gospel and advice, an email address and a phone number . We promote Premier Christian Radio and a Telephone ministry with follow-up facility based in Northern Ireland and 10 Christian websites including Churches Together in GB Looking for God, which is the site of. the UCB Christian Radio who publish The Word for Today quarterly Bible Study booklets, Christian Apologetics Research Ministry, VIA Magazineonline with a lot of previous editions of VIA available, Bring the Word of Life who offer a lot of teaching material in various languages and our own web board site www.lhpm.proboards.com, and usually a local church or ecumenical site. From the hits to our site we can get some idea of the response.
The normal daily average hits to the site is 40. Mainly to archives and the family tree. After each visit over the two 24 hour periods afterwards this always increased markedly varying from an increase of
from a minimum of 3 to a maximum of 189 and an average increase of 56.
On August 23 we had 229 hits on the site, the first time it has passed 200 in a 24 hour period since we launched the site.
Annually we monitor and audit all the articles and all show an increase showing people looking at a wide range of material.
Three Reasons Why You Need Jesus is one of the most popular with 740 hits.
Seeking Christians in Saffron Walden 455 . The message in Polish has had 600 hits'
Story of Sewards End Baptist Mission 956 hits.
Our site link to Dunmow Baptist Church registered 118 hits apart from appearing on our labels to 3200 homes.
We have delivered to the new Parish of Flitch Green with close on 650 homes there. An estate begun 10 years ago with a Community Hall and a Junior School but still awaiting a promised pub, post office, surgery, shops, and playing fields
All the hundreds of houses on the Woodlands Park Estate West Dunmow have been delivered to and hundreds more have yet to be built there. Work continues including setting out of the foundations of more.
North of Dunmow in the future a new town for 9000 people is planned on the Easton Lodge estate now owned by a developer. Beyond the Uttlesford border a lot of building is taking place overwhelming many small village parish churches
The Parish Church at Takeley & Lt Canfield now hold a monthly service at the school at PRIOR'S GREEN, and deliver monthly magazine to all 500 homes in 1 of which a Men's Fellowship meets monthly. The new curate lives on the estate.
At Felsted ,Colin the vicar holds an after school club at the school at FLITCH GREEN and Felsted Church are expanding their premises
After Watchouse Green, Bannister Green and High Roding during October we have suspended operations until the Sprig of 2014, probably April, we will be targeting Leaden Roding, Good Easter. Willow Green, Ford End, Helions Bumpstesd, and Wimbish Green and
We are also covering new homes in Saffron Walden as they become occupied . So most of the homes off Peaslands Road have been done except the former Bell College apartments which are security sealed. Recently Water Tower Place and Vanoli Close have been completed. We are ready to do those as yet unoccupied or still being built including the Churchill Retirement Apartments in Radwinter Road, The Avenue off Debden Road, the former Sun Inn site in Gold Street, the Caton's Lane development and the estate opposite De Vigier Avenue.
We also left modern Gospels of John in bus shelters village produce stands, and kiosk libraries linked for the purpose of follow up with the Open Air Mission.
After completing Uttlesford next Spring, we hope to go just over the border and do Great Bardfield Great Chishill, Heydon, Duxford, Whittlesford and Linton by car, and when Ken is away on holiday etc I may do some of the housing estates at Sawston getting there with my bus pass.
We have sent a few packets abroad this year as small donations have come in but at the moment we have no balance in hand now. Earlier in the summer we supplied 50 Hymnals bought within Zambia for the converted JW's in Nchelenge. We have stocks yet to send and don't need anymore.
Donations may be made payable to The Lighthouse Prayer Ministry and sent to 35 Four Acres Saffron Walden CB11 3JD
To gain Gift Aid make payable to Saffron Walden Baptist Church and send them to Mr Quentin Dawe, 2 Beeches Close Saffron Walden CB11 4BT. Advising him to pas the money on to The Lighthouse Prayer Ministry
ARAB VISION We ask you to learn more about this vitally important work by accessing www.arabvision.org
While the eyes of the world are focused on countries in the Middle East such as Syria and Egypt, developments elsewhere in the Arab World are left almost unnoticed. For more than 10 years Arab Vision has been producing evangelistic TV programs for Algeria, many of them in the language of the Kabyle people who live in the mountainous region in the north east of Algeria known as Kabylia.
The Kabyle people are often more open to learn about and accept the Christian faith partly because, as a minority, they have never welcomed the Arab majority nor the Arabic language and the accompanying religion, Islam. Reports about the numbers of Christians vary greatly. Some estimates count hundreds of thousands of new believers in the last decade and a minimum of 300 new churches.
Islamic scholars however state that the ‘problem of Christianization’ is not limited to Kabylia only, but is growing in the rest of the country as well - a problem we would like to reword as a blessing!
The Algerian government prefers to trivialize the growth in the number of Christians, and emphasizes that particularly youth are easily influenced temporarily, enticed by scholarships abroad inexchange for converting to Christianity.
Our faith influenced by Early Church History?
Our books on church history have a tendency to focus on Europe in regard to the beginnings of our history. After looking at the history of the early church in the bible itself, we often quickly jump to ‘Rome’ as if that is where our history began. Are we aware at all of the deep influence of the African theologians on our church history and on our Christian beliefs today?
Arab Vision is planning the production of a TV program series in the Arabic languages of Libya and Tunisia, presenting major church leaders who originated in those countries. North-Africa, now predominantly Islamic, can be proud of its Christian heritage. This has deeply influenced the
theology of the whole Christian church. The apostle Mark was born in Libya; just like the heretical Arius by the way. St Augustine was from Tunisia; Tertullian and bishop Cyprian were from Carthage, Tunisia as well.
By presenting the history and ideas of these and other church leaders, we have a great opportunity to present the Gospel to the Arab world. Major themes like original sin, Trinity, redemption through Jesus Christ, can be explained to the audiences in a very natural way, in the context of presenting the objective history of the North African church. Not only will we be able to present the Gospel naturally and clearly to the audience, but we can also show how these countries flourished while still being Christian nations, and that Tunisians, Algerians and Libyans can be proud of their own Christian history.
Also Check out www. theresurgence.com and www.pastor-training.org [ they are doing excellent work training pastors in Madagascar, South Sudan, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Zambia,and India.
LANGUAGE RECORDINGS UK, P O Box 197 High Wycombe, Bucks HP1 3YY have in the past 4 years enabled us, as God has led people to fund, to supply 8 clockwork Cassette/CD Players with cassettes and CD’s and illustrated posters,for Angola , Cameroon, Ethiopia, Malawi, Kenya, Senegal [2] and Zambia. for teams willing to reach out to remote places by reaching communities in native dialects . These teams reach jungle regions where the people cannot read nor write, where the forest canopy prevents using solar panels, where there is no electricity, and batteries are unavailable. opportunities out there for 300 more machines. The Senegal machines also have solar panels.
SOUTH AFRICA BREADLINE AFRICA buys up from Shipping Freight Companies old storage containers and cuts out window spaces and makes them into Classrooms. Libraries. Toilets, Soup Kitchens for use in Africa. We helped them last year and hope to do so again. Interested in helping them? Then contact 29 Lower Brook Street. IPSWICH Suffolk, IPA 1AQ , 01473 .259048 Email info@breadlineafrica.org.uk
TIBET We have funded GOOD NEWS a short wave weekly programme in Tibetan to Tibet, Bhutan and North India
UGANDA. We were able to fund the planting of some more trees at the end of 2011, and hope to do so again later in 2012 through AFRINSPIRE whose General Secretary is a former Baptist Minister They supply computers and agricultural equipment to Uganda. Our interest is in trees. We already have two small woods on the Congo-Ugandan border, We've funded a total in 15 countries of 7265. Afrinspire operates in Uganda, Zambia, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Sudan and Tanzania. They also supply medicines, & school supplies, and support literacy and education. Charity No 1095001. 22 Melvin Way, Histon. Cambridge. CB24 9HY. www.afrinspire.org.uk email office@afrinspire.org.uk ( 01223 233367
Let us continue to pray for Mwenya Uganda meaning Smile Uganda, a NGO agency set up to provide a mobile dispensary with dental and medical clinics. P O Box 9237 Kampala Uganda. Any sum would be appreciated £2
would provide a mosquito net. In the UK contact I_cuddon-large@hotmail.co.uk or via the Facebook page www.facebook.com/Mwenya-Uganda.
Let us continue to pray for Richard and Sarah Lubale of Alpha Childcare & Community Development PO Box 1306 Jinja Uganda which helps the victims of AIDS providing a caring service for victims, hostels and education for Aids orphans, and running Aids Awareness Courses in schools, colleges and factories. We encouraged the founders of this ministry to form an NGO to attract overseas support, and Spurgeon's Child Care, Work Aid, Christian Relief UK and a Dutch charity came to their aid. They also have 2 sons and a daughter to raise.
UKRAINE Let us continue to pray for Sergie Ivaniuk who after a 3 year silence wrote to say he had been working in the Crimea. He was living in a tent and each evening read the English Bible we sent him years ago. He acquired a Welsh one and wants to learn Welsh. Earlier this year his Mum died. We have not heard from him lately. .
ZAMBIA
Pastor Dominic Mulalambuka is a Chaplain with the Zambian army who can recycle Gideon New Testaments or any other pocket size NT's If anyone can supply him direct do so to Pastor Dominic Mulalambuka. C/O TUG-ARGAN BARRACKS, ALPHA COMPANY , POSTAL AGENCY NDOLA ZAMBIA
NORTH KOREA We have started 2013 by sending a grant to Open Doors Mission for a 48 hour Bible Study Course for a North Korean Christian refugee converted in China going back into the Communist Republic to witness at great personal risk. North Korea 1st on the list of countries of severe persecution to Christians. Continue to pray for that agent behind enemy lines.
SECOND HAND POSTCARDS for sale to raise money to keep Mission Aviation Fellowship Aircraft in the air are still acceptable by Mrs Heather Yule 10 Calverden Road RAMSGATE Kent CT12 6JU.
BRAZIL Charlotte Piek born and brought up in South Africa whose parents are members of Thaxted Baptist Church is with her husband a member of Bishop's Stortford Community Church and works at the Christian School at Takeley where she also runs a Youth Alpha Course.
She is UK Co-ordinator of MENINADANCA [ UK Charity number 10956638 ] The Lord has laid upon her a passion to save vulnerable girls from Prostitution in the towns of Brazil along Highway BR 116.. The name of this mission means Girl Dance and includes a Dancing Training Centre at a safe house called the Pink House established at one of the smaller towns between the great cities on this Highway where girls as young as 6 are bought or abducted by trafficker gangs and groomed and raped and prepared for a life of perverted sex, drug addiction, and sexually transmitted disease including AIDS, She shared her shock of seeing men piling out of a Church service and picking up such vulnerable kids to go and have sex with them.
Like many Christians in Britain at the height of the Afro-American slave trade who saw no wrong in selling and owning black savages unaware that they were fully human, people for whom Christ died,so these men in Brazil have yet to be re-educated,
MENINADANCA seeks to give these girls a sense of their real value and change their lives for the better and bring salvation through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. It is hard because some come from families of 4 or 5 generations of prostitution. To maintain the Pink House work needs £4000 a month, and they would like to establish similar safe houses in 2 more towns for which they will need to recruit new staff.
Their work has been highlighted on a Panorama programme and in a book out this autumn HIGHWAY TO HELL They can accept Gift Aided donations, to MENINADANCA PO Box 11116 Stansted, CM24 8WL and supply a weekly email update for prayer supporters Website www.meninadanca.org Email charlotte.piek@menindanca.org Phone +44(0) 7738 234042.
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC of CONGO From the AIDS pandemic and the long civil wars there are hundreds of thousands of orphan children many of whom have congregated in Kinshassa the Capital. Pastor Assan Biruli of SPAC has a vision to take over from a developer a large building and furnishing it as an orphanage and centre for street children. We have sent a donation and can convey any others This project is to be in Eastern Congo where the Civil war has finally come to an end.
GIFT AID.
If giving us cheques If you wish to have Gift Aid added please make them out to Saffron Walden Baptist Church put them in an envelope instructing that Gift Aid is to be added and that it is for The Lighthouse Prayer Ministry and send it then to me [ or place in the SWBC offering bag ] . Cheques at other times from people not able to add Gift Aid can be made out to The Lighthouse Prayer Ministry. Send to me at 35 Four Acres, Saffron Walden, CB11 3JD.
With my kindest regards & appreciation. All praise & credit to God for enabling us. JOHN
We close with this article passed on to us.
We ought to be encouraged to seek the increase of the church of God.
I have brought this subject forward because I may be addressing some brothers and sisters who see the tide running out in their churches, and they are very sad as they watch the ebb. I have not seen much of that sort of thing, myself, but the least ebb troubles me and I go before God in prayer about it. I cannot bear to lose one of the members of my church, or to see one of them turn aside from the company of the faithful. Yet there is another side to this picture and we must not shut our eyes to it.
IN THE CHURCH WE SHOULD LOOK FOR INCREASE
There are new converts yet to come in, as says my text—these children which Zion is to have, after she has lost the others.
And, brothers and sisters, these new converts are necessary. No church can be healthy without the constant infusion of fresh blood. Unless there are new converts, you cannot see the church built up.
1.Increase is needful, or what will become of the church?
2.Increase is prayed for, and God hears prayer.
3.Increase can only come through God, but he will give it, and be glorified by it.
4.Increase is promised in the text, and in many other Scriptures.
5.Increase is to be labored for with agony of heart. “As soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth children.”
So you see that the church needs new converts and, therefore, she ought to have every preparation for their reception.
IN THE CHURCH INCREASE SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR
There should always be an arrangement in every church to afford a welcome to the coming ones. Everything should be in readiness for the reception of the newborn converts.
1.By intense united prayer for it.
2.By the preaching of the gospel, which is the means of it.
3.By every form of Christian effort which may lead to it.
4.By enlarging our bounds: “The place is too narrow for me.” To provide a larger audience-chamber may be a true act of faith.
5.By welcoming all true-born children of God: who say, each one, “make room for me to dwell in.”
Churches need converts and they should be on the lookout for them, and all who love the Lord should labor earnestly on their behalf. All of us who believe in Jesus should seek, as God helps us according to our individual talent, to bring others to the dear Savior's feet.
IN THE CHURCH INCREASE OFTEN CAUSES SURPRISE
Take comfort then, beloved, from the fact that whatever the decreases in the church may be, we may also expect increase—and in their number, the converts will surprise us—and in their being converted at all, we shall greatly marvel!
1.Because of the time: “Behold, I was left alone.”
2.Because of their number: “Who has borne me these?”
3.Because of their former character: “These, where had they been?” They were not after all so very far off. Some of them were quite near to us and near to the kingdom, in the family, school, class, congregation, or inquiry-room. Others were far off in irreligion, and open sin. Others were opposed through rationalism, superstition, or self-righteousness.
4.Because of their good nurture: “Who has brought up these?”
5.Because of their eagerness and courage. “Will yet say in your ears, the place is too narrow for me.”
6.Because of their constancy. “Make room for me to dwell in.” They come to remain.
Where had they been? Say rather, “Where had we been?” that we had not long ago looked after them, and welcomed them.
This post was adapted from Charles Spurgeon’s sermon, Church Increase.He originally preached this message on August 18, 1881, at the Metropolitan Tabernacle.