DAWN Fridayfax 1995 #38

News from Islamic world, Germany, Bulgaria, Azerbaijan

Healing: whole Moslem family wants to follow Christ

In the Middle East, a Moslem girl was recently involved in a traffic accident which damaged her kidneys. A Christian was courageous enough to pray for the girl in the hospital. X-rays taken the following day showed the kidney to be completely normal. The family thanked Jesus for the healing and wanted to hear more of the gospel. They invited the person who prayed for the girl to visit them and for the whole extended family to be present. As the Christian explained the gospel that evening, the room was full. 13 or 14 family members were interested in receiving further visits because they wanted to follow Christ. The sad part of the story is that it was very hard to find Christians who were willing to help the family long-term.

Source: name and address withheld.

Crowded Oasis - Germany's fastest-growing Lutheran service

A new service, started 2 years ago in Giengen near Ulm in Germany, is bursting at the seams. The service was started by a 7-person leadership team at Pentecost in 1993 as a deliberate complement to the traditional type. The attendance has risen from an initial 150 to 410 in two services. The church authorities' initial scepticism has noticeably changed: according to Christian businessman Dr. Jorg Knoblauch, a member of the leadership team, visitors came from as far away as Hamburg and Austria to see behind the scenes of the alternative service.

He also reports that church leadership groups are sending their pastors to Giengen to pick up new ideas from the practical model, and says, "We want to offer a service in which people do not have to be ashamed when they invite guests."

There are generally 25 people visibly involved in the services, which are held every two weeks, with around 65 working in the background, and between 15 and 20 new visitors in each service.

Information and a 7-minute video Oasis - the alternative service can be obtained from the address below.

[Note from Webmaster: The German video standard is PAL, which is not compatible with the US standard, NTSC. PAL videos will play in French SECAM players, but only in monochrome]

Source and information: Dr. Jorg Knoblauch, Hahnlestr. 24, D-89537 Giengen, Germany. Fax +49-7322-950-157

Bulgaria: Christian peoples' movement among Turks

Current reports from Christian missionaries indicate that the largest Christian peoples' movement among the 166 million Turkish-speaking people is continuing. We understand a 'peoples' movement' to be when a complete people group or tribe is gripped by the gospel. In Bulgaria, thousands of Turkish-speaking Moslems and Bulgarian 'Millet' (Gypsies) have become Christians and meet in house churches. Most of these churches arise when someone has been dramatically healed and started to tell others of what happened. According to the reports, the people generally become Christians as a result of a healing, a victory over demonic bondage or when someone rises from the dead.

This openness stands in stark contrast to the number of trained national or foreign Christians who are able to support the movement, which is one reason why it often takes some time for the new believers to come to know Jesus well. In hundreds of villages, many meet in house churches without understanding much about their new-found faith.

Source and information: Name and address withheld

'Holistic ministry' in Azerbaijan

Rather than the classic isolation and parallel work, an effective co-operation has begun between Christians who are active in prayer-teams, social work, evangelisation and church-planting. A prayer team from the Ichthus movement in London visited Azerbaijan in 1993, and met there with a number of Christian charities working among the refugees there. Some of the charities were prepared to finance further projects among the refugees and orphans. 5 new clinics were founded through the distribution of clothes and medicines, resulting in good relationships with the leaders and inhabitants of the towns involved. People who came in contact with the clinics showed sudden interest in Christianity, and some were saved. Noticing this increasing openness toward Christianity, a marked change from Aserbaijan's past, the Ichthus team in London decided to send an evangelistic team to the country for a week. As a result of the social assistance, the population was also interested in the evangelistic meetings, which took place in a cinema. There were 200 people present on the last evening, and a church was planted with a weekly attendance of 37.

Source: Dr. Stephen Nash, London, TEL/ Fax 44-181-699-6974 or 100345.2614@compuserve.com

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