DAWN Fridayfax 1999 #13

News from India, Congo, Nigeria

In this issue:
India: Pregnant woman saved from death by prayer
Congo (former Zaire): Continuing revival
Nigeria: Christian president elected

India: Pregnant woman saved from death by prayer

"God can do extraordinary things through ordinary people," says David Mohan, pastor of the largest (15,000 members) Assemblies of God church in Madras, India. "Only a few days ago," he told me, "Rani (name changed), an elderly woman, came to tell me something exciting. She only recently decided to follow Jesus, and can neither read nor write. While visiting a Hindu village, she noticed a lot of activity: a pregnant woman was apparently dead after falling into a well. Attempts to resuscitate her, including blowing acrid smoke up her nose, had failed. Rani felt that she may be able to help; she had heard that Jesus had raised people from the dead. Hesitantly, she asked if she could pray; she was given permission, so laid her hands on the lifeless woman and asked Jesus to touch her. As she did so, the pregnant woman opened her eyes, started to move, coughed and sat up. Since then, a large number of people in the village have also decided to follow Jesus."

Source: Pastor D. Mohan, Newlife AOG church, fax (+91)-44-2351646

Congo (former Zaire): Continuing revival

"During a short cruise on a 400-berth ship, 500 people, including passengers just boarding, decided to follow Jesus, simply because a local man on board revealed that he was a Christian. From then on, he was frequently asked to preach the gospel," reports theological teacher Bram Krol following a visit to the region. Krol reports that Congo has been experiencing revival for several years; in the early 1980's, some 5 million people became Christians, and between 1986 and 1990, the Portable Bible School, led by Willys Braun, planted 15,000 churches headed by lay pastors, and spread the vision of reaching all 70,000 of the nations villages by the year 2000 through church planting. In 1995, the political situation in the country reached a crisis point following decades under the dictator Mobutu, under whose regime many Christians were killed, their houses burned down, and women taken away from their families. The result was that people lost hope in politics and an increasing number turned to Christ.

Awakening through small groups and house churches

As church leaders also became involved in politics, the Christians lost confidence in them and turned instead to small groups assisted by a few Christian organisations such as the Bible Society and Campus for Christ. According to Krol, this led to a true awakening amongst small groups and house churches. A Christian radio station in Brazzaville also played a part: nobody trusted the state radio, so "Sango Malamo" (Kimgala for 'Good News') became one of the most popular stations in the Brazzaville area. This helped spread the revival even faster, and a large number of churches were planted. Today, there is a church in every housing block in some cities.

Swiss-led church with attendance over 20,000

In Kinshasa alone, with its 4 or 5 million inhabitants, there are an estimated 750,000 Christians. Churches with between 5,000 and 10,000 members have formed, some with their own missionary activities. One of the larger of Kinshasa's churches, with 20,000 members, is led by a Swiss man. In the last 5 years, literally millions of Congans have become Christians, and the revival has spread not only to parts of Angola, but has also reached cities such as Point Noire, where 20 churches were planted in a very short time. Most of the Protestant churches are theologically Evangelical, reports Krol, following a meeting with Dr. Marini, the current President of a Protestant synod representing some 17 million Christians.

Source: Bram Krol, tel/fax (+31)-183-627789

Nigeria: Christian president elected

At the end of February 1999, Olusegun Obsanjo was elected by a large majority as Nigeria's first democratic president in many years. Many Christians, according to Gary and Emma Lou Maxey of Nigeria's Wesley Theological Seminary, had been praying intensely for months, but almost nobody could imagine that a born-again Christian could be elected President following years of harsh dictatorship. Prior to his election, Obasanjo had been imprisoned for months, and a number of visitors confirm that he turned to Jesus Christ.

Source: Gary and Emma Lou Maxey, Nigeria

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