DAWN Fridayfax 1999 #18

News from Italy, Switzerland, Germany, India

In this issue:
Italy: Miraculously saved from a storm
Switzerland: God answers burglar's prayers
Germany: Car dealer finds God
India: End of road for fundamentalist Hindu party

Italy: Miraculously saved from a storm

"Astrid and Anita Bayersdorfer experienced God in an unusual way during the summer of 1997," according to a report in "Hoffen und Handeln" (Hope and Action) published by Klaus Dabkowski. During their holidays in Italy, Anita read the biography of Gulshan Ester, a Muslim to whom Jesus appeared several times before she became a Christian. Anita prayed that she would experience Jesus' presence in a similar manner. Shortly after praying, at around 1:30 a.m., they both heard a strange noise, like wind and fire at the same time, blowing and hissing. At the same time, a violent storm began, with large hailstones. They both prayed that God would protect the house and their new car. 15 minutes later, it was all over. The next morning, they left the house; everything was in order, not a single branch on the trees was damaged, the car in perfect condition. A neighbour hurried up to them, white as a sheet and distraught. She told them that everything in the area had been destroyed. Amazingly, the destruction only started 100 meters away from the house: where pizzerias, ice cream parlours and houses had been the night before, there was nothing left. The storm had removed all trace of the buildings; the trees had been knocked down, and they could just discern the cars crushed beneath them. "Then we realised that Jesus had miraculously protected us. We thank God over and over for this miracle," the women say.
Source: Hoffen und Handeln 4/99; Anita und Astrid Bayersdorfer, tel. (+49)-08641-3147

Switzerland: God answers burglar's prayers

According to a report in the Winterthur daily paper "Der Landbote", Zurich police freed a burglar from an unpleasant situation on 13 April 1999. On the way to work, a passer-by noticed a chair standing on top of a garden table behind a pharmacy. Suspicious, he decided to investigate, and found a man stuck between bars in front of a window two and a half meters (8 feet) in the air. He had obviously become stuck while trying to break in to the pharmacy. Even the police, who soon arrived, could not free the man until the pharmacist removed the window frame from inside. The burglar, who had a previous conviction for breaking and entering, then told the police that he had been in that position for 6 hours, and that he had even prayed that the police would find him. God answered his prayer.
Source: "Der Landbote" issue 85, 15 April 1999 via Maja Bieri

Germany: Car dealer finds God

Hans Kleinath was a successful car dealer in Dettingen/Erms in southern Germany, but the group to which he belonged lost a large amount of money following fraud by a large dealer in the US; the banks suddenly cancelled all loans. Kienath was facing financial ruin. He had heard of a local Christian businessmen's fellowship, but, in his own words, "I had not become a Christian, even if I attended a service a few times each year." In the midst of his crisis, another Christian dealer visited him and prayed with him. In February 1996, Kienath decided to become a Christian after visiting a seminar held by the Christian businessmen's fellowship. "The night I was saved, I slept like a baby for the first time in years," he says. Since then, some of his customers and business partners have also become Christians. A while ago, on 21st April 1997, his daughter was spontanously healed of a torn ligament following prayer. The doctor who removed the plaster cast was more than surprised. Kienath then thought to himself, "What God can do for my daughter, he can also do for me", took off his glasses and smashed them. He had often prayed that his sight would be restored; without glasses, he could read no more than the newspaper headlines. The healing was not immediate; one day, his wife brought him his spare pair of glasses. "It was only when I smashed them too that I was healed. I can now read everything without assistance." His business practises also changed, for example in bills for accident repair work: some customers insist that damage not due to an accident be repaired on the bill paid by the insurance. He's put a stop to that; it's more important to him to obey God than to gain a questionable financial advantage. "If the company goes bankrupt, we're in God's hands."
Source: Voice 2.99/Heinz Keinath

India: End of road for fundamentalist Hindu party

On Saturday April 17, 1999, the Hindu nationalist party BJP, headed by Prime Minister Vajpayee, lost a parliamentary vote of confidence with 269 to 270 votes. On 16 April, many Christians were mobilised in prayer, because the government was confident that it would win the vote, according to "Indianews", a news service provided by the India Missions Association led by Ebenezer Sunder Raj. "At the end of the 13th month of the Hindu nationalists' term, it is difficult to be sad about the government's collapse," wrote even the newspaper 'The Hindu'. The Congress Party, led by Italian Catholic Sonia Gandhi, failed to assemble a coalition within the required period, so new elections are now scheduled. For many Christians, a period of systematic persecution is now quite probably over.
Source: CNN, The Hindu, IMA

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