DAWN Fridayfax 2001 #5

USA

Bush's term begins with evangelism

On George W. Bush's first day as President of the USA, 3,000 people attended a prayer service held in Washington's National Cathedral. Franklin Graham, son of evangelist Billy Graham, gave an evangelistic address to the political elite, declaring "only a personal relationship with the living God can fill the world's moral vacuum. Only God, and God alone, can lead us out of the crisis in which we find ourselves." Bush's inauguration began with public prayer in Jesus' name; pastor Kirbyjohn Caldwell asked God for forgiveness for the sin of materialism. In his inaugural address, Bush called on the population to put trust ahead of cynicism, and society ahead of chaos. He also referred to the New Testament parable of the good Samaritan. "I set our nation a goal: when we see that wounded traveler on the road to Jericho, we will not pass to the other side." Richard Land, speaking for the Southern Baptists, called the speech "the most religious inaugural speech in living memory." "I believe it is a fearless signal to the media, who pretend that we are a secular nation. We are not. We are one of the most religious nations on earth," he said.
Source: Associated Press and others

India

Over 5,000 house churches planted in northern India

From small beginnings around Ludhiana in Punjab in 1989 has grown one of India's largest church-planting movements. The missionary initiative 'Operation Agape' was started by a small number of Christian doctors, and now involves 392 Christians in an eight-state network which has planted 5,900 churches in recent years, of which 5,208 are house churches. The organisation also has two Bible Training Centers, video Bible schools, social projects for slum children, and initiatives for education and self-help through small business programmes. The movement's aim is to plant a Christian church in every postal code area in northern India, forming a fine network of churches working towards achieving the New Testament Commission of making disciples of northern India.
Source: Operation Agape, e-mail agapeldh@usa.net

USA

Baptism in a trough - revival in Albany

"Many Christian leaders agree that something very unusual is happening in Albany, Oregon," writes Steve Shultz, editor of the Elijah List. "People are coming from all over the USA to Albany, where they experience healings, signs and wonders. There are definitely signs of revival," he says. A water trough has been put in place for baptisms, because of the numbers being healed, saved and baptised in one evening. Teenagers are particularly open, and carry the revival to other churches. One young man from Gresham, Oregon, prays for people on the streets and has seen dramatic healings. The revival began when 25-year-old Todd Bentley visited Albany on the invitation of Denny Cline, pastor of the Vineyard Fellowship. At the end of December 2000, so many people were being healed in the services that Bentley completely re-organised his programme for January 2001, holding evening services 17 days in a row. "Not everyone is healed, and not everyone is attracted to such meetings," says Cline, but the hunger for God is astonishing. "The services sometimes last 5 hours. 91 people have decided to follow Christ, and around 60 have been baptised," says Cline.
Source: S Schultz, www.elijahlist.com , Todd Bentley, www.thearc.bc.ca , Denny Cline, Vineyard Christian Fellowship Albany, e-mail vcfalbany@proaxis.com

Kenya

Can Jesus help when the man of your dreams becomes a nightmare?

Cecilia married the man of her dreams. Who could have known that he would beat her brutally, leaving her half-dead in the gutter a few years later? To start with, everything looked promising for Bob and Cecilia Kabugi: they had money, a nice house and cars. But the material wealth hid brutality: Bob was a secret alcoholic, and began beating Cecilia. She bore it for years. On a trip one day, he started beating her, and she eventually collapsed in the gutter with a broken skull and ribs, where he left her. He later returned, and anonymously took her to a hospital. She woke from the coma three days later, and decided to leave Bob. In her time of need, she turned to Jesus. After some time, God spoke to her, telling her to call Bob and forgive him. "That was a very difficult step, but I did it," she says. "That was a complete shock for Bob, and something began to change in his heart. He wanted to live with me again, and I was also prepared," she says. "God told me that he would protect me." Impressed by the change in Cecilia's life, Bob decided to also follow Jesus. "It was like being in love a second time," he says. "We even renewed our marriage vows. Today, we minister to families suffering from the effects of alcohol and violence, and show them that Jesus can restore even the worst lives. We experienced that ourselves. Jesus Christ became our lifebelt, and today, we are a happy family."
Source: CBN Worldreach 2000, info@cbnworldreach.org

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