DAWN Fridayfax 2003 #20

India

Fire walking ceremony turns into evangelistic outreach

Evangelist Joel Marandi of the Brethren In Christ Church in Purnea, northern India, reports: "The Safa Hor are a group within the Santal people living in Mohini village in the Araria district. They worship the Hindu god Rama, and celebrate a fire walking ceremony each year: they dig a pit, in which they lay a fire, and then walk over the burning coals - without burning their feet. I've been evangelising in this village for two years, without visible result. I realised that this fire walking ritual was demonic, and the reason why I was not making progress. This year, I called some Christian colleages to help. Together, we walked around the place where the ceremony was to be held, praying that God would break the power of all demonic idols in the village. Only a few villagers showed up for the ceremony. One tried to walk on the fire, but burned his legs. I then told the people about Jesus, the true God. Following the clear demonstration of his power over their own ceremony, 25 villagers decided to follow Jesus. Isn't God great?"
Source: Missions leader S.D. Ponraj, e-mail ponraj@md2.vsnl.net.in

Germany

More first dedications than ever at the Ludenscheid Celebration

The regional celebration "Come to the Light" was held again on 5th April 2003 in Ludenscheid. Walter Heidenreich, the founder, reports: "The hall was bursting full, with around 1,800 people. We saw people healed of all sorts of illnesses, but were particularly pleased by the number who gave their lives to Jesus for the first time. As far as we can tell, it was the largest number ever. One grandmother, for example, was invited, and also brought a friend of hers - also a grandmother. She gave her life to Jesus during the altar call. A group from East Germany had chartered a coach to attend the celebration, and all participated enthusiastically in the worship, including the driver. When we said 'Turn to your neighbours and ask them if they are saved', the driver said 'No, I'm not saved' But he wanted to be! He made his first step towards God, and his eyes shone after the prayer, a changed man. A teenie-group from Stralsund wasn't getting past a determined member of our staff: he worked his way through the whole group, making clear that they should be up on stage if they weren't sure of their salvation. Every one of them gave their life to Jesus - except one, who was sure of his salvation."
Source: Walter Heidenreich, FCJG Ludenscheid, www.fcjg.de

China/France

Entire church moves

"100 years ago, Europeans followed the call 'Go West' to America's new territories," write Alain and Rita Hauenschild, missionaries to China. A similar movement is happening today in China: over one million Chinese students live in Europe, mostly in France (500,000 in Paris alone), Italy, England and Germany. Some 50,000 Chinese immigrate into the European Union countries each month. Some years ago, an entire church in the Chinese city Wenchow disbanded, and set on their way to Paris over various routes. They have now met up again there as a church, complete with deacons, elders and pastors, and now help their fellow Chinese integrate into the French culture, and explain the Gospel to them. With 1,500 members, it is the largest Chinese church in Paris.
Source: Alain Hauenschild, DMG Aktuell, dmg@dmgint.de

England

Healing evangelist healed of lung cancer

English evangelist David Hathaway, well known for his evangelistic outreaches in Russia, often reports of how people are healed of physical illnesses following prayer to Jesus. He also suffered from a lung complaint for a while. Doctors x-rayed him, and were convinced that it was a serious case of pneumonia, and prescribed antibiotics. His condition did not improve, so another lung specialist examined him, discovering that it was not pneumonia but cancer in his right lung. A bronchioscopy and computer tomography scan confirmed the suspicion, and the doctors strongly recommended that part of the lung be removed. Hathaway prayed to God, and now reports that he is completely healed, as confirmed by a subsequent x-ray. The lung specialist confirmed that it was "an absolute miracle".
Source: David Hathaway, www.propheticvision.org.uk

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