Iran: Forty-one baptised in one city on Easter Sunday
The church in this city had been wiped out in the early 1900s, and there had been no Christian witness until just a few years ago when a Persian speaking church was planted there. This past Easter Sunday forty-one people were baptized there in a thriving church led by Elam graduates. Thirty-nine of them were from a Muslim background and two were from a nominal Christian one. These two had been led to Christ by an Iranian believer from a Muslim background. During a powerful service, twenty-six Iranians, fourteen Afghans, and one Iraqi shared their testimonies and glorified Christ. Families were baptized together. In one case a grandmother with her daughter and son in law and their two teenage boys were baptized, and in another, an Afghan lady with her five children who are in their twenties. (See also World article above) Praise: God the power of the cross and pray that God would keep these new believers under the shadow of His wing. (Ps.91:1)
Iran: Forty-one baptised in one city on Easter Sunday
The church in this city had been wiped out in the early 1900s, and there had been no Christian witness until just a few years ago when a Persian speaking church was planted there. This past Easter Sunday forty-one people were baptized there in a thriving church led by Elam graduates. Thirty-nine of them were from a Muslim background and two were from a nominal Christian one. These two had been led to Christ by an Iranian believer from a Muslim background. During a powerful service, twenty-six Iranians, fourteen Afghans, and one Iraqi shared their testimonies and glorified Christ. Families were baptized together. In one case a grandmother with her daughter and son in law and their two teenage boys were baptized, and in another, an Afghan lady with her five children who are in their twenties. (See also World article above) Praise: God the power of the cross and pray that God would keep these new believers under the shadow of His wing. (Ps.91:1)
The power of the cross endures
Last week, a 64-year-old electrician, Colin Atkinson, was threatened with a disciplinary hearing because he displayed a palm cross on the dashboard of his van. Mr Atkinson hadn't wanted to upset anybody. He had given witness to his faith, in this modest way, for 15 years without anyone complaining. Alas, one person took offence, and that was enough. (See Prayer Alert 16-2011) Thankfully, common sense prevailed, and Wakefield and District Housing, Mr Atkinson's employer, agreed to let him keep the cross on his dashboard. But the case – and the reaction to it – demonstrates once again the power of the cross, and the hold this symbol has on people's imagination. Even people who never go to church understand, at some level, that the cross represents something holy. It draws us out of the everyday world and into the divine and it is at the heart of the mystery of Easter.
Praise: God that common sense has prevailed. (Ps.94:8)
More: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/telegraph-view/8470164/The-power-of-the-cross-endures.html
The power of the cross endures
Last week, a 64-year-old electrician, Colin Atkinson, was threatened with a disciplinary hearing because he displayed a palm cross on the dashboard of his van. Mr Atkinson hadn't wanted to upset anybody. He had given witness to his faith, in this modest way, for 15 years without anyone complaining. Alas, one person took offence, and that was enough. (See Prayer Alert 16-2011) Thankfully, common sense prevailed, and Wakefield and District Housing, Mr Atkinson's employer, agreed to let him keep the cross on his dashboard. But the case – and the reaction to it – demonstrates once again the power of the cross, and the hold this symbol has on people's imagination. Even people who never go to church understand, at some level, that the cross represents something holy. It draws us out of the everyday world and into the divine and it is at the heart of the mystery of Easter.
Praise: God that common sense has prevailed. (Ps.94:8)
More: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/telegraph-view/8470164/The-power-of-the-cross-endures.html
