"Empowered 21” Gathering of Pentecostals in Indonesia
A beautifully organized conference of up to 9000 Pentecostals from 50 nations met just outside Jakarta, October 25-29. Enthusiastic worship and powerful presentations called participants to a renewed experience and sharing of the Azusa Street revival experience. Other regional gatherings and initiatives are planned through a global council of ministry leaders.
Warm support was given to the World Prayer Assembly by the event organizers and they arranged for a presentation of the WPA. A strong link and rich synergy between the two events was established. Praise the Lord.
Thailand Battling Awful Flooding
Leaders involved in the prayer movement of Thailand gathered October 15-16 to pray for their nation besieged by the worst floods in half a century. Up to 10 million have been affected, many losing all their possessions and hundreds have lost their lives. Please pray for the floods to go down, for effective relief efforts, and that many will come to Christ through this tragedy.
Tory minister uncomfortable with Cameron’s gay marriage proposal
Junior defence minister, Gerald Howarth, has distanced himself from David Cameron’s plan to legalise marriage for samesex couples, and told The Telegraph that Tory MPs should not be forced to vote in support of changing the legal definition of marriage if the issue is put before Parliament. According to the newspaper, Mr. Howarth believed many Christians would be ‘very concerned’ by the proposal. At present, homosexual couples are allowed to enter into civil partnerships which give them similar legal protection to married couples, but the term ‘marriage’ is used to define heterosexual unions only. Mr Howarth, MP for Aldershot, said that MPs should be given a free vote on the issue as it is a matter of ‘conscience. Equality Minister Lynne Featherstone announced last month that a public consultation would be launched in March 2012.
Pray: for the Government to seek to protect marriage and not redefine it; may Christians in Parliament speak out boldly and clearly. (Gen.2:24)
Asylum-seeker's plight
Sara is from Ethiopia. Her mother died when she was young, and her father mysteriously ‘disappeared’ after the government was overthrown. Both Sara and her brother were arrested and thrown into prison where she was abused. When eventually set free she escaped to Sudan with the help of her father’s friends. From there she flew to England seeking asylum. Her experiences in England have been dreadful, living off handouts, working in a pizza parlour to make ends meet (but asylum seekers are forbidden to work and she was sentenced to four months in Styal prison). She was hospitalised in prison after trying to end her life. She is without hope. If she returns home, she faces imprisonment and torture. If she stays here she will be in ‘limbo-land’ stripped of her dignity, prevented from living a normal life.
Pray: for asylum-seekers in the UK to experience changes for improvement in the asylum system. (Lev.19:10 &Lev.24:22)
More: http://boaztrust.org.uk/
