prayer

UNPACKING THE KINGDOM JOURNEY – FROM AMBITION TO ACHIEVEMENT

James Alvinia

Youth leader James Alviani shares his heart…

Becoming a Christian at age 15 my pastors gave me all the support and encouragement I needed to grow in my relationship with God – and to figure out his calling on my life.

A youth leader at 18, I attended a large youth conference resulting in my ambition to replicate that conference in our church so we could also do something great. I didn’t realise that God wants us to get his vision and dream for our place, rather than copy other ministries. (more…)

THEBUZZ

KIRKUK, IRAQ
Ten elderly escapees describe life under ISIS as Iraqi Christians still held by Islamic State ‘against their will’
Michael IrelandMichael Ireland, Senior Reporter, ASSIST reports:
More news has emerged about the situation of Christians who are still being detained in Islamic State (otherwise known as ISIS), after ten elderly Christians, some with disabilities, managed to escape. World Watch Monitor (WWM – www.worldwatchmonitor.org) says the group, eight men and two women, were ‘expelled’ by IS militants for refusing to convert to Islam. (more…)

PRAYING DRIVER CRUNCHED BETWEEN TWO SEMIS BELIEVES GOD SAVED HIS LIFE

Mark Ellis

Mark Ellis brings this incredible testimony.

Every side of his pickup truck was completely smashed and compacted after Kaleb Whitby struck a semi from behind and was then hit by another semi in a highway pileup caused by morning fog and black ice.

Whitby literally walked away unscathed – with just two Band-Aids – after his Chevy Silverado was banged, spun, and ultimately came to rest in the vice-grip of parallel semi-trucks. By God’s protective hand, he narrowly escaped death. (more…)

LEADERSHIP

RECOVERY FOR CHURCH LEADERS
Dick Hardy

Dick Hardy, pastoral leadership consultant, writes:
One of the major personal issues for leaders and people in churches is that of pornography. Many church leaders have fallen as a result of pornography addictive behaviour. These same leaders feel isolated and privately cry out for help. (more…)

PRAYING THE SCRIPTURES

Bruce Hills

Bruce Hills, WOI  Leadership Development Director, confidently makes this bold declaration: God answers prayer!

One of the foundational reasons why we should pray the scriptures is because God has revealed himself as the prayer-answering God (Psalm 91:15).

Now, he doesn’t always answer in the way we may expect or desire. God has eternal plans and purposes that transcend human understanding (Isaiah 55:8-9). The shape and timing of answered prayer depends entirely on the purposes, prerogative and providence of God. (more…)

FAITH AND THE CHRISTIAN VIEW OF MENTAL ILLNESS

Adrian WarnockQuestion: How has faith shaped our view of mental illness?

Dr Adrian Warnock comments…

There are really two questions here:

1) How has your religious community historically seen mental illness? and
2) How does your faith, today, shape the way you see mental illness?

First, let me share some of my own perspective on this.

I believe that Christianity has historically a mixed report card on this subject. Fundamentally our faith has always valued people as inherently of worth because all of them were made in the image of God. Thus, when practised correctly, our faith should lead to compassionate care for the weak. (more…)

CREATING THE ULTIMATE ATMOSPHERE

Wayne Swift

Wayne Swift, Apostolic Church Australia National Leader, writes:

I’ve been a minister for many years now and naturally I’ve come to realise many home truths.

One is this – the outcome of minister’s efforts privately, is usually, if not always, displayed publicly. Let’s face it – a minister’s prayer life, devotional life, ongoing learning, sermon preparation and even relationships are on show. People observe our actions and our reactions, along with our struggles.

Ministers need to create what I term ‘the ultimate atmosphere’ in order to present ourselves approved by Christ and acceptable by those who witness our actions and reactions under various circumstances.

And the reality is that this is a principle for every Christian for we are all on display as it were…what someone once called ‘the fifth gospel, the gospel according to you.’ The way we all prepare ourselves is critical to the outcomes we experience. (more…)

PRESIDENT OBAMA AFFIRMS FAITH IN JESUS AT PRAYER BREAKFAST

Mark Ellis

By Mark Ellis

President Barack Obama spoke to faith leaders gathered at the White House April 14 for the annual Easter Prayer Breakfast, affirming his Christian faith.

The President’s affirmation of Easter
He began his remarks with ‘This Easter Week we recognise that there’s a lot of pain and a lot of sin and a lot of tragedy in this world, but we’re also overwhelmed by the grace of an awesome God. We’re reminded how he loves us, so deeply, that he gave his only begotten Son so that we might live through him.’

The president affirmed the true meaning of Easter. ‘And in these Holy Days, we recall all that Jesus endured for us – the scorn of the crowds and the pain of the crucifixion, in our Christian religious tradition we celebrate the glory of the Resurrection – all so that we might be forgiven of our sins and granted everlasting life.’

(more…)