Global: Other elections to be held before 7 May
On the 7 May the United Kingdom will hold Elections for the House of Commons, but seven other countries will also be holding parliamentary elections between now and then: Finland with election for Parliament on 19 April; Haiti has an Election for Chamber of Deputies on 24 April; Anguilla with election for House of Assembly on 25 April; Togo has an election for President on 25 April; Benin an election for National Assembly on 26l; Kazakhstan holds an election for President on 26 and Tanzania has a Referendum on 30l. For further Insights into how to pray for these and other elections in 2015 click the ' 'More' button below.
Pakistan: Police torture Christians to extract confessions
One hundred and eleven Pakistani Christians were arrested in March following the lynching of two Muslim men wrongly thought to be involved in killing 17 Christians and church bombings. 30 prisoners have now been released and International Christian Concern announced on Tuesday that the 30 men and boys had been subjected to torture and merciless beatings by police officers in an attempt to extract confessions out of them. Many of the detained were innocent. In early April, 16 Christians were indicted for the murder of the two Muslim men and 12 indicted for damage to state property. This incident is the tip of the iceberg of the discrimination and persecution that religious minorities endure - from indentured servitude, forced conversions to kidnapping for ransom. The most recent atrocity happened last weekend when a 14-year-old Christian boy was beaten and set on fire after answering truthfully when he was asked by Muslim men if he was a Christian. See:
Anonymous donor gives £1.5 million to restoration of Bath Abbey
An anonymous donor has given £1.5 million in an ‘ordinary-looking envelope’ to Bath Abbey to help with its £18 million restoration scheme. The donation is the largest the Abbey has ever received from a private individual. The donor explained that the main reason behind the gift was that he was: ‘much impressed by the care and the consultation which has been put in by the Abbey, which is such a vital part of Bath's future.’ He continues by saying that: ‘This generation has a solemn duty to ensure the Abbey is fit and able to carry out its service to the city and the community for the next hundred years.’ The money will go to the Abbey's £19.3 million Footprint project, aimed at stabilising the building's collapsing floor and introducing an under-floor heating system using Bath's famous hot springs as an energy source. It will also improve the Abbey's visitor facilities.
Victory in Lowestoft sex shop case
Councillors in Lowestoft have rejected a licensing application for the opening of a Sex Entertainment Venue in the town centre. The case was supported by the Christian Legal Centre. This was the third licensing application for a Sex Entertainment Venue to be heard by Lowestoft councillors in a period of just 12 months. In February 2014, local residents expressed concern after a licence was granted for the opening of a sex club in the town, despite strong opposition from members of the Lowestoft community. After several months, it transpired that the proposed venue would no longer go ahead. However, in autumn 2014, a second application was made for the opening of a lap dancing club in the town centre, which was also rejected after residents, businesses and churches objected and three petitions were submitted. A third application was then made, this time for a sex shop in the town. But earlier this year, councillors rejected it after the Christian Legal Centre again supported local residents in opposing the plans.
What an experience it was last week to join more than 30,000 young people who had gathered for this worship, prayer and teaching event! It was thrilling to see so many waving, jumping, on-fire teens, 20s and older folks as well who want their lives to count for Jesus and His mission in our world. Several hundred of us also took place in a leadership summit that focused on mobilizing a global prayer and worship movement with the following ambitious suggested goals by 2020-2025:
1. 100 million intercessors for the completion of the Great Commission
2. 24/7 prayer and worship in all 4000 "omega zones" of the earth
3. 24/7 prayer and worship in all 50 U.S. states
4. 50 million young adults involved on 2500 U.S. campuses and 5000 campuses worldwide
5. Prayer mobilized for translation in all remaining languages (less than 2000 without it now)
6. Prayer mobilized for one billion new people to come to Christ and be discipled
7. Resource 4/14 Window movement and Back to Jerusalem movement with 24/7 prayer
The International House of Prayer in Kansas City that put on the events hopes to convene annual gatherings of mission and prayer leaders to continue this process of prayerful deliberation so that more tributaries of the prayer and mission movements can begin to flow more closely together.
Hats off to IHOP and its leadership who are having such an enormous impact on the prayer movement within the U.S. and internationally through their focus on 24/7 prayer and mission. As they rightly teach, prayer and mission belong together and should be intimately intertwined for maximum impact on ourselves and the world. They should also be congratulated for graciously serving and collaborating with the rest of the prayer and mission movements.
While in Kansas City, several from the IPC, IHOP and other prayer networks met to do some initial planning for the two initiatives that I mentioned to you in the last Connections- an April 14, 2014 global prayer focus for children and youth and a World Youth Prayer Assembly in 2016. A Skype call with others from different parts of the world made it a very valuable international time of conferring together. Much more needs to be done, but here are some of our conclusions:
- Children and youth need to be encouraged as partners in prayer, worship and mission for the transformation of our world.
- A global youth and children prayer and worship focus will be used by the Lord to raise up men and women of God for future generations.
- We hope to collaborate with many other networks and ministries to hold an annual 24- hour global prayer/worship initiative co-led by children and youth, starting April 13 (Palm Sunday) and April 14, 2014. In preparation, we recommend a global prayer and fasting day on January 17, 2014 in the spirit of Luke 1:17.
- The Internet will be used as the conductor, connecting prayer and worship in different regions and styles throughout the globe and resources will be provided with teaching and tools for those wanting to participate.
- Global, holistic prayer points that focus on children and youth and their issues and needs will be circulated so we can agree in prayer by the thousands and millions for His breakthroughs.
- Churches and others could use the theme of welcoming Jesus in line with the celebration of Palm Sunday, encouraging and letting their children and youth lead them in prayer and worship to welcome Jesus into their families, communities and nations.
- This one-day global prayer focus each year will help lay the foundation for a World Youth and Children's Prayer Assembly in 2016 that the Lord could use to trigger a new and global Jesus Movement.
- It will be youth-led, with the older generation in a mentoring and supportive position, so these youth and children will understand their potential and talents and be able to connect strategically with their peers in other parts of the world.
- The Internet and satellite TV will be used to stream and link such tri-generational gatherings in several regions, possibly with one larger anchor gathering.
- The whole process of both initiatives will be highly relational, seeking to build a long-term movement rather than just to hold a one-time event so that not only this generation but even generations to come will be affected for the glory of the Lord and His purposes for our world.
We invite you to give us your feedback and hope you will join us on this journey towards seeing the younger generation arise to the special destiny God has for them. United prayer led by them and supported by the older generation will help unleash them in their unique callings and will bring untold blessing to our world as a result!
John Robb
IPC Chairman