IN THIS EDITION:
1. TYPICALLY GOD: How Chinese children cope with persecution
2. PRAYER FOCUS: Terror attacks in London
3. RESOURCE: The practice of apostolic teams
1. TYPICALLY GOD: How Chinese children cope with persecution
Article 36 of the Chinese Constitution allows China’s citizens the freedom
to believe or not to believe in religion. When adult Christians are
arrested in China, it is normally not due to their believing in Jesus (as
China’s Constitution does permit freedom of religious belief) but because
of their (often illegal) religious activity which is a natural outgrowth of
their faith*. They are persecuted but not required to deny their faith.
However, in cases when children or young people under 18 years are caught, they are often urged not to believe in Jesus at all.
Not too long ago, an Open Doors field worker met Sister Jing who has
trained numerous Sunday school teachers all over China. She shared how the Sunday school children in one province stood firm…
Sunday School was in full swing for over 30 children when the sound of
vehicles could be heard pulling into the compound outside. Before they even had time to put away their books, Public Security Bureau officers burst into the room and surrounded all the teachers and students. After confiscating all the “incriminating evidence,” the 30 plus children were rounded up and unceremoniously herded into a van. By now, the children realized what was really happening. Their teachers had warned them that it might happen one day and taught them what to do. Now their time of testing had come.
As the van sped towards the police station, the children clung to one
another to steady themselves. One child began to sing. One by one, the
others picked up the tune and it wasn’t long before everyone was rousingly
singing, to the annoyance of the van driver and his companion. Arriving at
the station, the children bravely marched into the building singing “In the
name of Jesus, in the name of Jesus, we have the victory…”
The police interrogator came into the interrogation room, expecting to see a group of cowering children, ready to give up attending Sunday school and make life easy for him. He ordered them, “If you want to be released, each of you must write ‘I do not believe in Jesus’ one hundred times!” Instead, the defiant children wrote, “I believe in Jesus today. I will believe in Jesus tomorrow. I will believe in Jesus forever!”
The police officers were thoroughly unprepared for this line of response,
especially from young school children. Finally, in exasperation, they
decided to call the children’s parents to come and pick them up. When they turned up, they were told that if they wanted their children back, they would have to say they were not Christians. Many of the parents were not believers so they quite readily affirmed that they did not believe in Jesus. With that denial, their children were released.
One woman, a widow, arrived to pick up her twin sons. When the officers
asked her to deny Jesus, she said, “I can’t do that! My husband died two
years ago, and Jesus is the One who helps me. He provides for me now that I have no husband.” “If you do not deny Jesus, we will not release your sons!” the policemen insisted. “Well, I guess you will just have to keep them because, without Jesus, there would be no way for me to take care of them!” the widow replied adamantly. In disgust, they said, “Take your sons and go!”
http://www.opendoors.org
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2. PRAYER FOCUS: Terror attacks in London
At least two people are killed and many more injured in terror attacks on
London’s transport network earlier today. Prayer.tv , a national prayer
initiative in the United Kingdom and Ireland, urges Christians to pray and mobilise prayer:
- that there will be no other explosions occuring anywhere within Mainland Britain or Ireland;
- that the casualties will recover as quickly as possible;
- that the Government makes wise decisions in their response to these attacks;
- that any other planned attacks be uncovered;
- that the emergency services operate with little confusion and all
response departments work well with clear communication.
http://www.prayer.tv
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_pictures/4659489.stm
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3. RESOURCE: The practice of apostolic teams
What is the role of an apostle in the context of a church planting strategy? How do multiple-ministry teams function? KingWatch in New Zealand offers a helpful explanation, as well as dozens of other articles related to church and ministry.
http://www.kingwatch.co.nz/ChurchMinistry/apostle.htm
http://www.kingwatch.co.nz/ChurchMinistry/Church_Ministry.htm
How do five-fold ministry teams, or apostolic teams, function in practice?
Joel News publisher Marc van der Woude interacted about this topic with
Erling Thu from Bergen, Norway, who has been shaping these teams for the past twenty years, and has some valuable experience to glean from.
http://marcsmessages.typepad.com/mm/2005/05/the_practice_of.html
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COLOPHON
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