The recent killings at the Lonmin platinum mine, where 44 striking miners were shot by the police, brought to remembrance other "massacres", provoked by aggressive demonstrators, notably the Bisho Massacre. This took place on 7 September 1992, at which 28 members of the African National Congress (ANC) and one Ciskei soldier was shot. At that time the Ciskei was an independent state ruled by Brigadier Oupa Gqozo, a moderate Christian ruler who tried to promote a federal government system in South Africa. In his Council of State Report of 1992 he said: "We reaffirm that the Ciskei government subscribes to Christian principles, based on Scripture. We also maintain that a regional government is the essential component of future peace." Its laws, he said, should ideally be in line with the Ten Commandments.
"The Law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple." Psalm 19:7
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Just over a year later, many are questioning how the mainstream media could have gotten it so wrong about the Arab Spring. News reports and articles on radio, TV and in newspapers and magazines worldwide trumpeted the flowering of democracy, pluralism, freedom and tolerance in the Middle East. A new era of democratic freedom was dawning! Stubborn Reality Now as radical Islamicists replace previously moderate governments, the enthusiasm is waning. A seemingly never-ending stream of stubborn reality are shaking the enthusiastically proclaimed illusions. Tunisia used to be recognised as the most tolerant of all Muslim states in the Middle East. Now Egypt Today has screened graphic footage of a young convert to Christianity being beheaded, while Islamic militants recited the Quran and chanted Islamic slogans and curses in Arabic. The popular support for murdering of Arabs who convert to Christianity, bodes ill for the Arab Spring. Most of our prayer supporters know what we do, but not everyone understands why we do it.
Operation World When I joined Hospital Christian Fellowship, I was introduced to a world Missionary Vision. During daily prayer meetings, at monthly all-night prayer meetings, and through Days of Prayer, Francis Grim mobilised us to pray through Operation World. Military Mission It was while praying through the 1978 edition of Operation World at all-night prayer meetings in the Army that the Lord guided me into my first cross-border mission work to Mozambique. When I read that Mozambique was the least evangelised country in the Southern Hemisphere and that there was less than one Bible for every thousand people in this long-suffering, war-torn, communist state, the Lord galvanised me into launching Frontline Fellowship. PRAY FOR THE PERSECUTED YOU CAN CHANGE THE WORLD THROUGH PRAYER AND ACTION In the daily battles of life, one can be tempted to given in to depression or fatigue as we see sin and compromise increasing. Yet, there is hope. God is sovereign. Nothing is inevitable except what God has decreed. And there is great power in prayer. Nothing is beyond the reach of prayer – except that which is outside of the Will of God.
Christians are not doomed to defeat, but called to victory. If God can actually change us, then He can use us to change some part of this world. Christians can change the course of human history by prayer and obedience to God. The Bible is full of example of believers “who through faith conquered kingdoms…” Hebrews 11:33 And recent history confirms the power of prayer. The recent explosion of violent demonstrations against Danish Embassies and products in reaction to some cartoon strips on Muhammad published back in September in a small local paper raises some important questions.
If Islam is a religion of peace, then how does so much violence, arson and destruction of property demonstrate that? If Muhammad was a holy prophet of peace, then is killing people in his name the best way to illustrate that? ![]() “Power tends to corrupt; absolute power corrupts absolutely.” - Lord Acton Although governments are meant to protect their citizens, secular states in the 20th Century murdered over 169 million of their own citizens! This astonishing statistic is the result of decades of research, by political science Professor R.J. Rummel of the University of Hawaii. Prof. Rummel’s shocking research is presented in the 500 page book: Death By Government(2006, Transaction Publishers, New Branswick, NJ). Monday, 18 July 2005, the Frontline Fellowship Field Director, was surrounded by a mob of Muslim students at the University of Pretoria threatening him and demanding that the Frontline Fellowship missions display be removed. We had been officially invited by the University Missions Committee to take part in their “Go Love the Nations” Missions Week.
MUSLIM MOB AT MISSIONS WEEK Within two hours of setting up the Frontline Fellowship missions display, we began to receive hostile reactions from Muslim students, some of whom swore and cursed at our missionary, and threatened his life. Soon a mob of fifteen to twenty Muslim students were surrounding the Frontline mission display shouting and swearing at him. Some tore up or burned Frontline literature. A Muslim member of the Student Representative Council then fetched the Dean of students to inform us that we had to dismantle the Frontline mission display. That afternoon, we were informed by the TUKS Missions Committee that they could not allow our mission display to be set up again. It was mentioned that the Frontline Fellowship newsletters, in what they reported on the activities and teachings of Muslims, were too offensive to Muslim students. Sunday 14 November is the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church.
“Remember the prisoners as if chained with them – those who are mistreated – since you yourselves are in the Body also.” Hebrews 13:3 Persecution Worldwide Over 400 million Christians live under 66 governments which restrict religious freedom and persecute believers. Every year an average of 200,000 Christians are killed for their Faith. In the Book of Revelation, the Apostle John was given a glimpse into Heaven. He sees the martyrs, and he hears their prayer. What are the martyrs who have died for Christ praying? The secularisation and paganisation of large sections of Europe is tragic. There are surprisingly dynamic pockets of spiritual vitality and life amidst the general atheism and heathenism, but the general picture in Europe is of spiritual decline.
Missionary Power House In 1900, Evangelicals in Europe constituted 45% of the world's Evangelicals. Now less than 4% of all Evangelicals in the world are in Europe. The 19th century was the greatest century of Missionary advance. It was a century of astounding inventions and of spectacular advances in technology. Many countries in Europe experienced dynamic Spiritual Revivals. Christian missionaries from Europe won whole tribes and nations to Christ, in the remotest regions of the globe. For over a thousand years, Europe had been Christendom, the heartland and stronghold of Christian civilisation. The 19th century has seen such staggering growth in numbers, productivity, power and wealth, that most would have imagined that Europe would have continued to dominate the globe for centuries to come. The optimism which had prevailed in the 19th century gave way to profound pessimism after the First World War. The publishing of our new book Biblical Principles for Africa has sparked a lot of interest and controversy. We have been greatly encouraged by the many enthusiastic endorsements and positive responses to Biblical Principles for Africa. Just in these first 2 weeks, hundreds of copies of the book have been purchased and we've had many phone calls and E-mails with positive feed-back from those who appreciate and support its message.
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