Here is a blog from New Orleans. I thought you guys might find it interesting. Enjoy!
Islam a Threat to Christianity?
Persecuted Pastor Released!
Persecution Blog is reporting that a pastor jailed in Vietnam has been released.
Pastor Quang Released from Vietnamese Prison The Voice of the Martyrs has received news that Pastor Nguyen Hong Quang was released from prison on the afternoon of August 30. It is unknown if his release is related to a recently announced amnesty in conjunction with celebrations of Vietnam's independence. More details about the circumstances and conditions of his release will be made public as they become available.
Approximately 100 Christian leaders remain imprisoned in Vietnam. Glenn Penner, spokesman for VOMC, expressed his continued concerns, "While we welcome Pastor Quang's release from prison, we expect the Vietnamese government to grant him full liberty to pick up his responsibilities with the Mennonite Church of Vietnam without conditions or restrictions. We also urge the Vietnamese government to release evangelist Pham Ngoc Thach and other Christians who are still unjustly imprisoned."
Praise God for this unexpected release and for His goodness, faithfulness and mercy. Continue to pray for Pastor Quang, his wife and church members, as government pressure will undoubtedly continue.
For more information on the persecution facing Christians in Vietnam, as well as more information on Pastor Quang, go to http://www.persecution.net/country/vietnam.htm.
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Turkeys Mistreatment of Christians Becoming More Brazen
Worthy News is reporting that Turkey is increasing its mistreatment of Christians.
ISTANBUL, August 30 (Compass) — Bektas Erdogan never expected his Christian faith of 11 years to jeopardize his career as a fashion designer in Turkey.
Hired five months ago by a designer jeans company in the Beyazit district of Istanbul, Erdogan was assured by his Muslim boss that he would be evaluated on the basis of his work, not his religion.
After his first collection sold successfully in Russia, Erdogan thought the phone call he received earlier this month from his employer — asking him to come to work on a Sunday afternoon — boded well. Maybe there was a surprise company dinner.
But that evening at the shop, his supervisor angrily accused him of “missionary work” and “brainwashing.” With the help of two employees and a relative, he beat Erdogan for two hours. The men repeatedly struck the designer’s head and face with their fists and the butt of a pistol. Three times Erdogan’s boss attempted to shoot him, but the gun failed to fire.
“He really wanted to kill me. It wasn’t just to scare me,” said Erdogan, who told Compass that he prayed for help and meditated on Bible verses while his attackers threatened to murder him and hide his body.
His co-workers released the 32-year-old Erdogan with a swollen and bloody face around 9 p.m., warning that they would kill him later. Since then, he has received three anonymous phone calls threatening his life.
Erdogan did not report the August 7 incident to the police, fearing that his boss’ ties with local officials might make him the target of further aggression. He also felt that once the authorities learned he was a Christian, they would be unwilling to help.
He believes that his employer’s anger stemmed from shop employees’ interest in Christianity. During his last three months at the job, Erdogan said, “Almost every meal [at work] became a question-and-answer session about my religion.”
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Pocket Organizer
Ever want to organize your life? Think you need a PDA? Try this out: http://www.pocketmod.com/.
Picture
Several months ago I did a video for the Metro-Columbus Baptist Asspciation. One of the pictures I used I found on the internet. I found it on this NY Air National Guard site. As far as I know, everything the government does is in the Public Domain so I felt free to use it. I ran across it today and thought I would repost it here.
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More on Katrina
Firstly, I have more information about this post about the man who lost his wife in the storm. Thanks to TH who left this in the comments of that post:
That story was from WKRG TV in Mobile. The man (Mr. Jackson) was from Biloxi. The news journalist's last name is Mayerley. She has had alot of response to that candid interview with the distraught man…emails from around the world, she said. Later today, on WKRG, she said that there are hundereds of family members like Mr. Jackson. We can not all help him, personally, but we can give to every victim…by giving to United Way or the Red Cross, or any church group or agency that will aid the vicitims.
We live in the WKRG viewing area, so we saw the interview, Live. Almost unbelievable at first. I think it's hard to imagine such devestation right down the road. We will give and we will PRAY!! I know you will too. God is STILL in control and WE are STILL his helping hands, standing in the gap for our neighbors in prayer!
Thanks for caring about this poor man in Biloxi…and all the victims of Katrina.
If anyone in the storm area needs any phone calls made to relatives, I'll be willing. Drop me a line, leave me a message, and I'll call anyone you want to let them know you are ok. My contact information can be found here.
If there is any other ways I can help out from here, I'm willing. The people in the area are on my mind in prayer quite often.
Fox News has this story about the flooding in New Orleans.
CNN has this $4 gas sometime.
I lived in Hermann, MO in the '91 Mississippi/Misouri River floods. We weren't impacted, but had friends who were. Hermann was greatly impacted. You pull together to help out your neighbors any way you can. Christians, imagine what an opportunity you have to live out your faith to your friends. Let them see where your priorities really lie.
Here is a picture that went around work of FBC Gulfport:
What kind of witness would it be if the membership would show up tonight singing and worshiping God. What do they have to be thankful for? Well…they are alive for one. Second, they can be thankful for the opportunity to minister to their neighbors. In lots of these places outsiders cannot get in to help. Help has to come from those who are there.
The pictures below reminds me of pictures of levees breaking in the '91 floods. I wonder why the levees in New Orleans broke so fast. The ones in MO lasted just about all summer before they broke. Anyone have any ideas? I found the first picture on the CNN.com website. The second came from FoxNews. I would have linked to it, but couldn't find the URL.
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Boring Church? or What’s Important?
I was reading blogs tonight, and came across this article. I think it shows what is wrong with most people today. Note the picture. Note what the person is looking for.
No, church shouldn’t be boring or irrelevant. HOWEVER, never loose sight of what you go to church for. There needs to be sound Biblical preaching. The Word should never be compromised! Before you choose a church, put some thought into your criteria. Figure out what is important. First on your list should be doctrine and Biblical preaching!
Image from diofw via flickr
[Update 2012-12-28 07:49:54] While testing my blog to make sure it worked, I came across this article that had a bad link. The link used to go to http://tonymorgan.typepad.com/tony_morgan_one_of_the_si/2005/08/boring_churches.html. I also added an image.
Hurricane Katrina — How To Help
Like Dr. Mohler, I recommend helping through the North American Mission Board Disaster Recovery program. As far as I know, because of the support Southern Baptists give to the board through the Cooperative Program, 100% of what you give will go to disaster relief. I would expect none of your funds to be used for administrative expenses. Here is a NAMB article with more information.
[Update 2012-12-26 09:51:38] The link to Dr. Mohler’s website was redirected. I updated the link to the correct one.
‘Hindu radicals’ ransack Christian church
A mob of 50 "Hindu radicals" today ransacked an Assembly of God church building in India desecrating the Bible, sources on the ground report.
— 'Hindu radicals' ransack Christian church — WorldNetDaily.com