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Dosadh (Hindu traditions) in India

Dosadh (Hindu traditions) in India The Dusadh are economically backward. Sometimes they earn their livelihood by searching for insects in the cattle of peasants. Their primary vocation is seeking alms while singing Kapila Mangal and Sitala Mangal songs. The local peasants hesitate to employ them in agricultural work because they do not have the skill to do such work. They worship Garaya, Baghat, Garam Gossain, Kudra, Barpahar, Manasa, Satbahni, Shiva, Durga, Lakshmi, Sitala and other deities. Ministry Obstacles Christian workers need to note the extreme poverty of the Dosadh community, and not neglect their material and physical needs. Outreach Ideas Christians need to serve these people by helping improve their living conditions. Friendships based upon trust are needed. Pray for the followers of Christ Pray for the Christian believers that will someday emerge among the Dosadh community, that they will be zealous to know and serve the Lord. Pray for the entire people group Pray for these poor people, the Dosadh community. Pray they will have good schools available for their children and desire to send their children to school. Pray for an improved standard of living. Scripture Focus "Having an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the earth, and to every nation and tribe and tongue and people." Revelation 14:6		People Name: Dosadh (Hindu traditions) Country: India 10/40 Window: Yes Population: 5,338,000 World Population: 5,553,000 Language: Hindi Primary Religion: Hinduism Bible: Complete Audio NT (FCBH): Yes Jesus Film: Yes Audio Recordings: Yes Christ Followers: Few, less than 2% Status: Unreached Progress Level:

A Sobering Experience

Every Home for Christ workers in Zambia went to a remote community to give every lost soul there an opportunity to hear the Gospel. When our workers heard music coming from the local tavern early in the morning, they went inside to find the owner preparing for his day. He was in a back room stacking boxes when they introduced themselves and said they had come to bring him life-changing news.

The tavern owner asked them to wait for just a moment and led them to the bar. When he turned on the lights, our workers discovered a room full of patrons seeking relief from their troubles by indulging in the local brew. Then the owner silenced the music and instructed the unsuspecting audience to listen to what the visitors had to say.

Our workers shared a visual presentation of the Gospel depicting the struggle between good and evil and the guilt that comes when we sin. When they asked if anyone wanted to receive Jesus Christ as Savior and be given a second chance at life, 20 weeping patrons raised their hands.

Stories like this are pouring in from all around the world, revealing a desperate hunger and thirst for the Gospel. We have thousands of global EHC workers who long to meet that need, but they can’t do it without the evangelism materials we provide. We know you’ll want to help meet this critical need. Each dollar you give will reach about 12 searching souls with the Gospel.

One dollar: 12 souls.

Will you give the gift of the Gospel to souls in need this Christmas? Please give your best gift today at ehc.org/Christmas.

Thank you and Merry Christmas!
Your friends at Every Home for Christ

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Asia Bibi faces another lonely Christmas in her ‘death row’ cell in Pakistan

Asia Bibi faces another lonely Christmas in her ‘death row’ cell in Pakistan

By Dan Wooding, Founder of the ASSIST News Service

PUNJAB PROVINCE, PAKISTAN (ANS December 20, 2016) – Asia Bibi, the Pakistani Christian mother-of-five who was found guilty in 2010 of blasphemy for standing up for Jesus, and sentenced to death, faces another lonely Christmas in her “death row” cell in Punjab Province.

While many of us will be enjoying fellowship, food and presents on Christmas Day, she will spend it in solitary confinement in an 8-by-10-foot cell without windows, and will even have to cook her own Christmas meal because of fears that others may try to poison her food.

Asia Bibi will again be away from her husband, Ashiq Masih, and her children, and will wonder what the New Year has in store for her.

Asia’s nightmare back in June of 2009, when she was harvesting falsa berries with a group of mainly Muslim women farmhands in a field in Sheikhupura, a village in Punjab Province. She was asked at one point to fetch water from a nearby well; to which she complied, but stopped to take a drink from an old metal cup that she had found lying next to the well.

A neighbor of Asia, who had allegedly been involved in a running feud with her family about some property damage, saw her take a sip and angrily told her that it was forbidden for a Christian to drink water from the same utensil from which Muslims drank, and then some of the other workers told her that they considered her to be “unclean” because she was a Christian.

Some arguments ensued and Asia recounts that when they made derogatory statements about her Christian faith, she responded by telling them, “I believe in my religion and in Jesus Christ, who died on the cross for the sins of mankind. What did your Prophet Mohammed ever do to save mankind?”

This incensed the Muslim women, and later some of the workers complained to a local Islamic cleric, claiming that she had insulted Muhammad and soon an angry mob came to her house, beating her and members of her family before she was rescued by the police. One report alleged that she was beaten all the way home, then gang-raped by Muslim in from the village, and her children were later sexually molested.

The police initiated an investigation about her remarks, resulting in her arrest under Section 295 C of the Pakistan Penal Code. She subsequently was imprisoned for over a year upon the demands of the local Iman, before being formally charged under Pakistan’s notorious blasphemy laws. Asia Bibi has now been incarcerated since June 2009.

Ms. Bibi denied that she had committed blasphemy and said that she had been accused by her neighbor to “settle an old score”. In November 2010, Muhammed Naveed Iqbal, a judge at the court of Sheikhupura, sentenced her to death by hanging. Additionally, a fine of the equivalent of $1,100 was imposed. With the verdict, she became the first woman condemned to death in Pakistan on blasphemy charges.

In December 2010, a month after her conviction, a Muslim cleric announced a 500,000 Pakistani rupee award (the equivalent of $10,000) to anyone who would kill her. One survey reported that around 10 million Pakistanis had said that they would be willing to personally kill Asia out of either religious conviction or for the reward. Many others have gathered in the streets of several town and cities chanting “Kill her, kill her.”

Asia’s family has received threats and were forced to go into hiding. Ashiq, her husband, stated that he was afraid to let their children go outside. He also expressed concern about how his wife would be kept safe should she be released, saying, “No one will let her live. The mullahs are saying they will kill her when she comes out.” Her family declined to leave the country while she remained in prison, but Italy, France, and Spain all offered to grant her and her family asylum in the event of her release.

Two prominent Pakistani leaders, Salmaan Taseer, the then governor of Punjab, and Shahbaz Bhatti, the only Christian in the Pakistani cabinet, were both murdered for supporting Asia Bibi.

So this Christmas, would join with me in praying for Asia Bibi and her family, and also let your local politician know of her plight, so he or she can take action.

We at ANS pledge to continue to bring you vital updates on this travesty of a case, and also of the many other Christians who, like Asia Bibi, will have a lonely Christmas, particularly in the refugee camps of the Middle East, or in the prisons in Iran.

Yesterday (December 19th) I celebrated my 76th birthday, and although some have urged me to retire, I feel that God still wants me to continue with our news service. We are all volunteers, meaning we don’t receive a regular salary, and consequently we depend on friends like you to support us as you are able.

If you value our journalism, would you consider a generous end-of-the year donation so that we can continue our work for the Kingdom? Your gift will make a tremendous difference in what we are able to do.

It’s very simple, yet your gift will make such a difference. Just go to www.assistnews.net and scroll down to where it says DONATE TO ASSIST NEWS and there put in your amount. If you prefer a check, just make it out to ASSIST and mail it to: PO Box 609, Lake Forest, CA 92609, USA. (All gifts in the US are tax-deductible). If you are sending a check, would you mind sending me an e-mail at assistnews@aol.com , so I can let Norma, our volunteer administrator, know the good news.

Again, please pray for Asia Bibi and her family, and also for all of our many Christian brothers and sisters who are suffering untold violence for following Jesus Christ. I also thank you in advance for your donation, which is so appreciate by our ANS team, and will allow us to carry on bringing you their stories.

Photo captions: 1) Asia Bibi. 2) Muslims who want Asia Bibi to hang. 3) Asia’s husband and two daughters with Shahbaz Bhatti, who was later killed for his support Ms. Bibi. 4) Dan Wooding pictured with his wife, Norma.

About the writer: Dan Wooding, 76, is an award-winning journalist who was born in Nigeria of British missionary parents, and is now living in Southern California with his wife Norma, to whom he has been married for more than 53 years. They have two sons, Andrew and Peter, and six grandchildren who all live in the UK. Dan is the founder of the ASSIST News Service (ANS) and he hosts a weekly radio show and two TV shows, all based in in Southern California. Dan also is the author of some 45 books.

** You may republish this or any of our ANS stories with attribution to the ASSIST News Service (www.assistnews.net). Please also tell your friends that they can receive a free subscription to our news service by going to the above website and signing up there.

Give Another Life to the Persecuted Today!

In Pakistan, Muslims told 20 Christian families they were blasphemers and could no longer use the village well unless they converted to Islam. 

The Christians faced a simple choice. Leave all their possessions and start life somewhere else or stay and convert!

ICC provided water filtration equipment and coolers so the families had access to safe water. 

The families told us that they felt the assistance was "like getting another life or rising from the dead."

We are able to restore persecuted communities because of people like yourself who partner with us and contribute the necessary resources.

In order to continue this vital work of providing practical assistance to our suffering brothers and sisters, we need your help. Even though we have experienced an outstanding year helping the persecuted, our revenue is down 45% from where it should be! There seems to be a trend that overall giving is down during election years. Please consider sending a generous gift today and giving "another life" to our persecuted brothers and sisters. 

Be assured that your gifts will be used prayerfully, effectively, and efficiently.

I promise!

  

Jeff King

ICC President 

DONATE

Bedouin, Eastern Bedawi in Egypt

Bedouin, Eastern Bedawi in Egypt Several Bedouin tribes reside in Egypt, often occupying various oases in the desert areas. They lead a fairly harsh existence, with few amenities. Almost all are Sunni Muslim. Ministry Obstacles The Bedouin tend to be insular, separated from the communities around them. Creative means to connect to these people will be helpful. Scripture is not available in their language. Outreach Ideas Radio and television broadcasts of the Gospel message in the language of the Bedouin will be very useful, even necessary to reach these tribes. Pray for the followers of Christ There are few if any believers among these Bedouin peoples, but pray for those that will someday believe. Pray they will be filled with the Lord's Spirit, demonstrating love, joy, and peace. Pray for the entire people group Pray for the Bedouin, that they will hunger to know the forgiveness and fulfillment found only through Christ. Scripture Focus "The time is coming to gather all nations and tongues. And they shall come and see My glory." Isaiah 66:18		People Name: Bedouin, Eastern Bedawi Country: Egypt 10/40 Window: Yes Population: 987,000 World Population: 1,256,000 Language: Arabic, Eastern Egyptian Bedawi Spoken Primary Religion: Islam Bible: None Audio NT (FCBH): No Jesus Film: No Audio Recordings: Yes Christ Followers: Few, less than 2% Status: Unreached Progress Level:

Terrorism in Berlin and Turkey: 3 ways to fight back

Terrorism in Berlin and Turkey: 3 ways to fight back

Dr. Jim Denison | December 21, 2016

The Associated Press is reporting this morning that German authorities have identified and are searching for a suspect in the attack on a Berlin Christmas market. Yesterday, ISIS claimed responsibility for this tragedy. But why would they attack Berlin? What did Christmas shoppers in Germany do to provoke Islamic extremists?

Why did a police officer murder a Russian diplomat in Ankara, Turkey? The gunman shouted "Allahu akbar [God is the greatest]. Do not forget Aleppo! Do not forget Syria!" But what did this diplomat do to him or to Muslims? Why kill him while he spoke rather than before or after his speech?

Terrorists seek to terrorize. The Berlin attack was staged when the most people would be in the market during one of the central holidays of the Christmas tradition. The Ankara attack was staged when the cameras would be rolling and the largest audience would see the murder.

Osama bin Laden chose some of the most public and symbolic buildings in America as targets for his 9/11 attack. The July 2016 truck attack in Nice, France targeted Bastille Day (the French equivalent to our July 4) when huge crowds would be watching an aerial display by the French Air Force. The Tsarnaev brothers chose to attack the Boston Marathon, one of the most visible events in the city all year.

What does the terrorists' strategy mean for us this Christmas? Consider three imperatives.

One: Be prepared.

Terrorists have demonstrated their ability to attack anywhere at any time. Proving this fact is part of their motivation. While authorities are doing all they can to protect us, we must be ready as well. The Department of Homeland Security advises us to
"run, hide, fight." Run from an attack if you can, hide if you cannot, and fight back if you must.

The same imperative applies to us spiritually. No one is promised tomorrow. Scripture teaches that "now is the day of salvation" (2 Corinthians 6:2). Jonathan Edwards resolved that "I will live so as I shall wish I had done when I come to die." Live every day prepared to meet God, because one day you will.

Two: Be global.

The atrocities in Syria inspired the murder in Ankara. America's support for Israel was part of the motivation behind 9/11. The day when oceans protected us from the world is gone.

Writing for Foreign Affairs, esteemed scholar Joseph S. Nye Jr. notes that the US remains the world's leading superpower, spending four times more on our military than China. However, such power cannot stop every terrorist attack. We need global economic, diplomatic, and social solutions for the challenges that foster terrorism.

The same is true for followers of Jesus. We should each have a personal Acts 1:8 strategy to reach our Jerusalem, area, and world. The ultimate answer to terrorism is transformation in Christ.

Three: Be redemptive.

Terrorism reminds us of our mortality. No one in the path of the Berlin truck was safe, no matter their youth, health, or wealth. When tragedy strikes, people who are otherwise callous to faith begin looking for answers. That's why we need to report for Kingdom duty every day, asking the Spirit to take control of our lives (Ephesians 5:18) and making ourselves available to those the Lord entrusts to our witness.

God's word is clear: "Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have" (1 Peter 3:15, NIV). Always.

Tyndale: The Man Who Gave God an English Voice

Tyndale: The Man Who Gave God an English Voice

By Janey DeMeo, Special to ASSIST News Service (Book Review)

VISTA, CA (ANS – December 21, 2016) -- David Teems’ book, Tyndale: The Man Who Gave God an English Voice is both eloquent and enlightening. Not only was the Bible not available in plain English for anyone to read, but those who were able to read it in its original languages found themselves in great danger -- danger of imprisonment, torture and death.

Such was the case of William Tyndale to whom we owe our quintessential English Bible. He became an arch-enemy to the religious establishment because he set out to translate the Bible into plain English.

Tyndale, a strong believer who loved God’s Word with a passion, drew directly from the original Hebrew and Greek texts to translate the Bible into contemporary English. He took advantage of the then “modern” printing press and was the first to produce the new English Bibles of the Reformation.

However, this translation -- and the fact that the average man could read it and understand it -- posed a threat to the despotic Roman Catholic Church and the church's position on many things as a whole.

David Teems, an articulate writer, depicts the austerity of manipulative religion overshadowing fifteenth century society in England and her surrounding European countries. Teems brings William Tyndale’s character to life as he describes his lifestyle, convictions, and deep love for the Bible. We almost hear Tyndale’s heartbeat and follow his thought processes as he carefully weighs which word to use, even which expression to choose so that the Bible make sense to the then-modern reader. And Tyndale nailed it! -- so much so that much of the King James Bible was taken from Tyndale’s translation.

Teems quotes Scriptures throughout his writing, masterfully bringing the reader into the word-weighing process. He compares the language to Shakespearean English and other sources to show how carefully Tyndale crafted his translation to reflect the original intent and still make it tangible to the English reader. Tyndale was relentless and took great pains not to deviate from the original texts. And he showed great devotion to his Lord and Savior in the process -- something that cost him his life.

More than just a biography of William Tyndale’s inspiring life, Tyndale: The Man Who Gave God an English Voice is also a recount of the backdrop for the ushering in of the Reformation. For those who want to understand history and how the original English Bible was birthed, this book makes for passionate reading. But be careful. It is no light reading matter.

Thomas Nelson publishers released Tyndale: The Man Who Gave God an English Voice in January 2012, and it recently claimed top place on www.Amazon.com.

For more information about Teems and Tyndale: The Man Who Gave God an English Voice, visit davidteems.com or thomasnelson.com/tyndale.html.

Photo captions: 1) Book cover. 2) The Martyrdom of William Tyndale. 3) David Tees. 4) Louis and Janey DeMeo (Photo: Dan Wooding).

About the writer: Janey DeMeo is founding-president of Orphans First -- a Christ-centered non-profit ministry helping underprivileged children around the world. She is an author, freelance writer and Bible teacher -- and has worked with husband, Louis, as a church-planter in France. Her website is: www.orphansfirst.org.

** You may republish this or any of our ANS stories with attribution to the ASSIST News Service (www.assistnews.net). Please tell your friends that they can receive a complimentary subscription to our news service by going to the ANS website (see above) and signing up there.

New Book on the Assyrian Genocide Published

New Book on the Assyrian Genocide Published

By Michael Ireland, Senior Correspondent, ASSIST News Service (www.assistnews.net)

ANKARA, TURKEY (ANS, Dec. 21, 2016) -- According to the Assyrian International News Agency (AINA) www.aina.org, the Armenian genocide of 1915 has been well documented.

Much less is known, however, about the Turkish genocide of the Assyrian (also known as Chaldean and Syriac) people, which occurred simultaneously in their ancient homelands in and around ancient Mesopotamia -- now Turkey, Iran and Iraq.

A new English book titled Year of the Sword -- The Assyrian Christian Genocide -- A History, has been published by Prof. Joseph Yacoub, an emeritus Professor at the Catholic University of Lyon, France. The book is an English edition of the French book published last year and titled "Qui s'en souviendra ?: 1915: le génocide a ssyro-chaldéo-syriaque."

The advent of the First World War gave the Young Turks and the Ottoman government the opportunity to exterminate the Assyrians in a series of massacres and atrocities inflicted on a people whose culture dates back millennia and whose language, Aramaic, was spoken by Jesus. Systematic killings, looting, rape, kidnapping and deportations destroyed countless communities and created a vast refugee diaspora. Hundreds of thousand Assyro- Chaldean-Syriac people were murdered and a larger number forced into exile.

The 'Year of the Sword' (Seyfo - The Sword) in 1915, as Assyrians recall the events, was preceded over millennia by other attacks on the Assyrians and has been mirrored by recent events, not least the abuses committed by Islamic State.

The Armenian Genocide, also known as the Armenian Holocaust, was the Ottoman government's systematic extermination of 1.5 million Armenians, mostly Ottoman citizens within the Ottoman Empire and its successor state, the Republic of Turkey. The starting date is conventionally held to be April 24, 1915, the day that Ottoman authorities rounded up, arrested, and deported 235 to 270 Armenian intellectuals and community leaders from Constantinople to Ankara, the majority of whom were eventually murdered. The genocide was carried out during and after World War I and implemented in two phases: the wholesale killing of the able-bodied male population through massacre and subjection of army conscripts to forced labor, followed by the deportation of women, children, the elderly, and the infirm on death marches leading to the Syrian desert. Driven forward by military escorts, the deportees were deprived of food and water and subjected to periodic robbery, rape, and massacre. Other indigenous and Christian ethnic groups such as the Assyrians and the Ottoman Greeks were similarly targeted for extermination by the Ottoman government in the Assyrian genocide and the Greek genocide, and their treatment is considered by some historians to be part of the same genocidal policy. Most Armenian diaspora communities around the world came into being as a direct result of the genocide.

A Rutgers University study, http://tinyurl.com/z83v425 states the Assyrian people have also been repeatedly victimized by genocidal assaults over the past century. They first suffered, along Ottoman Greeks and Armenians, from Turkey’s simultaneous genocides during and immediately after World War I. Soon after, the Armenians of northern Iraq were brutally massacred by the newly established Iraqi state. Persecution continued during the reign of the Ba’ath Party and Saddam Hussein, and sectarian violence unleashed during the recent Iraq War has left Assyrians vulnerable in their historic homeland. As a result of these successive tragedies, an Assyrian diaspora stretches across the world.

The study says the Assyrian people have deep autochthonous roots in Anatolia and Mesopotamia, going back well before the 3rd millennium BC. Christianity came early to the Assyrians, at least since the third century AD. With subsequent Arab, Mongolian, and Ottoman conquests of Mesopotamia, the Assyrians and their Christian brethren were subordinated to minority status. The millet system of the Ottoman Empire ensured a certain degree of cultural and religious autonomy, at least until the crises of the 19th century. By then, geopolitical forces and the rise of nationalism threatened the multiethnic status of the Ottoman Empire, which subsequently directed its ire against its Christian subjects. Along with the Armenians, the Ottoman Assyrians suffered grave depredations towards the end of the 19th century, when the Ottoman Sultan organized an irregular cavalry force of Kurdish tribesmen called the Hamidiye. This was the awful prelude of what was to follow in the coming decades.

The status of Ottoman Christians became even more precarious after the ultranationalist "Young Turks" emerged as a dominant political force in the Empire. Organized as the Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), the "Young Turks" staged a successful coup in 1913, thereby establishing a military dictatorship on the eve of World War I. They initiated a national project of "Turkey for the Turks," whereby they sought to forge a homogenous nation state through the deliberate removal of all minorities.

Soon after the Ottoman Empire entered World War I in November 1914, the CUP ruthlessly began its genocidal project. Waging more or less simultaneous genocides against Assyrians, Armenians, and Greeks, the CUP essentially followed the same pattern of group destruction. Massacres, rapes, plundering, cultural desecrations, and forced deportations were all endemic. Around 750,000 Assyrians died during the genocide, amounting to nearly three quarters of its prewar population. The rest were dispersed elsewhere, mostly in the Middle East.

Unfortunately, the persecution of Assyrians did not end with the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. From August 8-11, 1933, in the newly established state of Iraq, Assyrian villagers in the northern Iraqi town of Simele were brutally murdered. Some 3,000 men, women, and children were killed by Iraqi soldiers and Kurdish irregulars. The massacre was covered by Western media sources, and it inspired the intellectual development of Raphael Lemkin, the Polish-Jewish jurist who would go on to coin the word "genocide."

There remains a vulnerable Assyrian population in Iraq. They suffered along with their former Kurdish tormentors from Saddam Hussein and his Ba’athist party's "Arabization" program that culminated in the bloody al-Anfal campaign in 1988.

As of the invasion of Iraq in spring 2003, there still remained a substantial minority of nearly 1.5 million Assyrians, roughly 8 percent of the total Iraqi population. However, the recent Iraq War has been devastating for the Assyrians, as they have been caught in the midst of vicious sectarian violence.

Presently, the Assyrian diaspora (dispersion) stretches across the world, from the Middle East to Central Asia, as well as Western Europe, North America, and Australia. While they continue to celebrate their rich cultural heritage, their modern legacy as victims of genocide has yet to be fully recognized.

University Professor and Author, Joseph Yacoub, whose family was murdered and dispersed, has gathered together a compelling range of eye-witness accounts and reports which cast light on this 'hidden genocide.’ Passionate and yet authoritative, his book reveals a little-known human and cultural tragedy. A century after the Assyrian genocide and the treat of so-called Islamic State (IS), the fate of this Christian minority hangs in the balance in its ancestral homeland of Syria and Iraq.

Here are some selected reviews of the book:

Vicken Cheterian, Webster University, Geneva, author of ‘Open Wounds: Armenians, Turks and a Century of Genocide,’ said: "Yacoub's work is essential reading and sheds light on a dark chapter of twentieth century Middle Eastern history that has been deliberately silenced."

William Harris, Professor, Department of Politics, University of Otago, author of ‘Lebanon: A History, 600-2011,’ writes: "This book is intended for multiple audiences: the survivors of the communities themselves, as an account by a descendant of victims; academics, journalists and others dealing with the Middle East; and a wider public interested in Middle Eastern Christians. The diaspora communities include well over half a million people, so this alone is a very substantial audience. I think it is definitely an original contribution. To the best of my knowledge the literature on the massacres and persecution suffered by these communities is very limited, certainly compared with the Armenian dimension"

Geoffrey Robertson QC (Queen’s Counsel), human rights barrister, Doughty Street Chambers, and author of ‘An Inconvenient Genocide,’ stated: "This important and revelatory book tells of the biblical race which has suffered genocide twice within a century: over half were destroyed by the Ottoman atrocities of 1915, and now their descendants in Mosul and elsewhere are being put to the sword by ISIS. The Assyrians today deserve more than our pity -- they need our protection."

Christian Sahner, Research Fellow in History, St. John's College, University of Cambridge, and author of ‘Among the Ruins: Syria Past and Present,’ writes: “Meticulous and moving, Year of the Sword documents the forgotten horrors that befell the Syriac-speaking Christians of the Ottoman Empire. This is a book for all times, but especially our own, when the Middle East's distinctive ethno-religious diversity is again under the threat from violence and forced migration. Readers will be sobered and better informed thanks to Yacoub's efforts."

Product Details

Hardcover: 288 pages

Publisher: Oxford University Press; 1 edition (November 1, 2016)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0190633468

ISBN-13: 978-0190633462

Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 1.4 x 5.8 inches

Photo captions: 1) Cover artwork for 'Year of the Sword - The Assyrian Christian Genocide, A History'. 2) Joseph Yacoub. 3) Michael Ireland.

About the Writer: Michael Ireland is a volunteer internet journalist serving as Senior Correspondent for the ASSIST News Service, as well as an Ordained Minister who has served with ASSIST Ministries and written for ANS since its beginning in 1989. He has reported for ANS from Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Israel, Jordan, China, and Russia. Please consider helping Michael cover his expenses in bringing news of the Persecuted Church, by logging-on to: https://actintl.givingfuel.com/ireland-michael.

** You may republish this or any of our ANS stories with attribution to the ASSIST News Service (www.assistnews.net). Please also tell your friends and colleagues that they can get a complimentary subscription to ANS by going to the website and signing up there.

GPN - 12/20/2016

He who keeps eternity before his eyes, makes wise and considered decisions. 2 Corinthians 4:17-18

IMPORTANT! They have removed moisture behind the lungs of my brother (69). Pray for a miracle of healing of his leukemia. Mrs. S.

IMPORTANT! My sister Astrid may lose her fourth husband Maurice (50). This would mean she loses the third husband to cancer. How much suffering can a person handle?! He also lost his first wife to cancer. They both have children. He must go to Aachen (Germany) for a scan. Pray for a miracle, that no cancer will be seen anymore. Mrs. A.

Mrs. v/d B. has recently lost her husband and then moved. She still has not heard anyhting after her application to do volunteer work. Pray for a breakthrough and God's comforting love in her grieving process and an open door to do something for someone else.

USA: I am going to a banquet for the homeless on Friday. Please pray for us; it means so much to us. brother Danny C. 

My daughter, Faith Joy (15), has been suspended from school for the third time. Since last year she has the Islamic faith. Pray for her return to the Lord and deliverance from her drug use. She had a Christian upbringing. Mrs. M.N.

Many Christians go out to evangelize and invite people to Christmas celebrations in church. Pray that God's Spirit will bring many people to church to thank God and to celebrate the birth of Jesus.

Maasbach Radio - Mozambique: Thank you for your prayers for financial provision for us here to make it possible to spread the Gospel of the Kingdom of God in rural and urban areas to save millions of souls. Mr. C.N.M. (Radio Messenger Broadcasting Mission Association FM)

Pray for Mrs. G.B., that she will receive God's peace in her mind. That her children will come home with Christmas. And that she will learn to live day by day, so she can see God's blessings and is able to enjoy the presence of the Lord every day.

Suriname: Pray for Mrs. B., for God's help in her difficulties and also with the press.

Pray for my granddaughter J., for a breakthrough. She is shy and anxious, because she is being dominated and claimed by a girl from another class. That the Lord will give her self-confidence and her own friends. Mrs. B.

Mr. L.P. longs for healing, deliverance and new strength to overcome his anxiety attacks.

Please pray that God will soon provide my children and me in a good house, where we can start living instead of surviving. Mrs. L.v.G.

For God's healing of my right arm and shoulder and my troubled intestines. Mrs. d.B.

Pray for conversion and deliverance for Mr. D.J., Mrs. I. and Mr. M. and his wife. Also for Mrs. A., for her salvation and conversion of her husband and her family. Mrs. S.J.

Ask God to deliver me and to help me to overcome all demonic attacks. That I will be filled with power of His Spirit. Mr. P.

For a good recovery from flu and a miracle of my eyes. According to the eye doctor, maximum visibility is achieved and now I must use resources. Pray and thank God that I can be an example of how God helps and gives courage in this situation. Pray for God's blessing for a new colleague, C.B., an ex-companion. And for a breakthrough, so that all the shares of the company will be in our own hands. Mr. E.

That my sister Remmy will come to repentance. For deliverance from her smoking addiction and her husky voice. And for my son, for healing of his hives. Mrs. W.

It is going much better spiritually with Mr. W. Now he is being attacked by unclean memories of his past. Pray for God's victory in this area of his life.

PRAYER HELPS! It is going better with my sugar level. And my husband is recovering well from his operation of an inguinal hernia. I thank the Lord for the answered prayers and you for your prayers. Mrs. S.

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Listen non-stop to the faith-building messages of anointed preachers with singing, music and special prayer. Choose your own language, preacher and topic. Listen, download, like it, put in your favorites, share with others and much more! Pray and thank God that this station will reach many people in places where little or nothing of the Gospel is found and where people are on their own. Tune in at maasbachradio.com.

The GPN team wishes you a very blessed week!

Izarguien in Western Sahara

Izarguien in Western Sahara The Izarguien are Saharan Arabs, a sub-group of the Tekna tribe. They adhere to the Maliki branch of Sunni Islam. The Tekna is a tribal confederation of Berber and Arab origins in southern Morocco and parts of northern Western Sahara. The Tekna tribes speak the Hassaniya Arabic and Berber Tamazight languages. Their traditional lifestyle was partly nomadic, based on camel and goat herding, and partly sedentary, controlling important routes of the Saharan caravan trade. Ministry Obstacles Western Sahara is not hospitable to visitors. The partially nomadic tribes are often reluctant to trust outsiders. Outreach Ideas Gospel radio broadcasts may bear fruit among the tribes of the Sahara. Much prayer is needed for the preparation of these broadcasts, and for hearts to be prepared to hear and believe. Pray for the followers of Christ There quite likely isn't a single follower of Christ among the Izarguien tribe. However, pray for those the Lord will soon call to himself. Pray they will be firmly grounded on the truths of Scripture, not mixing the grace offered through Christ with the religion of good works. Pray they will understand the priority of living a life obedient to Christ, as an expression of thanksgiving. Pray for the entire people group Pray for the Izarguien tribe, living in a harsh and dangerous environment, to be able to provide adequately for their needs. Pray for the widow, the orphan, and the elderly to be cared for. Pray these people will be able to adjust to the changing requirements of the modern era. Scripture Focus "Do you not say, 'There are yet four months, and then comes the harvest?' Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest." John 4:35		People Name: Izarguien Country: Western Sahara 10/40 Window: Yes Population: 35,000 World Population: 52,000 Language: Hassaniyya Primary Religion: Islam Bible: None Audio NT (FCBH): No Jesus Film: Yes Audio Recordings: Yes Christ Followers: Few, less than 2% Status: Unreached Progress Level:

Harvest Crusades with Greg Laurie To Hold Nationally Simulcast Harvest America Outreach in Phoenix Area In 2017

Harvest Crusades with Greg Laurie To Hold Nationally Simulcast Harvest America Outreach in Phoenix Area In 2017

By Dan Wooding, Founder of ASSIST News Service

PHOENIX, ARIZONA (ANS – December 16, 2016) -- Nearly three decades after first bringing its large-scale evangelistic events to stadiums and arenas around the world, Harvest Crusades with Greg Laurie has announced plans to hold its annual Harvest America outreach in the Phoenix, Arizona metro area on June 11, 2017.

Designed to impact a country desperately in need of hope, the nationwide simulcast of the Harvest America outreach will be made available to thousands of host locations across the country and will originate from the University of Phoenix Stadium, home of the Arizona Cardinals.

According to a news release from Laura McGowan Communications (http://www.lauramcgowan.com/), churches and para-church organizations representing a variety of denominations throughout Phoenix and surrounding regions -- the “Valley of the Sun” -- are partnering with Harvest America to host the one-night event.

In addition, the Southern Baptist Convention and its North American Mission Board are partnering with Harvest America 2017, and have selected it as the focus of their annual “Crossover” outreach event, taking place just prior to the Southern Baptist Convention’s national meeting in Phoenix in June.

Featuring a nightly message of hope from Laurie and music from top-name Christian artists, each Harvest outreach is hosted through the efforts of hundreds of local churches and admission is free of charge.

Since 1990, Harvest Crusades has put on large-scale evangelistic outreaches across the U.S. and in Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. In 2012 a new nationwide simulcast called Harvest America was born, expanding the reach of the Gospel even further. In person attendance and live webcast views for Harvest events total more than 7.6 million, with 489,229 people deciding to make a profession of faith in Jesus Christ.

The 2016 Harvest America event was held at AT&T Stadium in Dallas, and was live streamed to more than 7,200 remote host locations and drew a combined 350,000 participants, making it the largest one-day live evangelistic event ever for U.S. audiences.

With a trademark ability to present a clear gospel message in a culturally relevant format, drawing on the latest in current events, contemporary Christian music, and technology, Greg Laurie has been called the “evangelist of the future” by Billy Graham. In addition to founding the Harvest Crusades—the longest-running annual evangelistic outreach in U.S. history—Laurie also serves as senior pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship, which has campuses in Riverside and Irvine, California, and Maui, Hawaii. He serves on the board of directors for the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association.

MEDIA NOTE: For more information about the 2017 Harvest America, contact Laura McGowan at (847) 347-5206 or laura@lauramcgowan.com , or access the Harvest America website at www.harvestamerica.com.

Photo captions: 1) Greg Laurie preaching. 2) A humorous moment during the latest SoCal Harvest crusade in Anaheim, California, when Greg Laurie arm wrestles Mel Gibson. 3) Greg Laurie with Billy Graham. 4) Dan Wooding interviews Greg Laurie at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, as his ANS colleague, Mark Ellis, looks on.

About the writer: Dan Wooding, who turns 76 on Monday, December 19th, is an award-winning journalist who was born in Nigeria of British missionary parents, and is now living in Southern California with his wife Norma, to whom he has been married for more than 53 years. They have two sons, Andrew and Peter, and six grandchildren who all live in the UK. Dan is the founder and international director of ASSIST (Aid to Special Saints in Strategic Times) and the ASSIST News Service (ANS) and he hosts the weekly “Front Page Radio” show on the KWVE Radio Network (www.kwve.com) in Southern California and which is also carried throughout the United States on various stations. He also presents with Dr. Garry Ansdell, the TV show, “Windows on the World,” and hosts “Inside Hollywood with Dan Wooding,” both of which are aired on the Holy Spirit Broadcasting Network (http://hsbn.tv/). Dan is the author of some 45 books, the latest of which is a novel about the life of Jesus through the eyes of his beloved mother and called “Mary: My Story from Bethlehem to Calvary”. For more information, please go to http://marythebook.com/, where you can find details of how to order the book.

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