Algeria Upholds Conviction of Convert from Islam

Algeria Upholds Conviction of Convert from Islam
Christian's one-year prison term for alleged proselytizing revoked, but fine doubled

By Jeremy Reynalds
Senior Correspondent for ASSIST News Service
TIZI OUZOU, ALGERIA (ANS) -- An Algerian judge under pressure from Islamists to uphold a Christian's conviction for alleged proselytizing rescinded his one-year prison term today but doubled his fine, an attorney said.
Algeria is a country in North Africa on the Mediterranean coast.

According to a story by Morning Star News, Mohamed Ibaouene, 36, was shocked to learn on Dec. 11 that he had been convicted in absentia on July 4, 2012 by a court in Tigzirt, sentenced to one year in prison and fined 50,000 dinars (US$635) on a charge of pressuring a Muslim to convert.
His attorney, Mohamed Benbelkacem, told Morning Star News that the appeals judge in Tindouf, in raising Ibaouene's fine to 100,000 dinars, must have realized there was no basis for the charge but was under pressure from Islamists to impose a sentence.

"The judge must have undergone some pressure to arrive at this sentence - that is the only explanation," Benbelkacem said.
He added, "That is why he had to choose to split off one of the two punishments; he could not decide for the punishment sought by the prosecutor, namely two years in prison followed by a 100,000-dinar fine, because it was unfair and unfounded. Unfortunately, we are faced with an act of injustice, and we intend to appeal."

Morning Star News said Ibaouene was convicted of "inciting a Muslim with pressure to change his religion" under Algeria's controversial Law 06/03, which places restrictions on the religious practice of non-Muslims.
The decision on the appeal of his sentence was to be announced on Feb. 6, but the judge delayed the verdict until today without explanation.

Morning Star News said Ibaouene denies the charge, saying the a machine operator at the company where he worked as a manager, identified only as Abdelkrim M., was the one pressuring him to change his religion.
The 27-year-old machine operator, known to be an Islamic extremist, leveled the accusation only after Ibaouene, a convert from Islam, refused to renounce Christ, Ibaouene said.

According to Morning Star News, Ibaouene's attorney said the case provided a long-sought sentencing of a Christian under Law 03/06, with the case resolved quickly compared with delays in other such cases.
"He could not decide for acquittal because of the pressure, so it must be that the Algerian justice system finally found a scapegoat to finally be able to implement the effects of Law 03/06," Benbelkacem said.
Morning Star News said he added, "I am not satisfied with the verdict, and I am even disappointed and upset, because in this case there is no evidence to support the accusation against my client."

The judge's verdict was short. "The accused, Mohamed Ibaouene, is condemned to pay a fine of 100,000 dinars," thereby revoking the one-year prison sentence.

The president of the Protestant Church of Algeria (EPA), Mustapha Krim, told Morning Star News the ruling was an affront to freedom.

"Certainly we will appeal the ruling," Krim said. "Moreover, we will meet soon in the EPA to discuss follow-up to this case. I must say that as long as Law 03/06 exists, there will always be those who will falsely accuse us as Christians."
Morning Star News said Ibaouene, who was never contacted by police or other authorities prior to his conviction, said Abdelkrim M. had approached him at his office for the sole purpose of asking him if he was a Christian and trying to persuade him to convert back to Islam.

When Ibaouene refused to renounce Christ, Abdelkrim M. then asked him if he believed in Islam. Morning Star News said in spite of what Ibaouene had already told him, was astonished when the Christian told him he did not believe in it at all, but rather in God and Christ, Ibaouene says.

Abdelkrim M. then filed a complaint with the National Gendarmerie in Tindouf, accusing Ibaouene of pressuring him to renounce Islam, according to a copy of the judgment obtained by Morning Star News.

Authorities did not serve the judgment to Ibaouene sooner presumably because he had left Tindouf after marrying in June 2012 and they were not aware of his whereabouts, and because of slow administrative processes.
Morning Star News said Ibaouene is part of an undisclosed church in Tizi Ouzou, capital of Tizi Ouzou Province on Algeria's northern central coast.

Morning Star News said Law 03/2006, commonly known as Law 06/03, mandates a prison term of two to five years and a fine of 500,000 to 1 million dinars for anyone who "incites, constrains, or utilizes means of seduction tending to convert a Muslim to another religion, or using for this purpose the institutions of education, health, social, cultural, or educational institutions, or other establishment, or financial advantage; or (2) makes, stores or distributes printed documents or films or other audiovisual medium or means intended to undermine the faith of a Muslim."

Algeria's population of 35.4 million people is more than 97 percent Muslim and .28 percent Christian, according to Operation World.

Morning Star News said the Algerian constitution makes Islam the state religion and requires the president to be Muslim. Algerian law also prohibits non-Muslims from gathering to pray except in areas approved by the state.

For more information go to http://morningstarnews.org
 

Violence against Christians Spreading in India Maharashtra state increasingly vulnerable

ASSIST News Service (ANS) - PO Box 609, Lake Forest, CA 92609-0609 USA
Visit our web site at: www.assistnews.net -- E-mail: assistnews@aol.com

Monday, February 11, 2013

Violence against Christians Spreading in India Maharashtra state increasingly vulnerable, rights leaders say

By Dan Wooding
Founder of ASSIST Ministries MUMBAI, INDIA (ANS) -- According to the Mumbai Correspondent for Morning Star News (http://morningstarnews.org), Hindu extremist attacks on Christians in Maharashtra state could expand even as violence elsewhere in India grows in areas where extremist groups had not been so active, Christian leaders said.

Ram Puniyani of All India Secular Forum. (Photo: Wikipedia)

The correspondent said that Ram Puniyani of the All India Secular Forum said at press conference in Mumbai this month that Maharashtra is vulnerable to increased attacks on Christians after "a decade of heightened Hindutva [Hindu nationalism], especially targeting tribal and Adivasi [indigenous] communities, as they are easy targets, with little fear of retaliation." The Catholic Secular Forum (CSF), he added, released preliminary results of a study on Feb. 1, with Christian leaders saying that persecution is not increasing in comparison with previous years but is appearing in new areas. While the perennially troublesome Karnataka state last year saw the most attacks on Christians with 67, followed by Madhya Pradesh with 28, four new states entered the top 20: More attacks from Hindu extremists took place in Tamil Nadu, Assam, Mizoram and Goa than in previous years.
Moreover, he said, CSF noted persecution against Christians from Islamic extremists in Jammu and Kashmir, Kerala and West Bengal.
Joseph Dias, general secretary of CSF, said the study chronicled 250 of the worst cases of persecution, but that the actual number of incidents nationwide was much higher. While there were no pogroms such as occurred in Orissa state in 2008, persecution has become more widespread, with an increase in Hindu nationalist attacks even where the "Hindu brigade" is not traditionally strong, he said.
Parliamentary and state assembly elections in the next year portend an increase in attacks as Hindu extremists try to divide voters along religious lines, he said.
Michael Saldanha, former justice of the Bombay High Court, told Morning Star News that he has urged federal Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde to ban Hindutva groups such as the Sanathan Sanstha and Abhinav Bharat, which come under the "Saffron umbrella" with an agenda of a Hindu religious state.

Indian women Christians protesting about increasing violence in their country

"Overall, the states with the highest number of incidents after Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh were Tamil Nadu with 25; Orissa - where the most serious crimes took place, including rapes of minors - with 20; and Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, both also with 20. Maharashtra, with nine incidents, was seventh on the list," said the story. The Maharashtra-based Christian leaders emphasized violations in their state, including not just abuses by Hindu nationalists but by family members of converts to Christianity. Two young women in Padmavati Nagar, Pune, 20-year-old Lakshmi Rathod and Vimla Rathod, 19, fled their home on Aug. 12, 2012, after their parents had forced them to drink cow urine daily. They were assaulted, threatened with "honor killing," labelled unholy and locked in a room for several days after they were found reading the Bible.
The report included an account of an attack last month in Maharashtra by Hindu nationalists suspected to belong to Sanathan Sanstha. On Jan. 11 a Hindu extremist mob stormed into New Life Grace Ministry Church in the Sawantwadi area, Sindhudurg District, and severely beat members of the 600-strong congregation, including many women, children and elderly Christians. They threatened to stop any Christian services in the district, according to CFS.
The correspondent went on to said that in Malwan, Hindu extremists under the banner of the Hindu Dharma Jagaran Samiti attacked a prayer meeting on Oct. 26, and 11 Christians were then arrested on false charges of forced conversion, according to CFS. The assailants were also detained, and upon their release on bail villagers congratulated them and encouraged them to continue attacking Christians. Meantime, villagers organized a boycott - refusing to buy fish from Christians, or even sell it to them.
Abraham Mathai, ex vice-chairman of the State Minorities Commission, told Morning Star News that police often look the other way.
"Such police apathy encourages the perpetrators of the crimes to continue their unprovoked violence against Christians with impunity," he said. "If the police do not reign in the perpetrators, violence against the minority Christian community would increase in the run-up to the forthcoming general elections scheduled for 2014."
India's population is 74.3 percent Hindu, 14.2 percent Muslim, 1.9 percent Sikh, 0.82 percent Buddhist, and 5.8 percent Christian, according to Operation World.

More Nigerian 'Brethren' die in violent attacks, US work campers return home safely

ASSIST News Service (ANS) - PO Box 609, Lake Forest, CA 92609-0609 USA
Visit our web site at: www.assistnews.net -- E-mail: assistnews@aol.com

Monday, February 11, 2013

More Nigerian 'Brethren' die in violent attacks, US work campers return home safely

By Dan Wooding, who was born in Nigeria
Founder of ASSIST Ministries MUBI, NIGERIA (ANS) -- More members of the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria, known there as EYN, have died in violent attacks on the churches of Ekklesiyar Yan'uwa in the West African country.

Boko Haram members who have been accused of killing many Nigerian Christians

According to the Church of the Brethren Newsline (www.brethren.org), the Local Church Council (LCC) Samunaka church on the outskirts of the city of Mubi was attacked twice in four days, first on Feb. 1 and again on Feb. 4. At least 15 people were killed in the attacks, including eight members of the congregation, while one member of the church sustained gunshot wounds said an EYN report.
During the attacks, the Samunaka church building and the pastor's office were burned down, along with some houses belonging to Christians.
Two EYN churches in other areas were burned in attacks on the same weekend: LCC Huwim in the Mussa district was burned on Feb. 2, and LCC Bita in the Gavva west district was burned on Feb. 3, the EYN report said.
These most recent attacks on Brethren occur in a month in which northern Nigeria has experienced several well-publicized attacks by the militant Islamist group Boko Haram: the murders of three North Korean doctors and nine nurses who were administering polio vaccine, and an assassination attempt on the Emir of Kano, a prominent Muslim leader.
Two visitors from the US church were in Mubi on the day of the first attack on the Samunaka church, but had returned to the EYN headquarters just a few miles away before the violence occurred. The two were on a "mini workcamp" representing the US church: Jay Wittmeyer, executive director of Global Mission and Service, and Fern Dews of North Canton, Ohio, and East Nimishillen Church of the Brethren. They returned safely to the US on Feb. 7, 2014

Woman at one of the Nigerian churches during happier times

The two delivered cards and letters of support to EYN, expressing prayer and encouragement from American Brethren to Nigerian Brethren in the face of the continuing violence. The Church of the Brethren also has transferred to EYN donations amounting to $30,268.25, for a fund that helps care for churches and members affected by violence. Wittmeyer met with EYN leaders during the work camp trip, and also with Church of the Brethren mission workers who are seconded to EYN: Carol Smith, who teaches at the EYN secondary school, and Carl and Roxane Hill, working at Kulp Bible College. Both institutions are on the EYN headquarters campus.

Poster

In addition to those lost in violent attacks against its churches, EYN has suffered other losses recently. The director of EYN's Peace Program has died from illness, reports Wittmeyer, and a son of former EYN president Filibus Gwama has died in a car accident. A bus carrying EYN women home from that funeral also had a serious accident, causing injuries among the women but no deaths, Wittmeyer said.
Wittmeyer called Brethren in the US to continued prayer for the Nigerian Brethren. Note: Church of the Brethren traces its roots back over 300 years to 1708. Eighteenth-century Europe was a time of strong governmental control of the church and low tolerance for religious diversity. Nevertheless, there were religious dissenters who lived their faith in spite of the threat of persecution. Some of these dissenters found refuge in the town of Schwarzenau, Germany. Among them was Alexander Mack, a miller who had been influenced by both Pietism and Anabaptism.
In August 1708 five men and three women gathered at the Eder River in Schwarzenau for baptism, an illegal act since all had been baptized as infants. They understood this baptism as an outward symbol of their new faith and as a commitment to living that faith in community. An anonymous member of the group first baptized Mack. He, in turn, baptized the other seven. This new group simply called themselves "brethren."
Though the early Brethren shared many beliefs with other Protestants, a number of issues separated them from the state churches. Relying on the New Testament as their guide, these men and women believed that Jesus had intended for his followers a different kind of life-one based on peaceful action, plain and compassionate living, and a shared search for truth. They also shared their faith enthusiastically with others, sending evangelists to other parts of Germany, Switzerland, and the Netherlands.
Moving to America
Due to growing persecution and economic hardship, Brethren began emigrating to North America in 1719 under the leadership of Peter Becker. Most Brethren left Europe by 1740, including Mack, who brought a group over in 1729. The first congregation in the New World was organized at Germantown, Pa., in 1723. Soon after its formation, the Germantown congregation sent missionaries to rural areas around Philadelphia. These missionaries preached, baptized, and started new congregations.
Their zeal, honesty, and hard work drew many new members into the Brethren faith community through the 1700s. New congregations were formed in New Jersey, Maryland, and Virginia. With the promise of inexpensive land, they moved into Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Missouri after the Revolutionary War. By the mid-1800s Brethren had settled in Kansas and Iowa and eventually the West Coast.
Expansion across the continent and changes due to the Industrial Revolution caused strain and conflict among the Brethren. In the early 1880s a major schism took place resulting in a three-way split. The largest branch after the schism was the German Baptist Brethren, who changed their name to the Church of the Brethren in 1908.
20th century and beyond
During the 20th century, focus areas of Church of the Brethren included educating its young people by developing Sunday schools, camping, and youth programs; strengthening its emphasis on service, missions, and peacemaking; increasing its inter-faith involvement; and developing a new denominational structure.
The Brethren began mission partnerships in India, China, Nigeria, Ecuador, Sudan, South Korea, and-more recently-in Brazil and the Dominican Republic. Mission staff and Brethren Volunteer Service workers are assigned throughout the US and more than a dozen countries around the world.
In the 21st century, the Church of the Brethren has about 125,000 members in more than 1,000 congregations in the United States and Puerto Rico; about 150,000 in the fast-growing Ekklesiyar Yan'uwa a Nigeria (Church of the Brethren in Nigeria); and hundreds more in India, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti.
While times have changed, the Church of the Brethren today maintains the basic beliefs of the first Brethren and seeks to find new ways to continue the work of Jesus in the world.

---

Dan Wooding, 72, who was born in Nigeria of British missionary parents, is an award winning British journalist now living in Southern California with his wife Norma, to whom he has been married for 49 years. They have two sons, Andrew and Peter, and six grandchildren who all live in the UK. He 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 in Southern California and which is also carried throughout the United States and around the world. Besides this, Wooding is a host for His Channel Live, which is carried via the Internet to some 192 countries. Dan recently received two top media awards -- the "Passion for the Persecuted" award from Open Doors US, and as one of the top "Newsmakers of 2011" from Plain Truth magazine. He is the author of some 45 books, the latest of which is "Caped Crusader: Rick Wakeman in the 1970s." To order a copy, go to: Caped Crusader - Amazon

PRAY FOR THE UNREACHED

Fulani, Bagirmi of Chad
Fulani, Bagirmi of Chad The Bagirmi Fulani are semi-nomadic, mixing farming with shepherding. Although some Fulani tribes travel seasonally with their flocks, the Bagirmi have a permanent home they live in for half of the year. They only travel during the dry season, when grazing lands and water are scarce. Many of the men have multiple wives. Since cattle are a symbol of wealth among the Fulani, brides are sometimes chosen because of the amount of cattle they own. The Fulani were one of the first people groups in Africa to be converted to Islam. The Bagirmi still hold on to many old Fulani traditions. They believe that family, cattle, strong morals, beauty, poetry, singing, and dancing are the most important things in life. Ministry Obstacles The Fulani continue to be strongly committed to their current religion and worldview. Change is quite difficult and usually occurs slowly. Outreach Ideas Much persistent prayer is needed to prepare the hearts of the Fulani to hunger for truth found only in Jesus Christ. Pray the people will hunger for truth. Pray for the followers of Christ Pray for the handful of Christian believers among the Bagmiri Fulani, that they will rest fully on the finished work of Christ, understanding the requirements for forgiveness of sin have been satisfied. Pray for the entire people group Pray for sufficient rain to support the livestock of the Fulani, and for good yields for their crops. Scripture Focus "And those who lead many to righteousness [will shine] like the stars for ever and ever." Daniel 12:3		People Name: Fulani, Bagirmi Country: Chad 10/40 Window: Yes Population: 27,000 World Population: 228,000 Language: Fulfulde, Bagirmi Primary Religion: Islam Bible: None Online Audio NT: No Jesus Film: No Audio Recordings: No Christ Followers: Few, less than 2% Status: Unreached Progress Level: 1.2

UNDANGAN BAGI PARA PENDOA SYAFAAT GLOBAL PRAYER NETWORK INDONESIA

UNDANGAN BAGI PARA PENDOA SYAFAAT

GLOBAL PRAYER NETWORK INDONESIA

Shalom,

Saya sebagai salah seorang pendoa syafaat dari Global Prayer Network, mengundang rekan-rekan dari tubuh Kristus untuk sama-sama merapatkan barisan berdoa. Global Prayer Network Indonesia merupakan jejaring dari Global Prayer Network Belanda – Johan Maasbach Wereld Zending. Pelayanan ini bukanlah sebuah organisasi tetapi sebuah pergerakan doa lintas organisasi maupun denominasi. Kami pun berdiri mandiri tanpa bantuan dari Belanda, sebab pelayanan ini terlahir dari kesadaran saya sebagai pendoa syafaat dari GPN Belanda untuk mendorong tubuh Kristus di Indonesia berdoa syafaat bagi pribadi-pribadi maupun bangsa-bangsa, bagi gereja Tuhan secara universal maupun lokal.

Global Prayer Network (GPN) Indonesia berupaya memberikan informasi dan pokok doa untuk didoakan oleh tubuh Kristus. Fokus kami mengajak tubuh Kristus untuk saling peduli dengan saudara-saudara seiman yang membutuhkan dukungan doa. Harapan kami ketika manusia rohani kita bersentuhan dengan Roh Tuhan, kita pun bergerak untuk membantu tubuh Kristus yang ada melalui tindakan kita. Sebab iman tanpa tindakan adalah iman yang mati.

GPN Indonesia juga memberikan pelatihan Sekolah Doa bagi prbadi-pribadi, persekutuan doa maupun gereja Tuhan. GPN Indonesia bekerjasama tidak terikat dengan US Prayer Centre untuk mempersiapkan anak-anak Tuhan menjadi pendoa-pendoa syafaat.

Hal-hal yang secara umum GPN doakan adalah:

Pertama-tama untuk pemulihan tubuh Kristus agar gereja Tuhan makin sadar akan kebersamaan dan keragaman di antara kita. Hingga gereja dapat saling menolong, membangun dan bekerja bersama sebagai bagian tubuh Kristus yang berbeda.

Kedua berdoa bagi jiwa-jiwa yang belum mengenal Tuhan Yesus, mereka yang meninggalkan Tuhan Yesus dengan berbagai latarbelakang alasan, pemulihan bagi saudara seiman yang terluka, Kristen KTP, pemulihan kesehatan, pemulihan ekonomi dll.

Ketiga kita berdoa bagi gereja Tuhan yang teraniaya dan mengalami penindasan.

Keempat berdoa bagi bangsa kita dan bangsa-bangsa di dunia.

GPN Indonesia menyediakan pokok-pokok doa dan informasi doa bagi tubuh Kristus yang ada.

GPN Indonesia juga merencanakan untuk membentuk “persekutuan pendoa syafaat” per kota dan akan dimulai di kota Bandung. Bilamana ada rekan-rekan sekota (Bandung) yang tertarik dan berminat bergabung dapat menghubungi saya melalui inbox atau dari kota lain dan bersedia ditunjuk menjadi koordinator maka bisa juga menghubungi saya.

Terimakasih Tuhan Yesus memberkati.

Ps. Dave Broos

GPN 02-12-13

GPN 02-12-13

‘Prayer is profitable whenever it is practiced.’ (James 5:16; Acts 6:6) I wish you a blessed week. Marga Hooglugt Please pray for quick healing and recovery of Mr. F.C. from a prolonged inflammation of his pancreas. He is in the hospital for months. Pray God for strength for his wife, who is in the last months of her pregnancy of their second child. Mr. E.E. Pakistan: Pray for me, that God will heal and bless me, spiritually, physically and financially. Pray that God will use us for His glory to make a change in Pakistan. Pray for healing and God’s provision in the need of my brother P.W. in South Korea, who had an accident and lost his four fingers. Pray for Mr. L.G.K. in Kuwait. He is controlled by an evil spirit and is afraid. Pray for His healing. Pastor S.M. I am exhausted and weary in a very long and difficult battle for my oldest son D. and my granddaughters, Kelsey and Kallie. Please pray God to move their mothers heart, and enable her to let my son see the girls on a regular basis. He is divorced for 2 years. My son just wants that his relationship with his daughters will be restored. We need a miracle! Mrs. H.K. Turkey: Pray for a radio ministry that encourages secret and persecuted believers by providing encouraging stories of persecution. The radio episodes are relevant not only to believers, but also to Muslims who listen to the broadcasts. Since the Malatya murders several years ago, many believers have begun to consider the cost of following Christ. This program provides them with examples of courageous faith. Pray that Mr. v.E. will receive healing and deliverance by the love of Jesus from a traumatic experience in his boarding period. Eritrea: Christian Leaders Arrested in Asmarag – At least 20 church leaders were arrested at their homes in Eritrea’s capital on Thursday, January 17th, in an apparently coordinated move by authorities, and some have reportedly been imprisoned. The church leaders were from a variety of denominations, including the Full Gospel Church and the Mesret Kristos (Mennonite) Church. The situation in Eritrea has deteriorated dramatically in the last few months. Major commodities like electricity, water and grain are in short supply, and the government is to be unstable. In January, a group of dissident soldiers demanding political change tried to seize control of the Ministry of Information, and three army officers were arrested. Eritrea’s relations with Ethiopia have also worsened since the death of Ethiopian leader Meles Zenawi last August. Pray for God’s peace in Eritrea. Suriname: Ask God to restore the contact with my son. He lived in the Netherlands for 18 years and I haven’t heard anything of him. Pray that God will help my son, Mr. I., to find a job here in Suriname. Pray for my daughter, that she will find a serious life partner. Please pray for God’s wisdom in dealing with people who constantly lie and gossip. Mrs. S.E. Eastern Africa: Safe House Raided – Authorities in a closed country in Eastern Africa raided a safe house and church at the end of January. ‘They came in a group with the police’, wrote the pastor who runs the safe house. ‘They accused us that we are burning and putting down the book of Quran, and they slapped my face. When they try to find their book they found only the Bible.’ The interrogators also asked the pastor’s wife and another Christian woman present what they believed. The women told them they were Christians. The authorities finally left after several people from the community came to tell them that the Christians were good people, but the authorities closed down the meeting place. Please pray for the pastor and his family and the Christians, who will likely have to find a new home and safe house. The pastor requests prayer for protection and boldness. Mrs. G. has a lot of pain and sorrow. She does not know the Lord yet, but asks for our prayer through the Prayer line of GPN, for God’s strength and comfort. Pray that she may know the Lord personally. Would you like to listen to uplifting Christian music? Tune in at MAASBACHRADIO.COM

Marga Hooglugt
Global Prayer Network

INVITATION

UNDANGAN BAGI PARA PENDOA SYAFAAT

GLOBAL PRAYER NETWORK INDONESIA

Shalom,

Saya sebagai salah seorang pendoa syafaat dari Global Prayer Network, mengundang rekan-rekan dari tubuh Kristus untuk sama-sama merapatkan barisan berdoa. Global Prayer Network Indonesia merupakan jejaring dari Global Prayer Network Belanda – Johan Maasbach Wereld Zending. Pelayanan ini bukanlah sebuah organisasi tetapi sebuah pergerakan doa lintas organisasi maupun denominasi. Kami pun berdiri mandiri tanpa bantuan dari Belanda, sebab pelayanan ini terlahir dari kesadaran saya sebagai pendoa syafaat dari GPN Belanda untuk mendorong tubuh Kristus di Indonesia berdoa syafaat bagi pribadi-pribadi maupun bangsa-bangsa, bagi gereja Tuhan secara universal maupun lokal.

Global Prayer Network (GPN) Indonesia berupaya memberikan informasi dan pokok doa untuk didoakan oleh tubuh Kristus. Fokus kami mengajak tubuh Kristus untuk saling peduli dengan saudara-saudara seiman yang membutuhkan dukungan doa. Harapan kami ketika manusia rohani kita bersentuhan dengan Roh Tuhan, kita pun bergerak untuk membantu tubuh Kristus yang ada melalui tindakan kita. Sebab iman tanpa tindakan adalah iman yang mati.

GPN Indonesia juga memberikan pelatihan Sekolah Doa bagi prbadi-pribadi, persekutuan doa maupun gereja Tuhan. GPN Indonesia bekerjasama tidak terikat dengan US Prayer Centre untuk mempersiapkan anak-anak Tuhan menjadi pendoa-pendoa syafaat.

Hal-hal yang secara umum GPN doakan adalah:

Pertama-tama untuk pemulihan tubuh Kristus agar gereja Tuhan makin sadar akan kebersamaan dan keragaman di antara kita. Hingga gereja dapat saling menolong, membangun dan bekerja bersama sebagai bagian tubuh Kristus yang berbeda.

Kedua berdoa bagi jiwa-jiwa yang belum mengenal Tuhan Yesus, mereka yang meninggalkan Tuhan Yesus dengan berbagai latarbelakang alasan, pemulihan bagi saudara seiman yang terluka, Kristen KTP, pemulihan kesehatan, pemulihan ekonomi dll.

Ketiga kita berdoa bagi gereja Tuhan yang teraniaya dan mengalami penindasan.

Keempat berdoa bagi bangsa kita dan bangsa-bangsa di dunia.

GPN Indonesia menyediakan pokok-pokok doa dan informasi doa bagi tubuh Kristus yang ada.

GPN Indonesia juga merencanakan untuk membentuk “persekutuan pendoa syafaat” per kota dan akan dimulai di kota Bandung. Bilamana ada rekan-rekan sekota (Bandung) yang tertarik dan berminat bergabung dapat menghubungi saya melalui inbox atau dari kota lain dan bersedia ditunjuk menjadi koordinator maka bisa juga menghubungi saya.

Terimakasih Tuhan Yesus memberkati.

Ps. Dave Broos