News headlines for October 25th 2002

(Ethiopia)–Headlining today’s news, famine is again threatening the African country of Ethiopia. That’s according to Food for the Hungry’s[1] Beth Allen, who says the situation is similar to the food shortage in 2000. “There is insufficient rainfall going on in large portions of the country. Right at the moment, authorities are estimating that there are approximately six million people who do not have enough food to eat. And, during 2003, they estimate that that number will jump between 10 and 14-million people who are hungry.” Allen believes many people are ‘Ethiopia-weary’, and that’s why this situation is being ignored. “What if God had turned His back on the people? We need to follow that example. We need to keep being merciful because God was merciful. If there was ever a time for Christians to come to the people of Africa, now is the time. The secular system can not take care of it.” Allen says feeding the hungry can lead to souls being saved. Call 1-800-2-Hunger to help.

(Sri Lanka)–Next, the Evangelical Alliance of Sri Lanka reports that a worship center in southern Sri Lanka was burned to the ground, October 13th. According to the report, received by the Voice of the Martyrs[2] , believers in Sri Lanka often face harassment from militant Buddhist groups in the country. Please pray for the Christians who have suffered persecution and that they will stand firm in the face of opposition. Pray, too for those who persecute the Church in Sri Lanka, that the Gospel would penetrate their hearts.

(Nigeria)–Many in Nigeria see an education as the key to changing the future. However, that can also be one of the challenges to literacy program outreaches that missionary Heidi Rosendall works with. “The Gbari people have not, to date, expressed a strong interest in literacy. They’re more a farming community that has seen the outside exploit them. I’d say the traditional attitude has been that they don’t want to send their children to school.” Rosendall adds that while the attitudes toward literacy and education are changing, there are other obstacles. She asks people to pray. “It’s a real political issue now, whether you’re Christian, or Muslim, or Animist or ATR (African Traditional Religion). We haven’t worked, ourselves, in evangelism, seeking to be in the background doing the translation work and giving the tools to the Gbari church, which though small, does have a burden for its people.” The Rosendalls are staying at D&D Missionary Homes[3] in Florida while in the United States.

(USA)–Meanwhile, STEM International[4] reports that the number of people participating in short-term missions is increasing. STEM’s Roger Peterson says it appears more people are joining teams since September 11th. “Our numbers have been up over 90-percent. So, it almost doubled this year compared to before September 11th. When I talk to folks, for example, from Arab World Ministries, their inquires through their web system increased five fold after September 11th.” STEM International sends short-term mission teams to 12 countries around the world. Peterson describes what their teams do on a trip. “A very typical STEM team will spend 1/3 of its on field time in some form of evangelism. A second 1/3 of their field time it spent in some sort of a building, construction or maintenance project. The remaining 1/3 of field time is spent in a broader area that we call mercy service creative ministries.” (Go to STEMMIN-dot-org[5] to find out more)

(Turkey)–And finally, according to the International Needs Network[6] , the country of Turkey continues to pose a challenge to ministry. With less than 1,000 Christian believers among 67 million people, the voice of the Gospel remains “a whisper.” Yet there are encouraging signs, as three church planters work among young Muslims in the Istanbul area. An innovative “Internet evangelism” project is also being pioneered. Pray for a Turkish Consultation being held this month by a group of mission agencies there.

[1] http://www.gospelcom.net/mnn/media/group.php?agencyAb=FFH [2] http://www.gospelcom.net/mnn/media/group.php?agencyAb=VOM [3] http://www.gospelcom.net/mnn/media/group.php?agencyAb=DAD [4] http://www.gospelcom.net/mnn/media/group.php?agencyAb=STEM [5] http://www.stemmin.org [6] http://www.gospelcom.net/mnn/media/group.php?agencyAb=INN