Today’s Headlines:

DOORS TO SPREAD GOD’S WORD OPEN AMID ISLAMIC EXTREMISM

POLL: SWEDES TRUST FURNITURE COMPANY MORE THAN THE CHURCH

CHRISTIANS, CHURCHES BECOME TARGET OF ATTACKS IN SRI LANKA

URBANA 2006 TO OFFER TEACHING TRACK ON MINISTRY IN SLUMS

NEW INSPIRATIONAL MOBILE SERVICE CONNECTS CHURCHES, MINISTRIES

Jaclyn Victor won the 2004 “Malaysian Idol” singing contest, and Juwita Suwito was the show’s singing coach. They are both Christians and recently came to Australia to sing at local churches and at a ski resort’s chapel. Host Eric Skattebo takes the “World Radio” program on the road as he follows the Malaysian singers’ adventures at the ski resort (both of them had never experienced snow before!).

In addition to the audio of the trip, a short video is also available on the World Radio webpage: http://www.hcjb.org/worldwide/australia/world_radio_programme.html.

Today’s Top Stories:

DOORS TO SPREAD GOD’S WORD OPEN AMID ISLAMIC EXTREMISM

Amid growing Islamic militancy and rising tensions between Muslims and Christians worldwide, ministries such as Book of Hope International are making inroads for the gospel, says spokesman Rob Hoskins. He said Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad recently prayed following his speech at the U.N.

“It sounds like really beautiful words, but what he’s really praying for is the second coming of the Mahdi which has to be preceded by the annihilation of Christianity. So what he’s really praying for is for Christianity to be wiped off the face of the earth. We’re seeing this tremendous militancy against Christianity, against missionaries, against the spread of the gospel.”

Hoskin said 5 million copies of the Book of Hope are being distributed in Muslim areas. “This isn’t with our normal tactics of going into schools because that’s not permissible,” he explained. “What we’re doing is using a relational-based model where we’re mobilizing existing believers in Muslim countries to reach out to children and youth with God’s Word.”

Hoskins says opportunities to spread God’s Word continue to multiply. “Although we hear all these stories about how Islam is encroaching, what we’re really seeing is spiritual breakthroughs and Jesus being presented to more Muslim children and youth than in the history of mankind,” he said. The Book of Hope combines the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John to tell the life story of Jesus Christ in chronological order and presents a clear plan of salvation. (Mission Network News)

POLL: SWEDES TRUST FURNITURE COMPANY MORE THAN THE CHURCH

A recently released poll in Sweden indicates the country’s population has more faith in the well-known IKEA furniture company than in the church. A poll taken by the business weekly, Dagens Industri, indicated that 80 percent of Swedes have “much or very much trust” in the world’s largest furniture store chain while only 46 percent indicated trust in the Swedish church. Eighty percent of Sweden’s 9 million residents are considered members of the Swedish church. Among the companies that respondents considered more favorably than the church were Volvo (69 percent), Ericsson (59 percent), Saab (57 percent) and the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca (47 percent). Coming in below the church in trust levels were conservative Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt and foreign companies such as Coca-Cola which came in at just 22 percent. (Worldwide Religious News)

CHRISTIANS, CHURCHES BECOME TARGET OF ATTACKS IN SRI LANKA

Christians in Sri Lanka have been the targets of a recent violent trend amidst the fighting between the Sri Lankan army and Tamil rebels. On Wednesday, Nov. 22, the Lighthouse Church in Mawatura was attacked while the pastor and a church worker were inside. Rocks were thrown at the building, shattering the front window, and the church worker was seriously injured when a rock hit his head. The incident came just 10 days after a mob of more than 100 people, some of whom were armed with clubs, prevented members of the Assemblies of God Church in Yakkala from attending a service. Four Buddhist monks accompanied the crowd of attackers, and anti-Christian posters were plastered on the walls. Four days later a young woman from the congregation had a container of black oil thrown on her as she travelled to the pastor’s home. “At a time when ethnic violence is escalating in Sri Lanka, this recent spate of religiously motivated attacks is particularly discouraging,” said Christian Solidarity Worldwide Chief Executive Mervyn Thomas. “We call upon the authorities in Sri Lanka to ensure that all citizens have the opportunity to practice their chosen religion with out fear of harassment by mobs and urge all faith communities to show tolerance and respect for one another.” (Christian Solidarity Worldwide/Assist News Service)

URBANA 2006 TO OFFER TEACHING TRACK ON MINISTRY IN SLUMS

Urbana 2006, one of the world’s largest missions conferences, will include a teaching track on reaching slum dwellers with the gospel. InterVarsity Christian Fellowship’s Scott Bessenecker sees slums as an increasing ministry need, and the teaching track will address critical ministry needs in slum areas. “When you’ve got 1 million people living in a ditch outside Nairobi, it just becomes this place of utter hopelessness,” he said. With the conference in St. Louis, Mo., just a month away (Dec. 27-31), Bessenecker believes today’s young people offer hope for those in slums. “There’s a spirit among evangelical youth very much akin to the friars — the preaching orders that sent men and women out into desperate places to build hope from the inside out,” he said. “I think there is a significant movement afoot where young people are going to be moving into places of despair with the gospel. . . . [I believe] that today’s emerging movement to the world’s poor, powered by the new ‘friars,’ will also bring renewal to the global church of the 21st century.” (Mission Network News)

NEW INSPIRATIONAL MOBILE SERVICE CONNECTS CHURCHES, MINISTRIES

On Wednesday, Nov. 15, Inspiration Networks announced the launch of Inspiration Mobile, a service for faith-based organizations that delivers content directly to mobile phone handsets. Chief Operating Officer Bill Airy said that service is designed to connect churches, ministries and parachurch organizations with “on-the-go” members and partners. “Our goal is to bring services to the marketplace that allow this audience to access and express their faith using a variety of media,” he said. Through the new service, faith-based organizations can offer mobile devotionals, customized mobile wallpapers and Christian music ring tones to their members and partners. The service is available on most major mobile phone carriers. Inspiration Networks is also offering mobile content from several of its cable television franchises. (Evangelical News/Christian Newswire)

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