It was just a rumor. But among the radical Muslims in Pakistan’s Gojra village, a rumor was enough of an excuse to kill.

When the rumor was broadcast from the loudspeakers on the minarets of local mosques, it became fact. As part of a wedding ceremony, the loudspeaker shouted, Christians tore pages from a Quran. Then they compounded the disrespect by walking on the shredded pages.

“Defend Islam!” The loudspeaker called. Muslims answered, rampaging through a Christian section of Gojra on Aug. 1. Eight Christians were killed, including women and children. More than 100 Christian homes were burned by a mob. The mob, which was estimated to be more than 20,000 people, also burned a church.

Five Hours Without Help
Emergency personnel did not reach Gojra for more than five hours. Christians were forced to use vegetable carts to move their dead and wounded to the hospital.

Responding to an international outcry, Pakistani government officials have now said no Quran was desecrated. The government promised to help rebuild the burned homes of Christian families.

Even before the government acted, contacts of The Voice of the Martyrs were in Gojra, offering comfort to the wounded and praying with the families of the dead. They continue to aid the village, including helping with some medical expenses, offering encouragement and pressing for a forceful government response.

Pray Blasphemy Laws Are Overturned
Christians in Pakistan hope these attacks can be a turning point. They are praying to God and pressing their government to overturn unjust blasphemy laws that are often a pretext to attack Christians.

They are also asking us to pray with them.
Pray for Christians in Pakistan to be bold witnesses for Christ, despite threats.
Pray for those wounded and left homeless by the brutal Gojra attacks.
Pray for Muslims to come to know Jesus Christ in a personal way.

One accord
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The unanimous, the concerted and concordant prayer aims at expressing a corporate burden, a corporate testimony of the heart of God.

A burden received from Him who operates world affairs by prayer is not an isolated issue – something which stands by itself – but reveals the brokenness of God, the crucified God. A burden apprehended and admitted from this eternal source causes much aggravation and agony, but holds final fullness at its core. The accepting of a calling to priestly ministry to be expressed corporately, to be expressed as concordant prayer will accomplish much according to the purpose of God.

Remember; one man alone, or woman – lonely as she might be, standing with God in his burden is of greatest significance in the developments towards God’s ends.

Lars W.

Iran: Authorities tighten grip
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AUTHORITIES TIGHTEN GRIP ON CHRISTIANS AS UNREST ROILS

Waves of arrests hit church networks; judge asks converts from Islam to recant.

More than 30 Christians were arrested in the past two weeks near Tehran and in the northern city of Rasht. Two waves of arrests near Tehran happened within days of each other, and while most of those detained – all converts from Islam – were held just a day for questioning, a total of eight Christians still remain in prison.

In Rasht, eight Christians belonging to the same network were arrested on July 29 and 30 in two separate rounds of arrest. Seven were released, while one, a male, remains in the city’s prison. And on Sunday (Aug. 9), two Christian women appeared before a judge who asked them if they would deny their newfound faith and return to Islam, reported the Farsi Christian News Network.

Maryam Rostampour, 27, and Marzieh Amirizadeh Esmaeilabad, 30, have been held in the notorious Evin prison since March 5 accused of “acting against state security” and “taking part in illegal gatherings.” As both women refused to recant their faith, the judge sent them back to their prison cells “to think about it,” according to a source who spoke with family members.

“When they said, ‘Think about it,’ it means you are going back to jail,” said the source. “This is something we say in Iran. It means: ‘Since you’re not sorry, you’ll stay in jail for a long time, and maybe you’ll change your mind.’”

Prayer Alert: Iran
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Prayer Alert: Maryam and Marzieh on Trial in Iran

Maryam Rustampoor (27) and Marzieh Amirizadeh (30) were first arrested and imprisoned on March 5 on charges of “taking part in illegal gatherings” and “acting against state security.” One unconfirmed report I read said they had taken up a church offering without being authorized to do so. They have been in Evin Prison ever since.

In a court trial yesterday, Sunday, August 9, they were told to recant their faith. Even though the mandatory death sentence for apostasy did not pass the Iranian Parliament, there is still a very real danger they will be convicted of apostasy and given the death sentence.

However, Islamic law forbids the execution of virgins, which both these young women are. To get around that, unmarried female convicts are forcefully “wed” the night before their execution, gang raped all night, and then executed the following morning.
Please pray earnestly these young women will be delivered from such a fate.

In a dramatic session before the revolutionary court today in Tehran, Maryam Rustampoor (27), and Marzieh Amirizadeh (30) were told to recant their faith in Christ. Though great pressure was put on them, both women declared that they would not deny their faith.
Maryam and Marzieh were originally arrested on March 5, 2009 and have suffered greatly while in prison, suffering ill health, solitary confinement and interrogations for many hours while blindfolded.

On Saturday August 8, Maryam and Marzieh were summoned to appear in court on Sunday August 9 in order to hear a verdict on their case. The chief interrogator had recommended a verdict of ‘apostasy.’

However, when they arrived, no verdict was actually given. Instead, the court session focussed on the deputy prosecutor, Mr Haddad, questioning Maryam and Marzieh about their faith and telling them that they had to recant in both verbal and written form. This made it clear that in the eyes of the court, Maryam and Marzieh’s only crime is that they have converted to Christianity.

Mr. Haddad, asked the two women if they were Christians. “We love Jesus,” they replied. He repeated his question and they said, “Yes, we are Christians.”
Mr. Haddad then said, “You were Muslims and now you have become Christians.”
“We were born in Muslim families, but we were not Muslims,” was their reply.

Mr. Haddad’s questioning continued and he asked them if they regretted becoming Christians, to which they replied, “We have no regrets.”
Then he stated emphatically, “You should renounce your faith verbally and in written form.” They stood firm and replied, “We will not deny our faith.”

During one tense moment in the questioning, Maryam and Marzieh made reference to their belief that God had convicted them through the Holy Spirit. Mr. Haddad told them, “It is impossible for God to speak with humans.”
Marzieh asked him in return, “Are you questioning whether God is Almighty?”
Mr. Haddad then replied, “You are not worthy for God to speak to you.”
Marzieh said, “It is God, and not you, who determines if I am worthy.”

Mr. Haddad told the women to return to prison and think about the options they were given and come back to him when they are ready (to comply). Maryam and Marzieh said, “We have already done our thinking.”

At the end of the session, Mr. Haddad told them that a judge will give them his verdict, though it is not clear who will be the judge in their case now. He also allowed Maryam and Marzieh to have a lawyer represent them in the case for the first time since their arrest.

Both women are back in Evin prison tonight. During their five-month ordeal, both have been unwell and have lost much weight. Marzieh is in pain due to an on-going problem with her spine, as well as an infected tooth and intense headaches. She desperately needs medical attention. Two months ago the prison officials told her the prison had proper medical equipment and that they will attend to her, but so far no proper treatment has been given.

Despite the concentrated effort of officials to pressure them into recanting their faith, Maryam and Marzieh love Jesus and they are determined to stand firm to the very end no matter whatever happens. They have demonstrated their love for Jesus and would offer their lives for Him if they were called to do so. After today’s court session they said, “If we come out of prison we want to do so with honor.”

Maryam and Marzieh’s case is a clear and harsh violation of human rights and religious liberty by Iran’s authorities. They deserve the support of all those who respect human rights and to be released without charges so they can pursue a life of freedom.

Nepal: Christians increasingly vulnerable
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As law and order breaks down, Christians come under attack.

Three years after a pro-democracy movement led to the proclamation of Nepal as a secular state, some Christians say they are in greater peril than ever. They are now being targeted by militant Hindu organizations that blame the church for the abolition of Hinduism as the state religion and the end of monarchy.

Since May, when the Nepal Defense Army (NDA) – which claims to have links with militant Hindu organizations – struck one of Kathmandu valley’s oldest and biggest churches, the group has threatened to drive all Christians from the country.

And now a group claiming to be the parent organization of the NDA has warned that on Aug. 10 it will start a “Save the Hindu nation” movement. Last month, the Rev. Pius Perumana, a senior Catholic priest, received a phone call. “The caller said he was in charge of the NDA in Kathmandu valley,” said Perumana of Ishalaya Catholic Church, located in Godavari on the southern rim of the capital.

“However, I recognized the voice. It was Ram Prasad Mainali himself.” Perumana said he has received at least five threatening calls from the Hindu supremist ordering him to close all Christian organizations and leave Nepal, he said. The NDA leader has also been calling Protestant pastors, demanding money. In districts outside Kathmandu, where security is weak, some pastors are said to have paid up out of fear.

SOMALIA: Convert from Islam shot dead
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Islamic extremist rebel group hunts down underground church leader.

Muslim extremists early this morning, July 20, killed a Christian convert in Mahadday Weyne, Somalia, 100 kilometers (62 miles) north of Mogadishu.

Al Shabaab Islamist militia shot Mohammed Sheikh Abdiraman to death at 7 a.m., eyewitnesses said.
They said the Islamic extremists appeared to have been hunting the convert from Islam, and when they found him they did not hesitate to shoot him.

The sources said that Abdiraman was the leader of an underground “cell group” of Christians in Somalia.
“We are very sad about this incident, and we also are not safe,” one eyewitness said by telephone. “Pray for us.”

CHINA – Christian woman jailed for smuggling in North Korean refugees
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Lawyers representing a Christian woman detained for smuggling North Korean refugees into China hope to strike a blow for refugees’ rights.

Li Mingshun, a Chinese Korean from Heilongjiang province, north-east China, is in jail in neighbouring Inner Mongolia, charged with helping to smuggle 61 refugees into China.

She was arrested this April at her home in Qingdao. Officials demanded 100,000 yuan (almost £9,000) for her release – a fine her family was unable to pay. Police have threatened to arrest Li’s 26-year-old daughter, Piao Zhengying, on similar charges.

Li’s family are particularly concerned because she has severe hypertension and heart disease. Lawyers believe this case could help draw attention to the plight of North Korean refugees in China, whom the Chinese authorities tend to detain or forcibly repatriate.

Pray that Li Mingshun’s case will indeed force China to rethink its current policies on North Korean refugees. Ask God to bless and protect Li in custody.

Recovering realities 05
05.

Dying to live
Jesus made it absolutely clear; “Except a grain of wheat fall into the earth and die, it abideth by itself alone.” Dying is a must to secure proper avenues for life to manifest. The cross denies us the right to live our lives on our own terms. Rulings and regulations of another sort apply for the life in Christ; the ways of the world find an end at the cross. The cross denies us the right to formulate a framework for Christian living. Each and everyone who approach the Lord must be prepared to go through this extraordinary, non-negotiable reduction which opens for the things which are settled and safeguarded by the Law of the Spirit of Life. The cross denies us access to these things, as we continue horizoned by our own views, in the same incorruptible manner as the first couple was denied re-entry into the Garden of Eden – there, angles with swords, here an old rugged cross.

The cross, the preaching of the cross, is the power of God unto salvation. But we are engaged in producing system upon system which to some degree rest on theological scholarship but each of these constructions are aiming at warding off the necessity of experiencing the cross of Christ in practical living. The reality of its power is somehow denied or located to a spiritual level to which none of us need to enter – grace, they conclude, allows us to refuse the quest for fullness. A true revelation of grace, however, comes with the discovery of the necessity of thorough repentance and formation.
Meddlesome efforts of this kind have introduced a reduction of what salvation is at its root; the law of grain of wheat does not apply anymore, a dying to be able to take part of the resurrected life is simply not needed as a means to saintliness. The right to a living according to self is re-established in the name of salvation. As a result of this process, the saint to-be suffers great loss in regards to that which is so much greater – the resurrected life in Christ, a life which truly pleases both God and men. The resurrection-side of the cross is defined as “Christ in us, the hope of Glory.” The resurrection-side of the cross is defined as a walk in newness of life. The cross denies us the right to try to undertake such a walk in our own power. Capturing or emulating a resurrected life on the basis of soulish capacities is nothing but a humanistic initiative. Nothing is gained or enforced but a continuation of the rule of the flesh.

Man captured by the attraction and resourcefulness of the cross views the world together with its influences as an absolute enemy. He becomes aware, soberingly aware of the impact and tension pressed into the words of James: “Know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore would be a friend of the world maketh himself an enemy of God.” Jas 4:4. To live in, and to stay alive amidst this intense tension takes an ongoing experience of the cross of Christ. The cross invites us into a fellowship which lasts through conflicts. The cross creates opportunities for reconciliation. The cross gives us a sound mind, a godly mind which expresses goodness even when thoughts and views diverge. Its common approach is summarised in “newness of life”. It creates a new mind, a different approach.

The cross is indeed suited to purpose, practical and sufficient, inescapable and attractive. Its definite aim is to annihilate every structure opposed to the dynamics of the resurrection life. The final results of its workings bring us to a richness and fullness which can not be obtained by any other means. Man positioned outside its influence will be deceived by the theological influences designed to re-instate flesh as common rule and denominator. Herein we find the perennial conflict between that which is authentic and its counterfeits.
Many are they who find themselves in opposition regarding the necessity of the cross of Christ. But none of us are able to live and serve in our own strength – the cross is a must if salvation and saintliness has become our goal. No other truth causes opposition of any measure: A Christian lives his life on the basis of the death of Christ – “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but Christ living in me.” This is the hope of Glory, this is resurrection expressed as a reality.
For the re-establishment of this reality among Christians we pray.
For thorough experiences of the cross we pray.
A praying for these things shows the cross already at work.
A praying of this kind secures salvation and saintliness among us all.

Lars Widerberg

Characteristics of a Zealous Man
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A zealous man in religion is pre-eminently a man of one thing. It is not enough to say that he is earnest, hearty, uncompromising, thoroughgoing, wholehearted, fervent in spirit. He only sees one thing, he cares for one thing, he lives for one thing, he is swallowed up in one thing; and that one thing is to please God.

Whether he lives, or whether he dies
whether he has health, or whether he has sickness
whether he is rich, or whether he is poor
whether he pleases man, or whether he gives offence
whether he is thought wise, or whether he is thought foolish
whether he gets blame, or whether he gets praise
whether he get honour, or whether he gets shame
for all this the zealous man cares nothing at all.

He burns for one thing; and that one thing is to please God, and to advance God’s glory. If he is consumed in the very burning, he cares not for it – he is content. He feels that, like a lamp, he is made to burn; and if consumed in burning, he has but done the work for which God appointed him.

Such a one will always find a sphere for his zeal. If he cannot preach, work, and give money, he will cry, and sigh, and pray. . . If he cannot fight in the valley with Joshua, he will do the work of Moses, Aaron, and Hur, on the hill (Exodus 17:9-13).
If he is cut off from working himself, he will give the Lord no rest till help is raised up from another quarter, and the work is done. This is what I mean when I speak of ‘zeal’ in religion.

J. C. Ryle

Things that Grieve
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Fellowship with the Holy Spirit in Prayer

Reading: Jeremiah 9 and 10, 2 Corinthians 2:16

Oh, that my head were waters, and my eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!
A man’s voice verbalising anguish unspeakable.
A man’s voice articulating grief darker than night.
A man’s voice punctuating the heart of the Eternal.
A prophet’s cry amidst men who do not care to lend their ears to decency, preferring their own discipline of delusion.

Who is adequate for these things? Who is sufficient for this? Who is able to pray as one ought in times of great delusion, when everyone deceives his neighbour and when they bend and teach their tongues to speak lies.

Who is adequate for these things? Who is willing to carry the burden of the Lord amidst nations and peoples whose customs are but vanity. Where does one find a priest like Phinehas ready to cut sharply into contemporary approach of the Church or a Jeremiah to break away from the common culturally framed and fitted style.

Prayer means obtaining communion. Prayer means being changed and shaped into likeness with Him who lives always to make intercession. Prayer means to be saturated by the Life of the One who alone is Holy. The things which please Him will please the intercessor. The things which glorify Him become the sole interest of the praying man. The things which grieve the Holy Spirit will grieve you. The intercessor will accompany Jeremiah in verbalising anguish unspeakable.

The dispensation of the Spirit is the dispensation of the inner life. Prayer means obtaining communion. The dispensation of the Holy Spirit is meant for the cultivation of the inner life. A praying man is a saint in progression. A life in prayer, the inner life, is life habitually maturing.

The Father offers the absolute lordship of the Holy Spirit for the sake of insight into the ways and measures of Heaven. God offers the absolute lordship of the Holy Spirit for the sake of the establishing of a fellowship whose aim and purpose is aligned to the one set intention determined and stated by Heaven. Life lived and disciplined under the lordship of the Holy Spirit sets the stage for mature intercession.

Men of old were known and recognized among men and in the heavenly realms because they were heard in that they feared God. They acknowledged, submitted to and gave themselves to the throne where the art of the inner life begins, is learned and finds its purpose. The things of Heaven consume the intercessor. The things brought forth from the fellowship before the throne endures. These things prevail. These things cannot be shaken, cannot be brought to nought.

Item one: Intercession is an outpouring of God’s heart through a man’s heart. This is priestly ministry.

The weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh. The weapon of our warfare is an outpouring of God’s heart through our lives. The weapon of our warfare is the sanctifying presence of the Spirit of life. The covenant with the Levitical priesthood was one of life and peace; how much more. . . The Levitical priesthood was installed for the sake of service, for the sake of the presence of God among his own people, for the sake of a testimony – how much more. . .

Priestly ministry takes priestly compassion. Priestly ministry takes the heart of God explicitly expressed. Priestly ministry requires sacrificial compassion. Intercession according to God’s heart, according to God’s standards insists upon priestliness beyond human capacity. Who is sufficient for this?

One of the Old Men said: “No man is greater than his prayer life”. He also said: “We mistake action for unction, rattle for revival, and commotion for creation”. Priestliness brings the heart of the Lord to be seen among men. Prayer carries the burden of the Lord. The things that grieve the Spirit grieve praying men. The things that contradict the holiness of Heaven perplex and bring maturing saints on their knees. A prayer session before the throne opens time for God to share His burden with His confidents. Priestliness brings heavenliness to the Earth. Praying men are conformed into the likeness of the One with whom they commune.

God can use your tears. The Father gathers tears in bottles, He lists them in a scroll – Ps 56:8. Tears are a priestly tool to bring forth the Kingdom. These precious vaporizing pearls establish His Throne.

Oh, that my head were waters, and my eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!

Item two: Intercession is an outpouring of God’s heart through a man’s heart. This is prophetic ministry.

Concern and perplexity regarding effective intercession should bring the modern Church, even the modern prayer movement to its knees. Prayer is a matter of securing an operative testimony of Heaven on earth. Are our prayers heard before the Throne? Are we in any substantial measure recovering ground as to the cause of the Kingdom? Are we honest about exploits and accomplishments? Does our intercession have relevant repercussions in heavenly realms and earthly affairs? Does our intercession reflect the will of God?

The inner way, the ministry of the interior is, first of all, communion before and with God. But the inner way is indeed the way instituted by the Lord to conduct the affairs of Heaven amidst the rebellion and confusion of modern men. What grieves the Holy Spirit perplexes and grieves the people of God. “Do not learn the way of the nations. . . for the customs of the peoples are delusion. . . Who would not fear Thee, O King of the nations?

This is the setting in which the prophet cries out, Oh, that my head were waters, and my eyes a fountain of tears. This is the setting in which the praying community breaks down in tears, in an apostolic “Who is sufficient for this”. Prayer is the language of the poor, of the ones who have no earthly resources. Tears constitute the language of the ones who see the need of utter correction and judgment. Tears are the language of the Cross in operation. It is a language which is perfectly understood before the throne. It is a language which in a perfect manner opens for the throne, for the lordship of the Holy Spirit.

Item three: Intercession is an outpouring of God’s heart through a man’s heart. This is royal ministry.

In all our praying, are we willing to consider to what degree the heart of the Lord is pouring forth through our labouring? To what degree are our houses of prayer, our conferences and prayer vigils reflecting the House of Prayer which alone is the dwelling place of the Father?

Are the things that grieve the Holy Spirit producing grief in our inner beings and tears in our eyes? Are we gathering to impress the Lord concerning the validity of our agenda? Is prayer pressing petitions or the means of obtaining communion?

The House of the Father is companionship, communion, common spirit, common objectives. The House represents the lordship of the Holy Spirit. The House represents those eternal values which Heaven alone can produce, a production instigated by man’s perplexity and his tears. The House is a place for men, and women, who give themselves to fellowshipping for the sake of entering into the council of the Lord, for the sake of priestly ministry expressed in terms of a burden designed by the Lord.

Oh, that my head were waters, and my eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!
A man’s voice verbalising anguish unspeakable.
A man’s voice articulating grief darker than night.
A man’s voice punctuating the heart of the Eternal.
A prophet’s cry amidst modern men who do not care to lend their ears to decency, preferring their own discipline of delusion.
The common cry of a fellowship before the Lord to produce a recovery of a radical testimony of the Lordship of Jesus Christ.

Lars Widerberg