Praising God Our Missionary Is Safe!

We are so thankful God answered prayer and that our missionary to Mexico, Kyle Bauer, and his family are safe! Here's a link to WFAA's news item from last night's 10PM news. You can read more by clicking on the following link: http://www.wfaa.com/news/local/Missionary-Kidnapped-in-Mexico-Freed-198716461.html

How do I know Jesus is the way?

God is moving in Iran...!

This past Thursday, I was privileged to host Sam Yeghnazar from Elam Ministries on the Word and Spirit telecast. Elam is dedicated to sharing the love of God and the Gospel of Jesus Christ with the Iranian people.

Click on the window below to hear Sam share several powerful testimonies from Iran.

Dominic and Lindsay Russo Nicaragua Update

I had a great time hosting young missionary evangelists Dominic and Lindsay Russo on TV last Friday. Teresa and I have known Lindsay and her family for many, many years. It is wonderful to see young people totally sold out to Jesus! He is 25 years old, she is 22.

The two-hour TV interview will air in a few days and we look forward to having them minister soon at Hillcrest Church. In the meantime, check out this YouTube video to see what God did through them in Nicaragua just a few days ago...

MARYAM AND MARZIEH: “We will not deny our faith” (Iranian trial update)

Here is the latest update from Elam Ministries concerning the two young Iranian Christian women who were arrested five months ago for their faith and who were summoned before the judge yesterday at 7am....

MARYAM AND MARZIEH: “We will not deny our faith”

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.

ELAM Ministries - http://www.elam.com/

Please pray for these two Iranian sisters!

I have just received the following email with a very urgent prayer request from our dear friends at Elam Ministries...

Two young Iranian Christian women, Maryam and Marzieh, were arrested by the authorities there five months ago for converting from Islam to Christianity. They have been summoned to appear in court tomorrow (Sunday) to hear the verdict in their case.

One judge has already told them that he was personally going to see to it that they will be put to death. Even if they are released, they will still be in tremendous danger since in the past Christians have been martyred in the streets after being set from from prison.

Please take a moment to pray for these two precious sisters in the Lord, asking God to supernaturally intervene on their behalf and that His comforting, protecting angels will be with them…!

===============================

Dear friends, After five months of being detained in Evin Prison in Tehran for their conversion to Christianity, Maryam and Marzieh have been told to be ready. Tomorrow (Sunday 9th August) at 7am they will be taken to the court where they will hear of the court's decision. Hopefully their lawyer will be allowed to be present. Marzieh is in pain due to her spine, her tooth and searing headaches. She desperately needs to see a specialist but she has not been allowed.

Let us urgently go to the Lord in believing prayer for Maryam and Marzieh in this most sensitive time.

• Let us thank Him For preserving, sustaining and strengthening them in prison.
• For giving them the grace to be steadfast in their faith.
• For the witness they have been in prison.
• For the love, concern and prayer of many believers around the world.

Pray for their court hearing tomorrow morning.

• Pray that the court will set them free.
• Pray that the presence and the anointing of the Holy Spirit will be with them.
• That they will receive healing from all illness.
• That the peace of God will cover their minds and their hearts, and will keep them safe in Jesus and refresh them tonight.
• That in all this the Lord will be greatly glorified and His perfect will be done.

Thank you so much for praying.

The Elam team

Bombed in Baghdad

This precious pastor and his wife, standing between David Shibley, Pastor Chady, and myself have had the windows of their apartment blown out seven different times because of car bombs near their building, but they keep sharing the love of Jesus with everyone around them...!

Jordanian Friends

It was great to see Pastor Dikran Salbashian and his wife, Ani, from Jordan again. I had the privilege of ministering at a leader's conference at their church in Amman three years ago and was deeply impressed by their ministry.



This precious brother is an elder in Pastor Dikran's church. He has a very effective ministry to Iraqi refugees in Jordan, many of whom live in very, very difficult circumstances.

Pastor Chady El-Aouad, Abundant Life Church, Beirut, Lebanon

One of the great blessings from my trip to Lebanon getting to know the host pastor of the Frontline Shepherd's Conference, Chady El-Aouad from Abundant Life Church in Beirut. He is a powerful man of God who has raised up a thriving congegration there and who is planting churches throughout the region. We are already working on a date for him to minister at Hillcrest Church! It was also great to spend time with my dear friend, Dr. David Shibley of Global Advance. It was thanks to his invitation that I had the privilege of ministering to some two hundred delegates from throughout the Middle East.

Bound for Beirut

Tomorrow night, Sunday, May 10th, I leave for three days of ministry in Lebanon to pastors from across the Middle East. I do not know if I will be able to update my blog while I am gone via my laptop and the internet, but I know I will be able to update my twitter page from my cell phone. I have twitter configured so that it also automatically updates my facebook page every hour or so. If you would like to follow my missions updates and have not already signed up for my facebook page, then I suggest you check via twitter since I may not be able to access my facebook page via the internet and approve you for access while I am gone.

Thanks in advance for holding my family and me up in your prayers during this time...!

From Out of Africa - Jean Aimee Gifford

At Hillcrest Church, we are called to be a local church with a ministry that touches the world like the church at Antioch in the New Testament. As we walk people through the Discipleship Cycle (Bring, Heal, Train, Lead, and Send), God prepares them to impact whatever world He calls them to, whether it be the world of their own neighborhood across the backyard fence, a sphere of influence that spans many geographic localities, or another culture and belief system on the other side of an ocean.

It is our joy and privilege as a congregation to be used by the Lord to send our people wherever He calls them. One very special person we have recently sent into the world of the HIV pandemic is Jean-Aimee Gifford. A highly trained medical professional, she serves in Africa with an organization called Hands at Work. She has recently started blogging at wivafrica.blogspot.com. I encourage you to read her posts, find out more about her work, and let her know that you are praying for her!

Parisian Pastors

My train ride back down to London was uneventful, but I hit the city right at rush hour. Crossing town on the "tube" (as London's subway is commonly called), train, and taxi with my luggage was no fun, but the leg by taxi yielded beautiful glimpses of this storied place, such as this glimpse of Buckingham Palace, home of the Queen. I noticed there wasn't any royal flag flying when I zipped by so that meant she was not at home. I noticed on the news that she was going to the Kentucky Derby and then on to Washington, D.C. to meet President Bush, so maybe she had already left. As beautiful a city as my beloved Paris is, I must confess that London has a charm all her own.



Half way across London I realized that I had made a very stupid mistake and assumed that I was flying out of the same airport I had arrived in (Gatwick). Thankfully, I took out my ticket and was able to change train lines midstream and make my way to Heathrow instead for I was booked on the last flight out to Paris that night...!


The flight was delayed a long time and we didn't arrive until nearly midnight, but my very dear friend, Pastor Samuel Rodrigues of the Eglise Protestante Evangélique de Montrueil was there to meet me. Along with his wife, Héléne, they lead a thriving congregation just a few hundred yards from the city limits of Paris. Pastor Samuel hosts a monthly pastor's meeting where I spoke to some sixty church leaders from across the city.

Jeff Serio, of European Initiative, joined me for this time at my invitation and was a tremendous blessing. Together with his wife, Barb, and their four fine children, they are soon moving to Berlin, Germany. At Hillcrest Church, we believe in this family and are honored to be able to partner with them financially. I encourage you to take a moment to check out their site and to click on the video posted below so you can learn more about their heart and vision for Europe

Mattersey Hall

I hopped the train in London yesterday and rode up north to Retford, near Nottingham. It was amazing to be riding along at high speed and uploading these photos I took with my cell phone with the English countryside whizzing by...! The yellow plant in full bloom out in the fields, by the way, is rapeseed, used in making oils of various types.



I just happened to come at a time when the weather hear in Britain has been absolutely gorgeous - no fog, rain, or cold, just lots of warmth, blue skies, and sunshine. That has made the views all the more beautiful as I have travelled by both train and automobile.

After my arrival in Retford last night, Paul Alexander, the principal of Mattersey Hall, and his wife, Carol, took me out for a typically British dinner of meat pie with sticky toffee pudding and custard in the shadow of Lincoln Cathedral. (My camera stopped working, but I managed to find their picture and one of the cathedral on the internet.) Paul will be preaching for us at Hillcrest Church while they are in the States this coming October.

I lodged at a small inn near the school named The White Swan; had a typically English breakfast this morning that included fried eggs, fried ham, and baked beans; and then headed over to the school. Even though this is my third day in the U.K., I still find myself walking around to the right side of the car when I am a passenger! I have driven in Britain in the past and did not find it to be too great a challenge, but it always takes me a few days to develop new reflexes, especially when crossing the street as a pedestrian.

The worship in the student chapel was a real treat. I am not enough of a musician to analyze the differences between worship music in the U.K. and that in America, but even my untrained ear detects a distinct difference. It seems the melodic lines here are richer, somehow more varied and complex, with a certain lilt to them. Most importantly, the worship was obviously straight from the hearts. Pastor John Andrews from Rotherham New Life Christian Centre in a neighborhing city and his staff gave a stirring update on what God was doing through the ministries of their church and launched an appeal for students to work with them during the summer and next fall as they plant two more daughter churches.

Mattersey Hall is a wonderful institution that offers fully accredited undergraduate and graduate degrees in various ministry and theological concentrations including a full Ph.d in connection with the Univesity of Wales. Their student body comes from around the U.K. and serveral other countries. They also have a great distance learning program. Their campus is spread across some fourteen acres and headquarted in an 18th century mansion. My camera stopped working so I could not take a photo and have been unable to find one on the web, but trust me, their facilities are beautiful!

After speaking to the students in one session then to the faculty and administration in another, it was back on the train to scoot down to London to catch a late evening flight over to Paris.

Elam Ministries - London

Sam and Linaria Yeghnezar from Elam Ministries surprised me by meeting me at Gatwick airport last night when I arrived in London from Split! This meant we were able to spend the evening together before my scheduled visit to their base outside London today. A special treat was meeting Sam's 96 year old father, in whose house a sovereign outpouring of the Holy Spirit in 1955 sparked off a major expansion of evangelical Christianity in Iran.

It has been great to get good news about the work of the Lord in Iran. God is moving in a very great way there. It was a joy to be able to share some thoughts on leadership with the Christian workers they are training and learn more about their extensive and manifold forms of outreach to the Persian people.

Walking around their property, we came across a meadow full of bluebells. I did not expect to find that taste of Texas so far from Britain.

We also came upon a 75 year old rhododendron...! I am the farthest thing from a horticulturist - not even an avid gardener, but that impressed even me.

One of their current construction projects is a prayer garden where their staff and people passionate about Iran could come and intercede for that country. It would be great if a team from Hillcrest could come and help with this!

More Croatia Photos

Here is the home of the Evangelical Good News Church in Split. It sits in the center of the city, very near to the old town.

In Roman times, Christians were martyred in this amphitheatre.

Prague, Czech Republic

I arrived here in Prague, Czech Republic yesterday afternoon from Amsterdam to find my long time friend, Pastor Bohuslav Wojnar, waiting for me at the airport. He pastors the Křesťanské Centrum church in the town of Cesky Tesin, very near to the Polish and Slovakian borders. Cesky Tesin is the in the part of the country called Moravia. This is where the famous Moravian Brethren were from who sent out the very first missionaries in the modern era.

Teresa and I first met Bohuslav and his lovely wife, Felicie, back in the mid-eighties during one of our missions trips behind the Iron Curtain into Eastern Europe. They have been very dear friends ever since. One of the young men converted under Bohuslav's ministry and then discipled by him is Petr Ministr, the Director of the Teen Challenge ministry for the Czech Republic, first-rate ministry to drug addicts. (Seen below with his wife, Patricia.) They are a precious, precious couple, greatly used by the Lord to impact people in this country.



Bohuslav and I drove together out to Postovice where Teen Challenge is renovating a centuries old facility into a complete headquarters, both men's and women's treatment centers, and a discipleship training institute. Hillcrest Church has helped with this project.



They are now purchasing an adjoining piece of property to use in running some of the new businesses the young people work in during their rehab. (Photos below show the new wooden pallet factory they are running.)

They have just had a large gift of over USD$100,000 given to them, but they are still USD$10,000 short - which they need by next week...! When you read this, please take a moment to stop and pray for God to touch human hearts to give them what they lack.

YWAM Amsterdam

After a very brief hop across the English Channel, I arrived in in Amsterdam, Holland sans baggage for the second trip in a row...! Can you believe it? It's been several years since an airline lost my suitcase and now I take two trips within two weeks and my luggage gets lost twice in a row...! Smile!

After picking up yet another stranded traveller courtesy kit at the lost luggage counter, I exited through customs at the Schipol's mega-airport with its sprawling shopping center (I bought a car duty free there once when Teresa and I lived in Europe) and found Missionary Steve Ashworth's smiling face there to greet me. We then hopped the train to Amsterdam's Centraal Station, just a few blocks from the YWAM base.

When I saw what was hanging outside the door to their apartment, I knew I was in the Netherlands for sure. The first time I ever saw a pair of shoes like that was when I was seven or eight years old and my Mom and Dad brought some back to me as a souvenir when they stopped overnight in Holland on their way home from a trip to the Holy Land in the sixties.

We toured the YWAM Amsterdam building where Steve and Rhonda and their three beautiful children live. It's called De Poort, which is Dutch for ‘The Gateway’. The 150 year old building provides classrooms and housing for the different ministry schools, office space for their Support Ministries, and housing for staff. They run several schools out of this particular YWAM base, including the Discipleship Training School, Leadership Training School, Makind Disciple Makers, School of Evangelism and Pioneering, School of Intercessory Prayer, School of Urban Frontier Missions, and the Nations to Nations TakeOff Discipleship Evening School. Here is a photo of Steve inside a classroom set up for their School of Intercessory Prayer, which is going on at the moment.


We then headed out on bicycle to visit the mission's other facilities.


Amsterdam is such a beautiful city and exploring it by bicycle was a real treat after so many hours cooped up on an airplance. The weather here today was beautiful and the neighborhood they are in is laced with canals bordered by tiny streets, and historic architecture.



Our first stop was the new Tabernacle of the Nations prayer center, a house of 24/7 prayer and worship in the heart of Amsterdam’s Red Light District. In Your missions giving through Hillcrest Church is helping make this project possible...!
















Then, we went next door to The Cleft. It focuses on mercy ministry and sharing the gospel with tourists, homeless people, businessmen, prostitutes, drug addicts and lonely people.














We wound up at The Samaritan's Inn building where the Dwaze Zaken arts café is located. Although the identity of the café is Christian, there are no preachers or sermons. Rather, it provides a platform for many different art forms and hosts a number of different kinds of activities on an ongoing basis: concerts, workshops, exhibitions, (film) discussions and lectures. The initiative for this kind of café grew out of the belief that God is the ultimate Artist. The initiators of the café wish to demonstrate that the Christian lifestyle is contemporary, very active and provides sufficient basis for today’s problems and life’s challenges. Young people find at Dwaze Zaken a lively café where they can find friendship, a listening ear and a helping hand. Thanks to your generosity, I was able to treat the entire Ashworth family to a delicious dinner. We had great fellowship, and I am now about to tumble into bed exhausted, but very thankful that we are partnering with such quality people...!

Jetlagged at Gatwick

No matter how many times I "hop the pond," these transatlantic flights always wear me out. I have never quite grown accustomed to trying to sleep sitting up... (Smile!) But, I found a Starbucks here at Gatwick airport (yeah...!) with good, strong "drip" coffee and I'm feeling better by the minute, even with only an hour or two of sleep. In a bit, I connect with British Airways on to Amsterdam, where I am going to visit our missionaries, Steve and Rhonda Ashworth and their children. They are missionaries with Youth With A Mission based in Holland, but also active in other countries around the world. I am really looking forward to this time with them, although brief. They have very graciously rearranged their travel schedules to the Phillipines just in order to be home and welcome me when I come through...!

Amsterdam holds very special memories for Teresa and me. Our first trip to Western Europe after we were married in 1985 was to the International Conference for Itinerant Evangelists hosted by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association in the summer of '86. The conference had made arrangements for the 8,000 or so delegates from all over the world to have free, unlimited transportation on the city's tramways. Following the evening meetings, Teresa and I would hop some tram at random, ride it to the end of the line, and then return to our hotel. It was a great way to sightsee and in July, it did not get fully dark until very late in the evening. I had already ministered in Europe multiple times beginning in 1981, but both Teresa and I were profoundly impacted by what the spiritual need that we saw everywhere around us in '86. Following that experience, we began stepping up our involvement in that part of the world and things culminated with our moving to France as resident missionaries on New Year's Day of 1991.

This trip will be fast and furious (that's the way I like them...!), with stops in five countries in ten days. I'll keep you posted as often as I can via my blog.

Teresa and I love you precious people at Hillcrest Church and are thankful to God for the privilege of serving you...!

Given to the Gospel

Carlos and Celia Estrado are the spiritual "parents" of the movement I ministered for in Peru. The forty plus years they invested there at great personal sacrifice have resulted in over 400 churches, a Bible school, a Christian day school with several hundred students, and many other forms of ministry. Seeing the abundant fruit of their labors was a powerful reminder that when we sow our lives into God's will, it always bears a harvest!

"5 Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. 6 He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves withhim." (Psalm 126:5-6, NIV)