Sunday 22nd June is Elim’s World Missions Sunday which is always the Sunday nearest to the anniversary of the Vumba Massacre which took place on 23rd June 1978 in Zimbabwe. On that day nine Elim Missionaries and four of their children were brutally attacked and killed. If you want to find out more, download the Vumba brochure from the Elim Missions Website. On World Missions Sunday please pray for the families of those who lost their lives. Pray too for all our missionaries and national workers that they will receive a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit to enable them to reach people with the gospel.

NORTH KOREA

Please join Christians worldwide for a Global Week of Prayer for North Korea from 23rd-29th June to pray for change in this nation. North Korea is one of the most repressive and isolated countries in the world. Opposition to the gospel is extremely harsh and from a young age North Koreans are taught to worship their leader. Those who escape to China are forcibly returned to suffer torture and even execution. Pray that:

· the enforced idolatry will be broken and there will be religious freedom

· God will uphold believers living in this hostile environment and give them strength and protection

· Christians who do manage to escape will not be detected

· those seeking to take the gospel to North Korea will be protected and the Holy Spirit will guide them and give them wisdom in all they do

· the gospel will spread and the church grow

EAST AFRICA

Pray for Paul Hudson, West & East Africa Missions Director, who will be visiting East Africa 23rd-27th June. Pray for safe travelling and good meetings.

ELIM MISSIONS SHORT TERM TEAMS

A training day for those going to Romania and India takes place on 24th June in Manchester. Pray this will be a good time of fellowship and learning for those attending.

WEST ASIA

Pray for the K family who have returned from West Asia to settle back in the UK. Pray that all the good work they did in the country they were in will bear fruit in the days ahead. Pray for the family as they settle back in and that they will find the right accommodation, work and schools quickly.

SOUTH KOREA

Jonathan and Sungjoo Aird are the proud parents of a son, Lawrence Irenaeus, born 18th June, a brother for Elizabeth, Amethyst and Jesse. Continue to pray for Amethyst who has been diagnosed with scoliosis and may need surgery. There has been some improvement, pray this will continue.

HONDURAS

Some great news just received. Walter and Valerie Huezo have been holding youth meetings over three days and 30 young people have been saved and set free by the power of God. Pray that they will grow in their new faith. Walter and Valerie believe that God will move mightily through the youth of Honduras.

TURKEY

Thank you for your prayers for Phil’s mother. After two months of not been able to get out of bed and eating very little, she has recovered really well and is out of bed, eating and talking. Pray that this answer to prayer will bring Phil’s family to know Jesus as their Saviour.

ZIMBABWE

Only God can change the situation in Zimbabwe and together our prayers can make a difference. If you are able, please join with us at either 8 am, 1 pm or 8 pm each day for just one minute to pray for change in Zimbabwe. Thank you.

Members of our church were martyred in 1978 in Zimbabwe. The event is being remembered in an Early Day Motion. See below.

Simpson, David

That this House notes that 23rd June 2008 will mark the 30th anniversary of the Vumba Massacre of British missionaries by members of the Zimbabwe National Liberation Army in the former Rhodesia that resulted in the murder of nine missionaries and four children; further notes that all were associated with the Elim Pentecostal Church..

See the British Parliament website for the rest of the Early Day Motion

It was great to hear what George Critchley is planning once he leaves us at the end of his time at uni.

He told the church on Sunday that he is going to work as an intern for a Christian charity called Damaris that produces teaching resources to schools and churches.

Their vision is to create people that are both biblically informed, and culturally informed, with the ability to relate the two. With this in mind, they do a thing called ‘CultureWatch’ which looks through secular films for an underlying message that asks questions about life, as well as seeing what answers the Bible and a life with God provide.

This interests us as our church likes to be aware of contemporary culture, having an occasional “culture watch” small group, discussing books and films.

George will be involved in shooting, directing, and editing the short films that do this kind of work. See the short he made while he was down there

See another example of their approach here.

Damaris be working on an account for Disney, producing resources about the Narnia film, Prince Caspian.

George’s internship is unpaid, though they will provide money to cover bed and board for the three/four months he is working there. Our church leadership has decided to make a small contribution from our mission fund.

We prayed blessing upon Alex Appiah when he and his family went out from us to start a new pentecostal church in Market Weighton last year.

The young church there is still very small and Alex would welcome any from our fellowship who would like to visit from time to time to help them. You can talk to Graham to find out more details.

Their meetings on Sundays are from 10:30 to 12:30 at the address below.

We are getting news from our Elim Kenya leadership and other partners in that nation. The picture they paint is one of chaos and absolute horror with houses and churches being burned and people killed.

Our Elim Kenya General Superintendent says,

“So far the Elim Pentecostal Church has lost two churches, one in Nairobi and one in Eldoret.  Most of our church members have been misplaced and killed.  I have 22 families camping in my home.  Transport has been damaged and shops looted.  A convoy of buses and lorries carrying displaced people cannot move without paramilitary escort.  People are having a difficult time picking up bodies and taking them to various hospital mortuaries, which are getting congested.”

We rise with many believers around the world and pray for mercy and grace.

This email was sent to the church office this morning from Elim International Missions:

NIGERIA

This is a special request for prayer for Elim in Nigeria.

We have just been told that the Elim church in Bauchi, the first Elim church and the largest, has been burnt down by Muslims with everything inside. Thankfully all the church members are safe and also the schools (nursery, primary and secondary) which are a quarter of a mile away from the church. We understand that when trying to stabilise the situation, the police shot and killed the Muslim leader of the riot.

Matthew Ayodele, the President of Elim Nigeria, has moved from the area for safety as have many of the church members.

Please pray that God will surround our Elim leaders in Nigeria, the Bauchi church congregation and the schools with His protection. Pray that this terrible incident will not lead to further uprising. Pray that Matthew and the other leaders will have guidance and wisdom in everything they do.

We really appreciate your continued prayer support, thank you.

Please feel free to copy and distribute Prayerline.

If you do not wish to receive this mailing any longer,

please contact Kathy on kcooper@elimhq.net

I chose to do my four day silence from 10am Thursday to 1.30pm Sunday 31st
November to raise funds for the Big Dress festival in Sheffield…

I didn’t SPEAK on behalf of others who have no voice - namely:

• The many who are trapped in horrendous working conditions making clothes

and other produce for the Western world

• The children forced into work instead of having the education

they ought to receive

• The multitude of victims of injustice as a direct

consequence of the lack of accountability of multi-national companies in

• our world today

“The wages you failed to pay the workmen who mowed your fields arecrying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the
ears of the Lord Almighty” James 5:4

The Big Dress Campaign is seeking to make a difference in this area, by
hosting a 5 day festival in Sheffield in May 2008, highlighting these
issues, lobbying UK Government and exploring the relationship between the
creative arts, Christianity and social justice. Please support me however
you can by sponsoring me to raise essential funds that will make the next
leg of the Big Dress Tour possible in Sheffield.

http://www.speak.org.uk/thebigdress

Silence is great when it’s chosen, but hellish when it is forced.

On Sat 1st Dec Wycliffe Bible Translators are holding a “Wycliffe and Me” day at Acomb Baptist Church, which is for anyone who is interested in finding out more about them - whether they are thinking about joining, or are already supporters of Wycliffe members. All the details can be found on their website:

http://www.wycliffe.org.uk/Wycliffeandme.html

just click on the link for the two-page pdf file.

This week we had a guest speaker, Alan Hobson, from an organisation that supports persecuted churches around the world, CWS (Christian Solidarity Worldwide).

 Alan Hobson from Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CWS) [38:35m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (81)

Is there more to life than this?

Ask big questions in a relaxed environment. Enjoy a coffee and a bite to eat while you’re at it, all this for free!

Where?: FUSE Cafe, Swinegate, York. Next to the Biltmore Bar & Grill.

When?: Every Tuesday from 16th October, 5.30-7.30pm.

For more info telephone (01904) 767283 or 07737 729821 and ask for Graham or Penny, or email: mail@york-epc.org.uk.