| JOEL-NEWS-INTERNATIONAL-445 * 20 JUNE 2003 * WWW.JOELNEWS.ORG IN THIS EDITION: JN445-1. TYPICALLY GOD: Indigenous worship draws people to Jesus JN445-2. PRAYER FOCUS: Pain of the heart in Greenland JN445-3. NEWS BRIEF: 24-7prayer on national television in UK JN445-4. KINGDOM DEVELOPMENT: AIDS/HIV rate slashed by Christian lifestyle JN445-5. RESOURCE: Strategic prayer focus for children JN445-6. RESOURCE: His Power Portal --- QUOTE: "Committees DISCUSS, while ministries DO." (Rick Warren) --- JN445-1. TYPICALLY GOD: Indigenous worship draws people to Jesus John (not his real name), a YWAM worker in Central Asia, started a simple recording studio in 1994 where he recorded some of the first Christian music in the Central Asian Turkic languages. He recalls the first recording they made of Central Asian worship music: "I had never known of a song that was written by an Uighur believer. Then, in 1995, I heard about an Uighur farmer who had become a believer and started writing songs, expressing his faith and love for God. I met him soon afterwards in his home where we spent the afternoon sharing songs with each other. What a day!" After that initial meeting, the farmer came for a week to record his music. These tapes of worship music encouraged local believers, but some of the songs have even been put on secular dance tapes and played on local radio and television stations. John recalls, "I was a passenger in a car driving to a village one day and the driver, a local man, was playing one of these compilation dance tapes. My eyes lit up when after a few songs, one of the Christian songs we recorded came over the speakers. It was chosen and put on this tape, which was being sold in the market! We stopped along the road in a small village and I walked over to the music salesperson there and asked if they had this tape. Sure enough, there it was being sold in this village too. It makes me smile to know that this song praising Jesus was being played over and over at many a wedding and other gatherings." Since 1995, the studio has recorded over 20 worship tapes in native languages. These are from a variety of backgrounds, including Kazak, Kirghiz, Uzbek, and Karakalpak. In working with the musicians, John says, "We don't tell them what to sound like, so we get all sorts. We just want it to be of good quality and serve a purpose." John feels it is very important to use music written by local believers in Central Asian churches because the purpose of the music is to draw and focus hearts, minds, and affections on God in worship. He says this is best achieved with music that is pleasing to locals and has a beat and tone they are familiar with. I also helps non-believers to follow Jesus without the need to also embrace an alien culture." Source: Global Worship Report --- JN445-2. PRAYER FOCUS: Pain of the heart in Greenland When Christian workers in Greenland taught a seminar on 'How to handle the pain of the heart', some of the pupils came into class the first morning crying - before any teaching even started. "The group here in Sisimiut exhibited the most heavy pain we've ever seen," one worker said. "People up here are racked in soul pain because of the terrible sins committed against them and the sins they themselves have committed. Many Greenlanders suffer from alcoholism, are suicidal, lonely, confused, afraid, angry, and empty - and some are discovering new life and peace in Jesus Christ. There is tremendous openness to the gospel." Twenty people accepted Christ and were discipled during the event. Intercede for Greenlanders who are bound for an eternity without Christ. Ask God to give national Christians the desire and boldness to reach out with the gospel. Thank God for evangelical workers who give their lives to share the gospel message. Source: Advance --- JN445-3. NEWS BRIEF: 24-7prayer on national television in UK In September UK's Channel 4 will broadcast a 45 minute documentary on the 24-7prayer movement and her Summer prayer evangelism outreach to Ibiza, Europe's hedonistic party capital. The programme will be given a prime time slot, 8.30 pm on a Saturday night. A preview event was held recently at the arty Curzon Cinema in Soho, central London, at which many leaders in business, church, politics and the media were present. Among the Lords and Ladies was also the Bishop of London who introduced the event and offered his help to promote 24 hour prayer rooms (called 'boiler rooms') in the city. Source: 24-7prayer.com --- JN445-4. KINGDOM DEVELOPMENT: AIDS/HIV rate slashed by Christian lifestyle True Love Waits' message is making a profound impact in Uganda where young people are saving sex for marriage. The sexual abstinence campaign is receiving credit for a remarkable drop in the AIDS rate in this East African country where the rate of HIV/AIDS has fallen from over 30 percent of the population in the early 1990s to around 10 percent today. Government leaders and some HIV/AIDS activists in Uganda cite 'True Love Waits' for much of the success. The campaign was supported by Uganda's first lady, Janet Museveni, a Christian who is outspoken in promoting sexual abstinence until marriage. Uganda serves as an encouraging example of how the witness of a Christian lifestyle can really change a nation. LINK: http://www.lifeway.com/tlw/ --- JN445-5. RESOURCE: Strategic prayer focus for children Helene Bos of Holland-based ministry Serving the Nations, published a global strategic prayer focus for children in which she describes a number of satan's strategies for killing and harming children at an early age. This prophetic research article can be retrieved by sending an e-mail to lyris@xc.org with only this command in the body of your mail: get joel-news-international bos-children-of-the-world Source: Serving the Nations --- JN445-6. RESOURCE: His Power Portal His Power Portal is home of the Hollywood prayer initiative, but also offers resources for developing a prayer strategy for your campus or other target area. LINK: http://hispowerportal.com --- COLOPHON Joel News International is a leading special interest bulletin on prayer, church growth and revival. We offer a keen selection of the most encouraging news reports, the most challenging developments and the best resources from over 100 reliable sources in six continents. Joel News International is a great help and time-saver for thousands of Christian leaders and intercessors in over 120 nations. Editors: Alex ten Cate and Marc van der Woude. You can contact the editorial office at joel-news@xs4all.nl. 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