INSPIRE STO RIES TO LIFT YOUR SPIRITS
PRAYED BACK FROM DEATH Pastor’s miracle recovery SEND SOME HOPE THIS CHRISTMAS THE KEY THAT COULD HAVE SAVED THE TITANIC GOD TURNS REFUGEE’S DREAM TO REALITY WIN A CHILD’S TRAIN SET
Issue 116 • November/December 2017
HOW YOU CAN HELP THE MIDDLE EAST’S LOST GENERATION
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CONTENTS
S TO R I E S TO L I F T YO U R S P I R I T S
There’s nothing like good news – and we’ve got the best What an incredible message the Christian Gospel offers to a world in trouble: forgiveness, a fresh start, life in all its fulness and the fact that the Creator of the universe loves us and has a future full of hope in store. The stories in this issue of INSPIRE provide a timely reminder of how God changes lives across the UK and around the world, whether through healing, acts of kindness, sacrificial love, nurturing young lives in the Middle East, and bringing impossible dreams to fruition. We hope you draw inspiration from what you read, and fresh energy to share the amazing good news we have with your communities. And do see how you can support our partners MAF, Sailors’ Society, Traidcraft and SAT-7 and the great work they do. Praying we relish the challenge of following Jesus as forgiven, grateful people. INSPIRE May God use you to bless your neighbourhood this Christmas! STOR IES TO LIFT YOUR SPIRI TS
PRAYED BA FROM DEA CK TH Pastor’s mira cle
recovery
SEND SOM E HOPE THIS CHRISTMAS THE KEY THAT COULD HAV SAVED THE E TITANIC GOD TURN S REFUGEE’ S DREAM TO REALITY
Russ Bravo, Editor
TO ORDER INSPIRE AND/OR TO MAKE A DONATION Go to www.inspiremagazine.org.uk and click the ORDER button. Inspire is distributed FREE and has a readership of around 200,000 in churches across the UK. Published by CPO, it is funded by partners, advertising and donations.
WIN A CHIL TRAIN SET D’S
Issue 116 • Novem ber/Dec
HOW YOU CAN HELP THE MIDD LE LOST GEN EAST’S ERATION
ember 2017 www.inspirema gazine.org.uk
4 Back from the brink – young pastor Matthew Murray experienced a miracle recovery from malaria after thousands prayed around the world 6 Bits n Pieces – fun, topical research plus good websites and apps 8 Greetings that count – Christmas cards are a great way of hand-delivering hope and supporting your favourite charity, says Traidcraft 10 Puzzles – find the solutions with our crossword, sudoku and word goal 12 A little known legacy – the key that could have saved the Titanic is now helping guarantee seafarers’ futures, reveals Sailors’ Society’s James Leslie 14 Question time – Andy Bannister believes growth isn’t just happening in the global Church, and getting stuck in can fan the UK’s green shoots of recovery 16 Welcome boxes – Sharon Barnard reports on a practical way to befriend and care for refugees 18 Inspire 2017 Reader Appeal – your regular chance to support the work of INSPIRE 20 Lost generation – broadcasters SAT-7 are finding new ways of supporting displaced and traumatised children in the Middle East, and you can help 22 I believe I can fly – how one young man fleeing a catastrophic civil war dreamed that one day he could be an MAF pilot … 24 Five reasons to visit your Christian bookshop – you’re as likely to find cafes, craft shops, venues and wells of wisdom 26 Giveaways – we’ve got books on prayer and Christmas, a Gingerbread Chai Gift Set plus a superb train set + accessories to give away 28 Holidays and Classified – villas, cottages, hotels and more 31 Woman Alive – give a special gift subscription to the UK’s only monthly magazine for Christian women. A year’s great reading for £25! Cover stories
Editor: Russ Bravo Email: editor@inspiremagazine.org.uk Designer: Phill Roberts Advertising Sales: Display/Inserts/Recruitment/Classified: Denise Walker Email: denisewalker@cpo.org.uk Tel: 01903 604338 Printers: Bishops Cover photo: CPO 2017 Christmas catalogue Order enquiries: Our friendly subs team Email: subs@cpo.org.uk Tel: 01903 604348
Order: at www.inspiremagazine.org.uk Contents © Copyright 2017 Publishers: CPO, Garcia Estate, Canterbury Road, Worthing, West Sussex BN13 1BW Tel: 01903 264556 Acceptance of advertising does not imply endorsement. Christian Publishing & Outreach, Registered Charity 221462. Company limited by guarantee in England & Wales, No 588731. VAT no 860 219 341.
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MY STORY
I’D BE DEAD IF IT WASN’T FOR GOD’S PEOPLE When pastor Matthew Murray was given three hours to live after contracting malaria, people all over the world started to pray for him. His recovery was nothing short of miraculous, he tells SHARON BARNARD “I THOUGHT it was a bad cold or flu at first, so I left it for a couple of weeks before going to the doctor,” admits Matthew, who was in Alabama at the time following a routine missions trip to Kenya. “The doctor I saw was a Christian medical missionary who told me to go back to him if I felt my symptoms were getting worse. They were. “I couldn’t walk, I was sweating and shaking and the doctor told me I needed to go to the hospital immediately. “They thought I had Ebola and was put into quarantine until it was ruled out. 4
“For three days I was slipping in and out of consciousness. I didn’t know where I was or who I was. I was fighting for my life.” Matthew had contracted the most severe form of malaria on a visit to King’s Children’s Home and School in Bumala B, Kenya as part of One By One, the humanitarian aid ministry that he and his wife Becky run together. With half of his bloodstream filled with the deadly parasite and his major organs shutting down, Becky was told to prepare for the worst. Doctors warned that her 27-year-old husband could be dead within three hours.
MY STORY
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Becky immediately turned to social media to share Matthew’s plight and asked people to pray for him. “I had no idea what was going on at the time, but thousands of people shared that message among their groups, organisations, churches and networks and started praying for me. “In a matter of one day the malaria went from my body and my major organs recovered their function. “I believe I’d be dead if it wasn’t for God’s people,” says the pastor from Uttoxeter. “I became a talking point in the hospital. Staff kept coming in to shake my hand, admitting that they’d all been saying they thought I was going to die. A nurse gave her life to Jesus. “One of the doctors said: ‘There is no medical explanation.’ They were utterly astounded. THE DOCTORS “When I recovered I discovered some 2,000 Facebook messages from people all over the world WERE UTTERLY ASTOUNDED saying they had been praying for me. It showed me so much about the power of prayer. “As a pastor I’ve prayed for people who are not healed. But I still believe God is a healer and I keep on praying. “The Bible tells us that we only need a tiny amount of faith – as small as a mustard seed. His power is phenomenal and we must never underestimate what he can do.” Since his brush with death in 2014, the young father has been speaking to churches and groups about his experience. “When I got out of that hospital I knew that I wanted to make every second count for the living God. You can’t take houses or personal successes to heaven – just people. That’s why I’m doing what I’m doing.” He has also published his story, He Still Heals, to tell more people about what Jesus has done in his life. “People lack hope in this generation,” says Matthew. “It could be they’ve lost hope because of their marriage problems or fear or worry about things. I want to say that when all’s against you there is hope. “I never wanted to be accused of marketing a miracle or selling my story, but I knew I had to write this down. All profits will go to our work in Africa and I pray it will be a great blessing to many and give hope to those who have none.” + He Still Heals by Matthew Murray is published by New Life Publishing. Find out more about the charity One By One at www.onebyone.net www.inspiremagazine.org.uk
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BITS ’N’ PIECES ONLINE Find Mission Academy discipleship training from HOPE Together and links to videos here: http://hopetogether.org.uk/ Groups/290576/Mission_Academy_ Live.aspx
APP Use Ripl to create eye-catching animated videos that can promote your church events – easy to use, great for using on social media and available for iOs (App Store) and Android (Google Play) – ripl.com
CAT BUSINESS This was developed as an intelligence test by a research and development department at Harvard University. Take your time and see if you can read each line aloud without a mistake. The average person over 40 years of age can’t do it! 1 This is this cat 2 This is is cat 3 This is how cat 4 This is to cat 5 This is keep cat 6 This is an cat 7 This is old cat 8 This is person cat 9 This is busy cat 10 This is for cat 11 This is forty cat 12 This is seconds cat Now go back and read aloud the third word in each line from the top down to determine your intelligence. 6
STATS | FRIENDS INDEED A huge number of British adults have found themselves unprepared for unexpected costs and have had to rely on friends, family or even credit to pay for them in the past 12 months, according to new research. The survey of 1,035 UK adults carried out by home heating oil supplier, SuperSaverOil.com, found that almost half (44%) of Brits have had to rely on a form of credit such as an overdraft or credit card at least once in the past 12 months, to pay for an unexpected living cost they had not budgeted for. A quarter (25%) have dipped in to their savings, while 19% say they have even had to borrow money from friends or family to cover the unexpected cost. Car repairs (72%) were the most common cost Britons have struggled to pay, while two thirds (66%) have incurred unexpected home repair costs such as a broken boiler or a burst pipe. More than half (52%) have received a utility bill they were not expecting, while almost 1 in 3 (32%) have run up a large phone bill they had not budgeted for. Medical costs such as a dentist bill (21%), completed the top 5.
We Love Inspire We enjoy receiving INSPIRE magazine at Ashton Methodist Church, and find the articles very interesting. I also give them to two close friends. A big thank you – may God bless all who work to make the magazine possible. Ruth Ball, Ashton-on-Ribble, Preston
MAF uses planes to transform the lives of the world’s most isolated people, bringing help and hope to those in need.
Invite a speaker to your Church or Group For 70 years MAF has supplied a solution for the problem of poverty in isolation, delivering a lifeline for isolated communities in over 25 countries across the developing world. Operating 135 light aircraft, MAF flies into over 1,400 destinations – dirt, grass or mountain airstrips – enabling: clean water and food, economic and community development, medical supplies and equipment, educational and healthcare teams, and peace building opportunities to reach over one million people living in poverty in some of the world’s most remote and inhospitable places on earth. To arrange a speaker at your Church or Group and hear more about MAF’s exciting work, please phone 01303 851955 or visit www.maf-uk.org/speaker
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CHRISTMAS
HAND-DELIVERED HOPE Christmas cards are a great way to connect with your community, so spread a little joy this festive season, encourages MATT OLIVER WE BUY them, write them and receive them every year, but how often have you stopped to consider how it really feels when you receive a Christmas card? The number of envelopes you find on your doormat might prompt you to remember loved ones who are far away, colleagues you used to spend the nine to five with, or social groups that you used to be a part of. Similarly, receiving a handwritten Christmas card from a friend or relative connects you to them in a physical way. You know you’ve been in their thoughts and they’ve taken the time to think of you, write to you with their own hand, and post you a little bit of Christmas love.
Imagine how it might feel if you didn’t receive any Christmas cards this year. We live in an age where isolation is on the rise; people are living longer and often alone, their families having moved away to start a family or explore the world. Even some professionals, working longer and longer hours, might not have the opportunity to connect with new people. Living in a digital age or running the rat race can mean we’re left disconnected – a text or email replacing a warm hand, or a hug. Christmas is all about community, and us all coming together to celebrate the Good News of the birth of Jesus Christ.
RECEIVING A CHRISTMAS CARD MIGHT MEAN THE WORLD TO SOMEONE
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In an ideal world we’d all be surrounded with joyous festivities, visiting family, and outings with friends, but sadly this isn’t always the case. We all already know how purchasing charity Christmas cards helps people in need around the world, but it’s not as often acknowledged how much difference they can make on a local level too. Receiving a Christmas card through the door might mean the world to someone who feels disconnected, lost or lonely, so why not make it your mission to reach out to your neighbours and handwrite them a personalised card? You could even go one step further and knock on their door to say ‘hello’ at the same time. It could be the start of a new friendship for the New Year, or you might just encourage someone to take their first brave step into your community. Do you know anyone that might appreciate a visit to check they’re OK, and a friendly festive hug? Whether you’re looking for multipacks of charity Christmas cards to share far and wide, or a handmade card with character, you can find them at Traidcraft. Many of
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their handmade cards have been hand embroidered by artisans at a fair trade co-operative in Bangladesh, or handcrafted with handmade paper by artisans in the Philippines. They’re all fair trade, so you know you’re supporting families in the developing world as well as showing a little bit of Christmas here at home too. Each card is a piece of original art, perfect for popping in a small frame after Christmas, and some even come with a handmade detachable brooch, so they’re a gift and card all in one! Each pack of Traidcraft charity Christmas cards means a donation to Traidcraft Exchange, CAFOD, SCIAF, and Christian Aid, and there is a huge variety to choose from, including cards with Bible verses. Visit Traidcraft’s online shop to explore a world of fair trade and handmade Christmas cards, or see if your local church or community centre has a regular resident Fair Trader stockist who’ll be able to help you choose the right cards for you. So go on, make a difference to someone in your community this festive season. www.traidcraftshop.co.uk
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BRAIN STRAINERS
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CROSSWORD Across 6. Too easy-going (4) 7. Short casual coat (6) 8. Good in your cap? (7) 9. Archer’s equipment (3) 11. Hairdresser’s hand-held appliance (5) 13. Hop on to (5) 15. Outdoor meal (abbr) (3) 16. Satisfy someone’s wishes (7) 19. Firmly held, fixed (6) 20. Drink hastily (4) Down 1. Tiny opening in skin (4) 2. Figures of stone (7) 3. Mirror or Telegraph (5) 4. Nudge, jostle (3) 5. Medium-sized African monkey (6) 10. Ransomed (person) (7) 12. Criminal taker of goods (6) 14. Thin chipped potatoes (5) 17. Completely filled up (4) 18. Sprout, form flowers (3)
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You’ll find the solution in Puzzles and Solutions at www.inspiremagazine.org.uk
SuDoku in Japanese means ‘number-solving’.
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How many words of four letters or more can you make from the letters shown here? Each must contain the centre letter, all the others can be used only once. Goal: Superb – 36; Excellent – 31; Well Done – 24; Good – 18
You’ll find the solution in our My Inspire section at www. inspiremagazine. org.uk
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WORD GOAL
Puzzles by www.puzzle.tv
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The grid is 9x9, but has nine 3x3 minigrids or ‘regions’ built in. Some numbers, called ‘givens’, are inserted to give you a start. The goal is to fill in the empty cells, one number in each, so that each column and row in the main grid, and each region, contains the numbers 1–9 exactly once.
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EDUCATION
BUILDING DREAMS FROM THE DEPTHS OF DISASTER The key that could have saved the Titanic is now helping guarantee seafarers’ futures. JAMES LESLIE reports TEN years ago a small iron key, thought to have secured the binoculars for the Titanic’s crow’s nest, sold for £90,000 at an auction in Wiltshire. The key had been accidentally taken off the ship before it sailed, leaving the binoculars locked away. The mistake had devastating consequences, according to one of the lookouts. He told an enquiry after the Titanic sank that the binoculars could have prevented it from hitting the iceberg, saving the lives of 1,522 people. International Christian maritime charity Sailors’ Society received the key as a donation in the 1980s and sold it to a Chinese businessman in 2007. The proceeds from the sale of the key are still helping to fund its education programme. Sailors’ Society CEO Stuart Rivers said: “We’re very glad that more than a century on we are able to make so much good come out of something from such a tragic event. “The money we raised from the sale has been changing the lives of students around the world by giving them the opportunity of an education.” The key never made the Titanic’s fateful maiden voyage from Southampton to New York 12
THE MONEY RAISED FROM THE SALE HAS BEEN CHANGING THE LIVES OF STUDENTS
The Titanic key which sold for £90,000
in April 1912 because it was inside the pocket of second officer David Blair. Blair was due to sail with the ship, but was replaced last minute. He crucially forgot to hand over the key when he disembarked. In a postcard to his sister-in-law, Blair wrote of his disappointment: “I shall have to step out to make room for (the) chief officer of the Olympic.
EDUCATION
Commander David Blair (left) packing scientific instruments for an expedition to the South Pacific
Mayce Gel, recipient of a Sailors’ Society education grant
Charley Jess
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I feel very disappointed I am not to make her first voyage.” Blair kept the key, passing it onto his daughter Nancy who in turn donated it to Sailors’ Society in the 1980s. The charity’s education programme offers grants and bursaries to help aspiring seafarers achieve careers at sea, and to help those from seafaring families who are unable to afford an education. Since 2011, more than 100 people have benefited from scholarships and nautical grants awarded by Sailors’ Society. Current grant recipients include 19-yearold Filipino Mayce Gel, whose father Ronel was on board a vessel that was hijacked by pirates. He was left traumatised and unable to return to sea, so he could not afford to send Mayce to school. Sailors’ Society intervened with a grant that is now enabling her to go to university. Mayce said: “It’s like it built my dreams again because I really wanted to finish school.” British seafarer Charley Jess is also benefiting from a scholarship at Warsash Maritime Academy. Currently at sea, Charley’s training includes tanker firefighting, safety training and tuition – all of which have been funded by Sailors’ Society. Education has been a priority for Sailors’ Society throughout its 200-year history. In fact, one of the crew who died on the night the Titanic sank, Scarborough-born James Paul Moody, was a former pupil of the King Edward VII Nautical School for ‘hardy and heroic sons of the sea’ – Titanic’s sixth officer a school founded by the James Paul Moody charity.
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QUESTION TIME
Welcome to the latest instalment of our series where ANDY BANNISTER tackles common questions or objections to the Christian faith. If you’ve a question or challenge about Christianity you’d like Andy to consider tackling in a future issue, send it to editor@inspiremagazine.org.uk. SCARCELY a month goes by without the media running a story that the Church in the UK is dying. For example, The Telegraph recently reported that “more than half of the population has no faith and the share of the population who say they are Church of England Christians has fallen to just 15% – the lowest ever recorded.”1 So is Christianity in a death spiral and can secularists look forward to a godless Utopia? Well, as ever, things aren’t that straightforward. When I moved back to the UK from Canada a year ago, I quickly noticed that in the six years I’d been away, lots of green
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shoots of church growth had popped up. I kept meeting church leaders whose churches were growing – and in unusual places: inner city Liverpool, the stockbroker belt just outside the M25, or among Iranian immigrants. These are often the kind of places that are missed by surveys that focus just on the Church of England. I’m not alone in noticing this: a friend of mine, Sean OliverDee, wrote a whole book about this. Called God’s Unwelcome Recovery, it tells the story not just of how God is at work in all kinds of places, but why the media isn’t interested in reporting this. Sometimes I wonder if Christians need a wakeup call too – it’s sometimes easier to sit around in small huddles, telling ourselves horror stories of how bad things are, rather than getting out there and doing something – sharing Christ and serving our communities. When Christians do that, God seems to have a habit of showing up. God is at work around the world (approaching 150 million in China, and 400 million in Africa, projected to rise to 633 million by 2025) – and that global growth is blessing the Western world, too, as many immigrants to countries like the UK bring a vibrant Christian faith with them. Many of the largest churches in cities like
QUESTION TIME
Dr Andy Bannister is the Director of the Solas Centre for Public Christianity and an Adjunct Speaker with Ravi Zacharias International Ministries. His bestselling book, The Atheist Who Didn’t Exist (or: The Dreadful Consequences of Bad Arguments) is available from all good book stores. Also check out the popular Solas video series, SHORT/ANSWERS, at http://www.solas-cpc.org/shortanswers/ as well as Solas Magazine (http://www.solasmagazine.com).
London are now immigrant churches – and there’s a beautiful sign of God’s long-term provision in the way that those immigrant churches are now helping to re-evangelise the nation that evangelised them through the missionary movements of the 19th and 20th centuries. But that global growth of the Church also reminds me of something else. In his book, Whose Religion is Christianity?, African theologian Lamin Sanneh points out that Christianity is the only major religion whose cultural centre keeps shifting. Islam, for example, began and has remained an Arabic religion – Muslims read the Qur’an in Arabic, and pray in Arabic facing Mecca in Saudi Arabia. Or consider Buddhism – despite many postmodern Westerners trying out Buddhism-lite, true Buddhism has remained an Asian faith. Atheism, which functions for many as a faux religion, is largely a Western construction and has remained so. But Christianity, by contrast, looks very different. It began in the Middle East and rapidly spread outwards across the Roman Empire. So rapidly, in fact, that within 300 years, it had gone from a small persecuted sect to the religion of over 50% of people in the Roman Empire. It spread eastwards into India (where the Mar Thoma Christians of Kerala trace their heritage
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back to St Thomas), along North Africa, and upwards into Europe. With the Pilgrim Fathers it travelled across the Atlantic and became an American faith but now is growing so rapidly in China, Africa and South America, that the centre of 21st century Christianity is the southern hemisphere. You can’t pin the Gospel down to a culture. At the same time, however, Christianity is the only religion that takes culture seriously. Atheism doesn’t know what to do with culture – because ultimately the only thing that matters is survival and reproduction. Religions like Islam are monocultures, imposing an Arabic culture wherever it has conquered. But Christianity? Read Revelation 7:9–11 and you can’t help but get excited about that great multitude in heaven, praising God in every language and from every culture. Every culture has something worth celebrating and God loves culture because God invented it. But every culture also needs redeeming, because every culture is fallen. And that’s why in Christianity, God showed how much he loved us by stepping into culture, in the person of Jesus, that through his atoning death and resurrection power, every tribe and tongue – from Afghanistan to Britain, from Yemen to Zimbabwe might come to know him. 1 ‘Britain has more non-believers than ever before’, The Telegraph, 4 September 2017
FURTHER READING If you’d like to explore this question more deeply, check out Whose Religion is Christianity?: The Gospel Beyond the West by Lamin Sanneh or God’s Unwelcome Recovery by Sean Oliver-Dee.
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OUTREACH
CARING FOR REFUGEES
How the Welcome Boxes initiative is helping churches across the UK to build lasting friendships with refugees. SHARON BARNARD reports FOR refugee families moving into our towns and cities, the arrival of a brightly wrapped Welcome Box delivered by a volunteer lets them know that people in the community really care. It’s also a starting point for what is hoped will become a lasting friendship. “Welcome Boxes give the local church a great resource to practically respond, to get to know some of the refugees and to let them know that they are welcome here,” says Emily Holden from the project’s National Development Team. “It’s what Jesus tells us to do. “One Neighbour (refugee) told us: ‘The Welcome Box has made me so happy because it has shown me that people care – before receiving one, I didn’t know that. It has been so important to me to have someone listen to my problems and offer to help.’” Welcome Boxes began as a local church initiative in Derby in 2002, set up by its CEO, Karina Martin. Since then it has grown substantially, both in Derby and across the UK. Each Welcome Box is filled with things like toiletries, toys, cleaning products and decorative items for the home. “It doesn’t really matter what goes in the box,” 16
explains Emily, “it’s the welcome and friendship that come with it that mean the most.” And it’s not just the Neighbours who are benefiting. “Welcomers often tell us how volunteering has transformed their perceptions of refugees. Welcome Boxes have also transformed the local church in Derby, making it more multicultural and reflecting God’s kingdom. “Other organisations in the city have also come to rely on the services that Welcome Boxes provides, giving the church a powerful voice for change and for justice. “We are a new national project – we started training other churches in October 2015 with the help of Cinnamon Network and we are growing very quickly. “Our vision is to inspire and equip the Church to demonstrate God’s love for refugees and asylum seekers through the building of Welcoming Communities. This means that Welcome Boxes is only the start of the potential that there is for the UK Church!” Follow them on Facebook and Twitter @WelcomeBoxesUK www.welcomeboxes.org
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The Perfume of Love
www.chosen.co.uk
We Love Inspire I enjoy reading your publication and giving it to others. God bless you all and may He continue to use INSPIRE. Nancy Gemmell, Paisley
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The New Fragrance for Women by CHOSEN PARFUMS
A big thank you to you and your team for INSPIRE, I look forward to receiving each edition and I am never disappointed by the content, always interesting and encouraging, and in a very accessible style. Russell Elson (via email)
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" It's Time You Left The Shore " will take you less than one hour to read but could spare you from wasting the only life you have. Each chapter will stir you to move out with your gifts and talents into the deep end of world mission. You won't think of ever going back to the shore !
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2017 READER APPEAL
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… then please read on. If you DO donate to INSPIRE, and have given to our 2017 Appeal, please turn the page!
As you can imagine, producing, printing and sending 50,000 copies of INSPIRE across the UK is an expensive business. We look to meet our costs by a combination of partner organisations, advertising – and gifts from people like you, who enjoy reading our encouraging stories of God at work. Giving is a genuine blessing, both to us and to you! So we’d love you to join us in the work of telling the great stories of God in action, changing individuals, churches and communities. Please give what you can. £35 will provide a church with 20 copies of each INSPIRE edition for a year £50 will give a prison chaplain 30 copies of each INSPIRE edition to distribute £100 could help us increase the number of issues we produce and quantity of inspirational stories we can share, over the next year or two We are hugely grateful for your prayers, your gifts and your support. You’re an inspiration to us – THANK YOU! Russ Bravo, Editor editor@inspiremagazine.org.uk 18
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INSPIRE
MIDDLE EAST OUTREACH
GIVING HOPE TO A LOST GENERATION Out of school, displaced and traumatised… Children in the Middle East need our support. IMAGINE, for a moment, you’re aged seven again. Life is simple; you go to school, you play with friends. But then conflict comes to your country and fighting erupts in your town. You flee with your family and a few belongings to a refugee camp. You’re safe … but there’s nothing to do. No friends, no school. No hope. Children in the Middle East are fast becoming the world’s lost generation. A child who’s seen too much violence and who struggles to read and write will face tremendous challenges in the future. Unemployment, poverty and the pull towards substance abuse, crime and radicalisation are all waiting around the corner. The solution is sitting in a corner in almost
20
every home in the Middle East: the TV. There are even TVs in refugee camps, and most people in the region say it’s their primary, trusted source of information. Since September, the SAT-7 ACADEMY channel has been broadcasting quality educational programmes for children and parents around the clock. Programmes that teach children maths, English, Arabic and science. Shows that address mental health that go out, free, to families traumatised by war. Programmes available online so children and parents can watch on demand, again and again. “I follow your programme carefully. I was so weak at languages but because of you I am better. I even told my classmate and
neighbours about your programme.” – a young viewer of My School “My children are following the English lessons all the time. The manner and style of presenting is magnificent. Sandra and Fady are always writing down after the teacher.“ – a happy parent In its first year, this channel aims to reach 2.6 million children in one of the most troubled places on earth. That includes more than 350,000 refugees. CLOSER TO HOME Christians in the UK have always been at the forefront of offering support to refugees. Continued instability across the Middle East has seen thousands of men, women and children, crying out for peace and for a home as they’ve been displaced across Europe. As families have come to the UK, the Church’s tradition of working together to offer welcome and care has continued. “Keep on loving one another as brothers and sisters. Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.” Hebrews 13:1–2 (NIVUK) Bedtime for refugee children can be a particularly stressful time, when painful memories can return. SAT-7’s Bedtime Stories DVD and resource has been produced for you to give as a friendship gift to Arabicspeaking children and families. We pray that it will add value to the many ministries of friendship and support that are flourishing across the UK. By ordering your resource today, you can be part of what God is doing to bring hope and transformation to families across the Middle East and North Africa – and also to refugees in the UK.
MIDDLE EAST OUTREACH
INSPIRE
HOW YOU CAN HELP ORDER Your copy of SAT-7’S BEDTIME STORIES Refugee Resource: www.sat7uk.org/bedtimestories or call SAT-7 on 01249 765 865 GIVE www.sat7uk.org/education-donate £5 could provide educational TV programmes for a family for a year. “Refugees, like all people, are treasured human beings made in the image of God who deserve safety, freedom and the opportunity to flourish. Jesus commands us to care for the most vulnerable among us.” – Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury
MORE ABOUT SAT-7
Through the power of satellite television and digital media, SAT-7 brings messages of hope, love and peace directly into the lives of millions of people across the Middle East and North Africa, every day. SAT-7 is watched by more than 21 million people (IPSOS, 2016) SAT-7 pledges to be there to respond to the hundreds of people who contact them every day. SAT-7 broadcasts 24/7 in the region’s three main languages: Arabic, Turkish and Farsi across five channels
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INSPIRE
INTERNATIONAL MINISTRY
GETTING READY TO FLY It looked like an impossible dream for a young man fleeing catastrophic civil war. But now Dut Agwang will soon be helping other desperate people as a fully-fledged Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) pilot …
GOD REALLY CAN TURN IMPOSSIBLE DREAMS INTO REALITY DUT reflects on the Bible verse John 15:5: “I am the vine; you are the branches” as he unpacks the intertwining narratives of his story. A gentle strength radiates from this quietly spoken South Sudanese man in his early 30s. Pressing into God like this has brought fulfilment of a dream for Dut. In a country deeply divided by tribal and ethnic loyalties, he has learned to look to God alone for his purpose and strength. “I was on my way from Kenya to Sudan on a military truck and a dream came into my mind that I was flying an aircraft – a humanitarian aircraft dropping food items,” he says. 22
Like many dreams, it was rooted in Dut’s childhood, growing up in camps for refugees and internally displaced people, where the hum of an aeroplane overhead drew the children like magnets. “We would run to the airstrip to touch the aircraft and say ‘hi’ to the pilots. It was a great adventure.” The scene he describes is easy to picture – played out day in, day out at MAF airstrips across the world. Children, just like Dut, inspired by the roar and excitement of a little plane coming in to land. Growing up during the Sudanese civil war of the 1980s and 90s, there wasn’t much space for dreams. Dut knew extreme hardship and heartache as a fleeing refugee living in desperate conditions. His father, a soldier, died of disease and malnutrition before Dut finished primary school. His youngest brother died of disease when he was just four years old. He had lost so much. “So when the dream came into my mind I prayed immediately to the Lord and said: ‘Lord, may you please let this be a dream come true. And I’ll have to make sure that I live up to it’.”
Dut completed his secondary education in Kakuma refugee camp in northern Kenya. “The UN provided many reading materials and I worked hard and passed all my exams,” he explains. But with no money to attend university, he reluctantly started his journey back to Juba, South Sudan. It was then that Dut had his impossible dream, riding on the back of a truck. Arriving in Juba, he found a job next to an office where they were recruiting candidates for a government pilot training scheme. After several interviews, Dut was miraculously chosen and in 2008, his long journey as a pilot began. During his training in Johannesburg, South Africa, he met two pilots who were learning to fly a Cessna Grand Caravan – an aircraft perfectly designed to land in the remotest places amidst extreme weather conditions. These two men were pilots with Mission Aviation Fellowship, an organisation that quickly found a place in Dut’s heart. When the funding for the government training dried up, Dut was forced to return to South Sudan to look for a job. He heard about a vacancy at MAF, and successfully applied.
INTERNATIONAL MINISTRY
INSPIRE
“I began working with MAF first as a bookings clerk, then as part of the Dispatch Team and then as Ground Operations Co-ordinator.” Spotting his aptitude, Dut was encouraged to enrol as the first candidate in MAF’s new pilot internship scheme, which he will soon graduate from as a fully-fledged MAF pilot. “I love the purpose and mission of MAF – working for a Christian organisation geared towards serving the lives of desperate people in hard-to-reach destinations. “My life hasn’t been easy; right from the start it has been very hard. I’m thankful to God for taking me to where I am now. Each step is a progress in my life.” God really can turn impossible dreams into reality, using our ‘mustard seeds’ of faith. Dut’s story has inspired us at MAF to pray for funds for another Cessna Grand Caravan to fly help, hope and healing in South Sudan. It may be an impossible dream, but we believe that God wants to reach thousands more remote people with the vital cargo they need to survive. + To find out more about how you can help turn impossible dreams into reality, visit www.maf-uk.org/buyaplane
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23
INSPIRE
BOOKSHOPS
FIVE REASONS TO … VISIT A CHRISTIAN BOOKSHOP Over the last few years some of these specialist stores have branched out in new and exciting directions, says SHARON BARNARD. Here’s why you should pop in 1. It’s a light on the high street Whether the bookshop is tucked away, or out there among the betting shops and tattoo parlours, it will be a ‘shop window’ for the Christian faith – a beacon of hope in the community. How are you supporting it?
2. Knowledgeable staff will be pleased to help They know their Townend from their Tozer and will be able to advise individuals, church groups and schools on particular authors, CDs and titles
Discover testimonies, books about discipleship, Bibles, commentaries, magazines and music, or explore resources on a particular topic that concerns you.
4. Connect with others A number of Christian bookshops have become rather enterprising and now have craft shops, cafes and rooms for hire on their premises. Drop by for a coffee with a friend and get to meet people from local churches. Join a book
old and new.
club, take the kids to a story time, pop in with
What’s more, they can order in specialist
informal event about the Christian faith.
items, make recommendations for birthdays or baptisms, suggest resources to engage your
a prayer request, or invite a neighbour to an
5. Bag a bargain or two
rather lively youth group and what might suit you
Smaller bookshops can’t always compete with
when it comes to daily Bible reading notes. They
the online giants on prices, but you will be able
can also signpost you to further spiritual help if
to find special promotions, as well as deals on
you need it.
bulk orders. In some shops you might discover a
3. Find inspiration and encouragement Countless people have come to faith through
24
take the opportunity to have a good browse.
few shelves of ‘pre-loved’ books and CDs which you can pick up for next to nothing.
reading a Christian book. If you are exploring
+ Find your nearest Christian bookshop at
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ukchristianbookshops.directory
WORLD’S WETTEST SCHOOL RUN
Many thousands of miles away in the Philippines, children were swimming two kilometres just to get to school. Christian charity Sailors’ Society has been putting an end to the world’s wettest school run by providing boats, as well as educational resources and support to children in some of the world’s poorest communities. Download our World’s Wettest School Run resources for your Sunday School to help children find out more about how others live across the world.
www.sailors-society.org/schoolconnect Registered Company No: 86942, Charity No: 237778.
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25
12 great giveaways worth £160+ Every month in Inspire, we give you the opportunity to bag an inspiring book, CD, DVD, tickets – anything we can lay our hands on to give away. Just fill in the form and tick your preference. You never know, you could be a winner! Prayers To See You Through Each Day Prayers To See You Through Each Day (Watkins Books £9.99) is a special selection of 40 prayers from BBC Radio 4’s Prayer For The Day, collected and grouped under four headings: The Day’s Adventure, Let Nothing Disturb You, A World of Wonder, and Striving for God. The breadth of contributors spans many Christian traditions, and there are also Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist and Jewish contributors. 5 copies
Train set Train sets are still a fun present for small children, especially at Christmas, and we’ve got a lovely Figure 8 Train Set from Hape (£21.95) plus some great matching accessories to give away: Extended Double Suspension Bridge Set (£17.95), Big Engine Shed (£12.95) and an Automatic Train Bell Signal (£6.95). All are sturdily made from smoothed wood and plastic, compliant with international safety and quality standards and suitable for children aged 3+. 1 x set
Gingerbread Chai Gift Set Steenbergs Tea Gift Range includes this Gingerbread Chai Gift Set (£15) that includes a tea caddy of loose leaf organic gingerbread chai tea combined with Steenbergs china mug and a great little stainless steel tea ball. Steenbergs Organic Gingerbread Chai Tea works well with or without milk and with or without sugar or honey to taste. Organic Gingerbread Chai Tea is a great winter warmer to banish the winter blues, and a great present for anyone who likes organic chai tea. 1 x Gift Set
Tidings of Comfort and Joy Much-loved TV presenter and author Pam Rhodes has a seasonal book out in paperback: Tidings of Comfort and Joy: A Christmas Feast of Faith & Fun (Hodder & Stoughton £9.99). It’s packed with everything from wonder to whimsy – Advent wreaths, nativity plays, carol singing and ding-dong bells, nestling alongside family traditions, memories, stories and more. An inviting book to dip into or give as a gift. 5 copies
Title............................ Name........................................................................................... Address............................................................................................................................. ...................................................................... Postcode................................................... Tel .................................................................. E-mail....................................................... Who do you receive Inspire from?........................................................................................ My church is ...................................................................................................................... My choice:
Prayers To See You Through Each Day n n Tidings of Comfort and Joy
n Gingerbread Chai Gift Set n Figure 8 Train Set
Please return this form to: Inspire Giveaways, CPO, Garcia Estate, Canterbury Road, Worthing, West Sussex BN13 1BW Closing date: 27 November 2017. The editor’s decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into. n P lease tick if you would like to receive occasional updates from Inspire and information relating to products
and services from the publisher, CPO. It is our policy to ensure your details will not be disclosed to third parties.
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We Love Inspire I just wanted to thank you for the prize I received this week from the recent giveaway. Such a surprise and a blessing! I certainly enjoy reading the issues of Inspire when I can, so thank you for all you do. Liz Edmunds (via email)
INSPIRE
Distributing Inspire over a difficult last couple of years has helped us maintain links not only with people who used to come to church regularly but with friends in our wider community, which is made up of five small villages. May God bless and guide all who prepare Inspire. C J Bryant, Worthington Methodist Church, Nottingham and Derby District
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INSPIRE
CLASSIFIED
HOLIDAYS
28
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MAJORCA Our beautiful and well-equipped apartment has lovely views and can sleep from two to six people in two double bedrooms. We’re in a quiet area but near to the seafront and amenities. From £120 p/w. Tel: 01274 678889 E-mail: carol@ckendall.co.uk
FAIRHAVEN CHRISTIAN HOTEL (LLANDUDNO) Celebrate Jesus’s birthday with us from 23rd–27th December 2017 FUN, FOOD & FELLOWSHIP Our theme is to keep Christ in Christmas For tariff and full details please telephone 01492 878447
WHITBY “B & Beside the Seaside” B & B faces the sandy beach. Panoramic sea views. Enjoy our peaceful location, good food, free parking, Wi-Fi and many extras. Request brochure. £30 pppn Tel: 01947 603955/07518 658346 email: info@bandbesidetheseaside.co.uk
Nr. PADSTOW CORNWALL Chalet (sleeps 6). Secluded. Countryside & distant sea views. Area of outstanding natural beauty. Sandy beaches less than 2 miles. Close to Eden Project, Port Isaac, Newquay. £150 – £400 weekly (including heating) Missionary discounts Tel: 01202 253879/382598 E: paulandruthbromley@gmail.com www.atlanticbaysholidaypark.co.uk
ALGARVE, PORTUGAL Luxury 3 bed villa (all en-suite) sleeps 6/8. Pestana Golf Resort, Carvoeiro, own pool, BBQ and large garden. Free Wi-Fi. Faro Airport 45 minutes. Details & brochure: Brian Chambers. Now on Trip Advisor Email: brialdon50@g.mail.com www.casa-oleander.co.uk Tel: 02380 265683
LANCASHIRE Relax in a picturesque lakeside/ woodlands setting in the Lancashire countryside in one of four selfcatering cottages from a recent barn conversion. Write or phone for a Lakewood Cottages brochure to: Alec & Christine Sayer, Cragg Hall Farm, Galgate, Lancaster, LA2 0HN Tel: 01524 751053 www.lakewoodcottages.co.uk
KELSO, SCOTTISH BORDERS Tiore (This Is Our Rainbow’s End). Stay in our lovely two bedroom, self-catering cottage, which offers a peaceful retreat or welcome base to explore the area. Tel: 01573 450262 E-mail: peterandchristine@tiore.co.uk www.tiore.co.uk
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INSPIRE
A great big ‘THANK YOU’ for this cracking little magazine. It does exactly what it says on the front cover – and more. Inspiring, heartwarming, challenging and fun. We look forward to each edition. Sandra Timms, West Wellow Methodist Church, Hants They love Inspire. And so will you. Published by CPO, and funded by partners, advertising and donations, it’s been our vision from day one to produce a magazine that is good news, telling the stories you don’t always hear of changed people, churches, and communities. Find lots more stories and content on www.inspiremagazine.org.uk.
Actress required To extend the tour of our successful production The Hiding Place: The Corrie ten Boom Story, we are looking for a female actress to join our cast -
*We do encourage churches to consider an annual donation towards our postage costs. You can have a personal copy of Inspire sent direct to your door each issue by completing the form below – or order bulk copies for your church
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n Please tick if you would like to receive occasional updates from Inspire
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INSPIRE
GET YOUR FREE GUIDE LEARN HOW TO SHARE THE GOSPEL WITH THE LOST, LONELY AND FORGOTTEN For over 180 years, we’ve been sharing the gospel of Jesus with the people of London. Now we want to share our experience with you and your church.
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