Free Republic

In the bustling capital of India's movie industry—known as Bollywood—the showing of a simple film still attracts many people. Those living in slums often have great interest in seeing a movie about Jesus' life. Gospel for Asia-supported missionary Sahil and his team showed the film in one slum and witnessed miraculous fruit. As Sahil and the other missionaries prepared to screen the movie, anticipation rose when many people gathered to watch. As the people watched, the events of the film mesmerized them. The crucifixion scene moved them to tears. Through seeing the film, the audience came to learn about Jesus'...

At one point, Pittsburgh Steelers punter Daniel Sepulveda felt anger towards God thinking that his football dream may not come true after years of sleeping under an NFL banner over his bed. The NFL star recalls in “I Am Second” his younger years as a kid when he felt “God gave me passion for sports, and He made me good at it. I enjoyed being that kid who was the best at everything growing up.” “I thought it was me that was so fast. I thought it was me that was so coordinated. I thought that was about me …...

ATLANTA – Bestselling author and pastor Francis Chan shared details of his time in Asia on Sunday to 22,000 students at the Passion conference. He talked about persecuted Christians he met in India and China who think it is normal for Christians to suffer for Christ, and orphans in Thailand who sing praise songs with so much joy that it left his whole family in tears. “I heard these stories all my life and I got to meet some of these people. I just wanted to see if this is for real,” said Chan about his shocking decision to leave...

Gospel for Asia-supported missionary Mandal Bhaskar has been accused of stealing a motorcycle by a group of anti-Christian extremists in his village. Mandal is the pastor of a rapidly growing church with about 100 people attending worship services. Daniek Rahi, a member of the church, died on December 15. The next day, pastor Mandal led Daniek's funeral service. After the service, Daniek's family observed a local custom by washing his body in a nearby river. The extremists, who openly oppose Mandal's ministry, used this opportunity to stage a false theft. One of them rode to the ceremony on a motorcycle...

Persecution comes as no surprise for Christians living in two separate Indian states. These believers faced hostility for their faith and for their desire to build a place where they can worship the true God. Conflict Arises Over Public Displays of Faith In a village in northern India, 34 people publicly testified of their desire to follow Jesus Christ, and 30 more await their turn. But this act of faith caused trouble for Gospel for Asia-supported missionary Khamal. A drunk man lodged a complaint against the pastor. The police inquired of Khamal and a few of the individuals who chose...

1. The pay is great…when you get to heaven. 2. You can defend watching movies as ministry (“I’m picking scenes for my talk on Sunday!”) 3. The spectacular view from your office window. Alleys can be interesting! 4. Ticking off charter members…in the name of Jesus. 5. Knowing when your talks are getting boring by the number of teens texting. 6. If your pay gets cut in half you still don’t have to move down a tax bracket. 7. What other job description has eating pizza and playing dodgeball listed as “necessary skills”? 8. God loves to use the unlikely...

How do you explain Christmas to someone who has never celebrated the holiday? Gospel for Asia-supported missionaries and staff start by sharing the story of Christ. Each year during the weeks leading up to Christmas, missionaries, Bridge of Hope workers and office staff fan out and share the Good News about the Savior who was born in a stable. Each group of GFA workers creates their own program and chooses their own venue for sharing the Christmas story. Singing and Praying In one area, staff and missionaries visited a hospital and sang Christmas carols for the patients, doctors and nurses....

Tim Tebow, the evangelical darling who uses football as a platform for ministry, has found a way around the NFL rule that bans writing on the eye black. He was seen Sunday during the game between his Denver Broncos and the Houston Texans with a Bible verse written on his wrist band, usually used to store game plays. The verse appears to be Luke 2: 10-11, which says: “But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a...

Pradyun Chakraborty reclaimed his torn fishing net from the river. He and his wife counted the fish they caught—only 20 small Bagdha Ponnas, enough to get him 20 rupees (40 cents US). The net alone cost him 200 rupees ($5 US) to rent, half of which he still owed to his creditor. With fish escaping from his torn net and hardly any other work, Pradyun and his family were just barely surviving. It was the same for Jalal Balan. He bought his fishing net on credit for 1,000 rupees ($22 US) and was slowly paying it off. The majority of...

OAKLAND, Calif. (BP)--Denver Broncos rookie quarterback Tim Tebow, one of the most visible Christians in college football history, threw for one touchdown and rushed for another in the first start of his NFL career Dec. 19, but it wasn't enough to overcome the Oakland Raiders. Tebow completed 8 of 16 passes for 138 yards and added 78 yards rushing on eight carries in a 39-23 loss at Oakland. Both touchdowns came in the first quarter, the first on a 40-yard quarterback draw and the second when he connected on a 33-yard-pass to Brandon Lloyd. Tebow didn't throw an interception. "You're...

THAILAND (BP)--I'm surrounded by thousands of suspended paper lanterns that look like glowing jellyfish in a black ocean. I reach out and touch one. It bounces off me, awaiting its ascent heavenward. Fireworks explode overhead. Green, red and blue sparklers provide a magical backdrop as the golden dots begin to float into the distance. It's easy to get swept up in the magic and beauty of the moment, forgetting the real meaning -- releasing one's sin -- behind this northern Thai festival called Yi Peng. This is my first Buddhist ceremony, even though I've traveled around the world writing stories...

There are approximately 1.7 million children with a parent in prison, and through the Angel Tree program some of those children can receive a Christmas present from their parent behind a prison cell. Angel Tree is a charity that's under the Prison Fellowship ministry. Their main focus is to reconnect parents in prison with their children through the delivery of a Christmas gift. Through the program, incarcerated parents can apply for help by sending a gift to their children. The request goes to different partner churches across the nation where church members sponsor a child by purchasing gifts. Finally, the...

PASADENA—Most churches would be happy to say they baptized 100 people during a year. But First Baptist Church in Pasadena expects to baptize 100 more than last year. Baptisms numbered 159 in 2008, and the church baptized 169 last year. This year, through October, 245 had stirred the baptismal waters. “It’s not like we’re doing anything unique. God is just blessing in a faithful way,” Pastor Charles Redmond said. Redmond does not attach a cause/effect relationship to a visit he made to the Billy Graham Retreat Center in North Carolina earlier this year. But he noticed a upward trend in...

A San Diego megachurch known for its service to the community will give out 10,000 toys and 60,000 pounds of food to “unfortunate” families in the area this Saturday. The annual early Christmas event, Toys for Joy, is in its 14th year and expects to draw about 16,000 children and adults. In previous years, people have waited in line as early as 2 a.m. or endured rain and wind to ensure that their children will have presents for Christmas. Nearly 17 percent of San Diego County’s children are living in poverty, according to KidsData.org. “People in the community that we...

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (BP)--A nearby explosion sent missionaries ducking for cover at a Thanksgiving celebration in Rio de Janeiro on Nov. 25. Unharmed, the International Mission Board families watched as a dark plume of smoke rose 50 feet into the air from a bus burning on the next street. A young man had thrown a homemade explosive device onto the bus before speeding away on a motorcycle. Ironically, the explosion interrupted IMB missionary Eric Reese as he was urging fellow missionaries to take added safety precautions amid escalating violence in the city. "It was an intense moment," said Reese,...

Nalika Kadam could see the fear in the face of the woman who was washing her dishes at the well. As she walked closer, the lady suddenly hurried to finish before Nalika could reach her. She quickly gathered her things and began to hasten away when Nalika called after her. "Why are you running away from me?" Nalika asked the lady. But Nalika already knew the answer. Almost a year ago, Nalika's erratic behavior scared the entire village. Without warning, Nalika became possessed by an evil spirit—causing her to act like a lunatic. She bit people. She hurled stones and...

The world’s largest Bible translation organization has already raised nearly $250 million, or one-fourth of its $1 billion goal, for the campaign to translate the Bible into every language by 2025. Even in the current economic tough times, supporters donated generously and helped the campaign make significant progress within two years, said Wycliffe’s president. The ten-year Last Languages Campaign has the ambitious goal of beginning Bible translation for all languages that still need the scriptures by 2025. “To raise nearly a quarter of a billion dollars in two years is impressive even in a booming economy. In the current climate,...

SAN DIEGO — Evangelical pastors along the U.S.-Mexico border are increasingly building their Latino church services. They're focusing on youth ministry, women in the church and popular culture, and rapidly reinventing a traditionally Catholic community. It's 7 pm on a Wednesday night, and a nondescript white building in National City is alive with colorful strobe lights, people rushing in, and catchy live music. The churchgoers call this WOW, or Weekend On Wednesday prayer, an alternative to the Sunday morning mass. Twenty-nine-year-old Alicia is one of the greeters outside. She's been with Victory Outreach for four years, and she says it...

When Deepan Gupta made a challenge to Gospel for Asia-supported missionary Ganesh Sarin, he didn't know God would use this dare to completely transform his life. Deepan was a priest for his traditional religion. Ganesh lived in the same area, but he served Jesus Christ, helping people learn about the Lord and shepherding a growing flock of over 110 people. One day, Ganesh shared the Gospel with Deepan. "If your God is so great, then pray for the healing of my wife, and then I will believe," Deepan told him. Deepan explained that for the last six years, his wife,...

DALLAS—Texas Baptists have the opportunity to change lives and—in the process—help shape the direction of a nation. Texas Baptists have partnered with Siloe Baptist School in Grande-Guave, Haiti, spearheading an appeal for individuals and groups to send impoverished children to a Christian school for $15 a month. The funds pay for a student’s books, tuition, uniform, backpack and supplies. As it does around the globe, education changes lives, said Bill Arnold, who leads Baptist General Convention of Texas disaster response efforts. Schooling opens numerous doors for people to pull themselves out of the poverty that dominates the nation. In essence,...