Nov. 4, 2019: Prayer for persecuted Christians; Ex-LGBT at US Capitol; The Bible Project reaches millions
Daily Radio Script - Monday, Nov. 4, 2019
Here are the latest headlines, brought to you by The Christian Post.
International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church held Sunday
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Groups and churches across the world participated Sunday in the annual International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church, overseen by the World Evangelical Alliance.
This year’s theme was “Persecuted but not abandoned.”
Godfrey Yogarajah, executive director of the WEA Religious Liberty Commission, said that over time “IDOP has served as a platform to highlight the stories of persecuted Christians and mobilise the global Church to respond to their plight.”
“Moreover, in so doing, the IDOP has also been a source of solidarity and encouragement to persecuted Christians by reminding them that they are part of a larger, global family of believers.
“Let’s pray that in spite of the pressure and persecution, our suffering brothers and sisters — where ever they may be in the world — would stand firm in their faith, hold fast to the promises of God, and live victoriously in Christ.”
According to Open Doors USA, a Christian persecution watchdog group helping to promote the IDOP, research indicates over 245 million Christians are persecuted for their faith worldwide.
Churches pray for civility in presidential election
A theologically diverse group of Christians will come together to pray for political civility as the United States is a year away from the next presidential election.
Known as “Golden Rule 2020: A Call for Dignity and Respect in Politics,” the prayer campaign began on Sunday, as it marks exactly one year before the election.
Golden Rule 2020 was part of the Revive Civility project, which is overseen by the University of Arizona’s National Institute for Civil Discourse.
Former LGBT-identified men, women and Pulse survivors share stories of transformation at US capitol
Men and women who once identified as LGBT shared their personal stories of transformation with lawmakers Wednesday after the House passed a bill earlier this year that would bar citizens from accessing counseling and therapies for unwanted same-sex attraction.
Dressed in black T-shirts emblazoned with the word "CHANGED," 16 formerly LGBT-identified persons from Church United and the CHANGED movement spoke at a joint news conference outside the U.S. capitol where they shared their stories with members of Congress and their staff, and urged senators not to support the so-called Equality Act if it's ever brought to the floor for a vote.
"There are bills behind us that are going to take away our rights," said Jim Domen from Church United.
"My two daughters and son don't think I'm a fraud, they know that I'm real. We exist. We are people who have changed."
"... I want to very clear about something, all of us here, we love, we absolutely love the LGBTQ community. We understand you. We know what it's like. We've lived there, we've walked it. We've been from gay bars and back. We know the journey. We know the pain."
Dolly Parton prayed over new Netflix series
Country music star Dolly Parton opened up about how her faith impacts every project she tackles, including executive-producing her forthcoming Netflix series, “Dolly Parton’s Heartstrings.”
“I just try to use the talent that God gave me,” Parton said. “So when I write songs, and with anything I do, I always pray about it and hope I do the right thing. I ask for forgiveness if I didn't do the right thing. I really love the fact that I've had a chance to do these songs and see them come to life, and to just be able to stand here and do it. So I thank God for all of it.”
“Dolly Parton’s Heartstrings” launches Nov. 22. It will tell the stories behind eight of her hit songs, including “Jolene,” “Two Doors Down,” “Sugar Hill” and more, each with a different theme and cast for each episode.
The Bible Project videos reaching millions with help of YouTube and crowdfunding
An animated video outreach called The Bible Project has been successfully reaching millions of people with the Gospel of Jesus Christ through the support of crowdfunding and its promotion on YouTube.
"We want people to experience the Bible as the unified story that leads to Jesus, a big meta-narrative that leads to Jesus,” Mike McDonald, director of Strategic Relationships of The Bible Project, told The Christian Post.
“Why that's even a thing for us, is that our founders, and people like myself, and many others often just find it difficult to read the Bible. It's a massive book [with] many different authors, many different times in history, different literary styles. It's such a complex group of books that it becomes very difficult on how to even approach it."
Since its inception, The Bible Project has produced over 130 videos and 200 podcasts, accumulating 125 million views across all media channels in over 200 countries.
To read more stories from a Christian perspective, visit christianpost.com.
