A miracle that has changed lives
Pastor Christopher Green stayed in a Dallas hotel as he was preaching there the next morning. As he came out of his room he saw a housekeeper and asked her what she would like God to do for her, as he was headed to church and would pray for whatever she needed. Without hesitation, she showed him a massive growth on her neck saying, ‘They’re not sure if it’s cancer. They’re doing a biopsy on it. Can you ask God to heal this growth?’ He said, ‘I felt the urge to pray for her immediately. I put my hand under her chin and said, “Such as I have, give her thee. In the name of Jesus, be whole right now.”’ As he said those words the growth shrivelled up under his hand. She opened her eyes, and said, ‘It’s gone, it’s gone! It’s gone!’ That moment changed Pastor Chris’ life, too. He realised that indeed, there is power in the name of Jesus!
Vietnam: human rights defender released
Human rights defender Nguyen Bac Truyen and his wife Bui Kim Phuong arrived in Germany on the evening of 8 September after he was released from Gia Trung prison in Vietnam. Truyen, a Hoa Hao Buddhist and legal expert who provided pro bono legal assistance to families of political prisoners, victims of land grabs, and persecuted religious communities, was abducted by Vietnamese police in Ho Chi Minh City in July 2017. He was held in incommunicado arbitrary detention for nine months, and in April 2018 he was sentenced to eleven years in prison on charges of ‘carrying out activities aimed at overthrowing the government’. Serious concerns were raised for his safety and wellbeing on many occasions during his imprisonment, including in May 2019 when he went on hunger strike along with three other prisoners of conscience in protest of the grievous ill-treatment of a fellow prisoner. Five other activists were sentenced at the same time as Truyen: two of them were released into exile in June 2018, but the other three are still in prison.
Sexual misconduct during surgery
The British Journal of Surgery (BJS) reported outcomes from a survey regarding experiences of sexual misconduct during surgery carried out by colleagues over the past 5 years in the UK. The authors reported misconduct ranging from sexual harassment to assault and rape which had occurred among colleagues in the surgical workforce. Female surgeons more commonly both witness and are targets of such acts. Moreover, there were indications that among female respondents, trust in various accountable organisations to handle sexual misconduct is low. Needless to say, these results are both distressing and very disappointing. Surgery remains a male-dominated and highly hierarchical speciality where harassment and bullying are prevalent. The most common scenario is when a junior female trainee is abused by a senior male perpetrator. The junior doesn’t report anything as the offender is often their supervisor and their future and career may suffer if they speak up. They also lack confidence that the NHS will take action.
New beginnings - seeds of prayer
September is when autumn begins, the academic year commences, parliament returns from recess, and farmers prepare for October’s new farming year. By the end of September many animals will start preparing for their winter sleep. In rural life, in church, nation, and perhaps in our lives, we see much coming to an end and new changes and challenges beginning. Pray for those starting at school, college and university, for our government and the new parliamentary session (1 Timothy 2: 1-4), and for farmers. Pray for the Lord to open our eyes to look beyond the endings around us and see His new beginnings in our own lives, in rural life, in church and nation (Luke 24:31). Pray that He will show us when to let our own works, projects, programmes, organisations and institutions die so that He can do a 'new thing' (Isaiah 43:19; Philippians 3:12-14).
