The Africa Day of Prayer is expected to draw 15 million to 30 million participants from all 58 African nations and islands
On May 2 Africa was to witness what may be the greatest act of united prayer by Christians in the history of the continent.

An estimated 15 million to 30 million Africans from all 53 countries in Africa and five islands were expected to gather for united prayer in hundreds of stadiums throughout the continent.

For years churches across the continent had been praying that God would break the cycles of poverty and oppression that marked many African nations. But in 1998, the story of what God had done in Cali, Columbia, documented in the Transformations video produced by George Otis Jr. of The Sentinel Group, spread like wildfire among churches in Cape Town, South Africa. Church leaders across denominations began to gather for prayer.

Then in July 2000, Graham Power, a successful businessman in Cape Town, was awakened one day at 4 a.m. He said God gave him a vision in three stages. First, he was instructed to rent the 45,000-seat Newlands rugby stadium in Cape Town for a day of repentance and prayer for that city. In the second part of the vision, he saw the prayer movement spreading to the rest of South Africa for a national day of prayer, and in the final part of the vision he saw the effort cover the rest of the continent.

On March 21, 2001, the first step came to pass. A capacity crowd gathered in Newlands stadium for prayer and repentance. Soon after that a notorious gangster in the city was saved.

News of the first gathering spread quickly, and in 2002 eight cities in South Africa hosted the day of prayer. Leading up to the event young people from all over the country took part in a “Walk of Hope” from Bloemfontein to the eight stadiums where prayer meetings were to be held that year, visiting schools and community centers along the way. The events also were broadcast on television.

Power said he received another vision in February 2002, in which he saw the prayer event in 2003 spreading as far as the widest point in Africa, covering sub-Saharan Africa. The Day of Prayer for Africa last year did exactly that. Not only did 77 cities and towns in South Africa host interdenominational prayer events, but 60 other cities and towns in 27 countries in sub-Saharan Africa also took part. The event was broadcast by satellite television all over the continent.

Power said in the vision he had in 2003 he also saw that in 2004 prayer would cover the entire continent. “This past Saturday we had confirmation that the last two outstanding countries in Africa would come on board,” Power told Charisma in March. “We now have 58 of 58 African countries and islands participating in this year’s event. [Harvest Evangelism head] Ed Silvoso said to me this past weekend, ‘You know Graham, this may be the biggest prayer movement the world has ever seen.'”

Transformation Africa, one of several teams that coordinates the prayer day, has collected numerous testimonies of how the prayer days have changed lives and communities. In the rural conservative town of Piet Retief in South Africa, a community once deeply divided along racial lines has come together.

Anneke Rabe, an intercessor in the town, said that on the lead up to the 2003 prayer day, church leaders from the white community decided it was time to repent and ask for forgiveness for apartheid.

As they marched toward the black township Ethanda Kukhanya they found another crowd marching toward them led by several black church leaders. They met at the railway line that divided the two communities, and together the black and white believers marched to the stadium.

There the white church leaders knelt down and asked for forgiveness. The chairman of the black ministers’ fellowship Baba Dlamini said that day, “I did not think I would live to see this day.”

Africa is being changed one community at a time, Power said. “It has been amazing seeing these events unfold,” he told Charisma. “I’ve got to the point where I am really starting to believe that God is going to do what He says He will do.

“There have been three or four occasions over the last few years that God has had to pull me short when I have been worrying about whether plans are going to come together. God has said to me: ‘Hey, this is not your vision; it’s Mine. You just do the little things I’ve called you to do, and I will take care of the rest.'”
David Larsen in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa

The Liebmanns moved to Jerusalem in 1999 and opened their home to men who had been living on the streets
Gerald Liebmann fancies himself a doctor, his home a hospital and the hundreds of homeless men in Jerusalem his pool of potential patients. He says he earned his “M.D.” in the school of hard knocks, spending years of his life addicted to heroin and living on the streets.

“All I can offer them is what saved me,” Liebmann said. “This is our home. We’re the doctors; they’re the patients. The medicine is love and accountability. If they don’t want the medicine, we can’t help.”

Since 1999, when Liebmann, his wife, Tracy, and their two children, Gina, 17, and Michael, 14, moved to Jerusalem, the family has opened its home to more than 100 homeless men, who receive food and a place to sleep, and quickly become part of the family.

“It’s a 24/7 atmosphere,” Tracy Liebmann said. “It’s a home, not a shelter. Our kids have never been harmed.”

“Gina and Michael have never complained about moving here,” Gerald Liebmann added. “I’m not saying it’s good to go through such things as terrorist aggression. We’re not foolish, but it does show you how much trust in God my children have.

“I don’t deserve to have such a devoted family, willing to go all the way for God. I am really a blessed man.”

Liebmann didn’t always consider himself so blessed. He grew up in New York City, abused as a child and an alcoholic by the time he reached his teens. He later became addicted to heroin and spent most of his days begging on the streets.

He moved to California in the 1980s, then later to Hawaii. But the cycle was the same: living on and off the streets, making and losing money in legitimate and illegitimate jobs, and whirling in and out of secular rehabilitation centers.

Liebmann met Tracy in Hawaii in 1984 when she bought drugs from him. “We’d drink and fight all the time,” said Tracy Liebmann, who grew up in South Central Los Angeles with parents who were Jehovah’s Witnesses. “I never had a Christmas until I was saved in 1988.”

The two married in 1986 after they both entered a rehab center. They came out clean and six months later headed back to California. “By the time we landed, we were drunk on the champagne they served,” Gerald Liebmann remembers.

Soon he was back on the streets before being admitted to a psychiatric hospital, but he was homeless again upon his release. His wife was living house to house with relatives.

Finally, Gerald Liebmann joined the Victory Outreach Rehabilitation Center, a ministry of Victory Outreach International, which was founded by Sonny Arguinzoni and now has more than 500 churches across the United States.

“I met the Lord one week later,” Gerald Liebmann said. “Nicky Cruz was preaching at a Victory Outreach Conference. I knelt down with my whole body shaking. I knew I wouldn’t go back to the old life.”

That was Aug. 14, 1987. Tracy Liebmann accepted Christ the following year. “I never knew there was a whole world of Christianity where you could be happy,” she told Charisma. “I didn’t know love until I felt it at Victory Outreach.”

For seven years, the Liebmanns were mentored by Victory Outreach staff, then became mentors themselves. “If you’ve been a wounded soldier, you know what the wounds of another feel like,” Gerald Liebmann said.

The Liebmanns eventually planted a church in California. Describing himself as an Italian with a Jewish name–though he believes his aunt’s claim that he is Jewish–Gerald Liebmann later began attending Messianic Jewish events. “As I was praying, God said: ‘I want you to go to My people.’ It was like a light bulb. From then on, Israel was deep inside me.”

The Liebmanns moved to Jerusalem in 1999, hoping to see homeless men like Oleg Fiegleman touched by the same love that transformed them. A Russian immigrant and former music teacher, Fiegleman hoped to make a living in Israel but found himself drinking night and day. “I didn’t even know what country I was in,” he says today.

That was before he met the Liebmanns. Now the worship leader for the church that meets in the Liebmanns’ home, Fiegleman says: “I never heard please or thank you before. … I’m treated like a human being here. God has given me this chance.”
Arlene Bridges Samuels in Jerusalem

For more information about the Liebmanns’ work, visit .

Christians Massacred by Muslim Militants

Some 49 Christians were recently massacred by Islamic militants in a raid on the Christian town of Yelwa in Nigeria. According to the Barnabas Fund, ethnic Fulani Muslims reportedly shot most of the victims on Feb. 24 as they ran to a church desperately seeking refuge. Local Christians in Plateau State have suffered repeated attacks from ethnic Hausa-Fulani Muslim settlers since September 2001. Hundreds have been killed in the violence. Believers in Plateau say militant elements within the Muslim community are working on a strategy to drive out Christians in the state, Barnabas Fund said.

Christians Pressured to Give Up Faith in Eritrea

Police recently imprisoned a group of 51 Christians worshiping in secret in the Eritrean capital of Asmara. On Feb. 16, Mengse Tweldemedhane, pastor of the Hallelujah Church, was arrested along with his congregation in the Edaga Hamuse district, Compass Direct reported. The 34 men and 17 women were detained at a military camp until Feb. 18, when Tweldemedhane was separated from the group and locked in an underground cell. He remains under severe pressure to renounce his Protestant beliefs and return to the Eritrean Orthodox Church.

Christians Flee Villages After Mob Attack

Christian women in Orissa State, India, were attacked and humiliated recently by Hindus for refusing to give up their faith. On Feb. 6, Hindu extremists dragged eight women, including two 15-year-old girls, out of their homes while their husbands were at work and tried to persuade them to renounce Christianity, Compass Direct reported. When the women refused, the group beat the women, stripped them naked and forced them to walk through their villages before shaving their heads. The act of “tonsuring,” or shaving the crown of the head, is a religious ritual normally reserved for priests and monks. When the mob of about 45 villagers made further threats against them, the women and their families fled the two villages of Kilipala and Kanimul in Jagatsinghpur District of Orissa. About 20 people, including two infants, took shelter in a church in Bhubaneshwar.

Founded in 1982, Mexico Ministries runs two Bible schools, two medical clinics and a missionary training center
More than 25 years ago, Larry Myers resigned his pastorate at Evangel Temple Assemblies of God in Denison, Texas, and headed south of the border.

He spoke no Spanish and knew little about Mexican culture, but in 1982 he launched Mexico Ministries, an outreach that helps build churches and train indigenous pastors, as well as offer medical and humanitarian assistance.

“I saw the tremendous needs there,” said Myers, 67. “Every little town of 10,000 in this country has 20 churches or more, but in Mexico there are thousands of villages without a church at all. I realized I was needed there more than in the States.”

Today Mexico Ministries runs two Bible schools, operates two medical clinics and conducts a missionary training center. But the Louisiana native is quick to credit God with the ministry’s accomplishments.

“God put a love in my heart for Mexico, but the vision developed over time,” said Myers, whose ministry is based in Denison. “Rarely does God show a vision to more than one person at a time, and rarely does God show a complete vision.

“Others have to believe the one who saw the vision. I had no idea when I started if it would be one trip, two trips or five trips.”

Myers learned to speak Spanish after spending time with the Mexican people and working in villages throughout the nation. Although the method worked, Myers recommends formal schooling for those who minister in foreign countries.

However, his inexperience in speaking Spanish and understanding Mexican culture provided some humorous moments during the ministry’s early days.

Myers stopped at a remote village late one evening and spent the night in his car. When he awoke the following morning, he discovered he had parked in front of a small restaurant and went inside to order breakfast.

“The waitress came over and asked me a question I didn’t understand,” Myers recalled. “I responded, ‘Dos huevos [Two eggs].’ That was about all the Spanish I knew.

“She brought me two raw eggs floating in some kind of liquid. Everyone else was stirring them up and drinking it, so I did too. It was terrible. I laid some money on the table and just walked away.”

Despite the humble beginnings, awkward moments and financial difficulties, Mexico Ministries grew and expanded through Myers’ diligent efforts. He has taken the gospel by boat along the Mexico-Guatemala border and by horseback deep into the mountains of Chiapas. These days, he alternates between raising funds in the United States and ministering in Mexico.

“I was once asked what my budget was, and I said, ‘Everything I raise,'” Myers told Charisma. “There is never enough to meet the needs. We have so many young men going out and evangelizing that there’s always a waiting list. As we have the funds, we build the churches, then do it over and over and over.”

Although he said every aspect of Mexico Ministries excites him, Myers said his passion is to share the gospel and build churches. His organization quit counting the number it has constructed years ago.

“The greatest call for me is taking the gospel to an unchurched people, building a church, walking away and duplicating it again,” he said. “Last year we completed a church almost every three weeks.”

Since Mexico Ministries began, the outreach has helped thousands receive medical and dental care, blankets, a place to worship and most important, the message of Christ. But Myers gives sole credit to God for the organization’s accomplishments.

“When people ask who I am, I tell them that I’m a 6-foot piece of PVC that was cast aside,” Myers said. “One day, God reached down, blew the filth away and began to use it. I am nothing but a conduit for Him.”
John Hillman in Denison, Texas

The following reports were released during the last month by Charisma News Service. Go to our Web site at to subscribe to the free weekday service or to access full-length versions of each day’s stories. The site also includes a search engine so you can access archived news.

FOURSQUARE PRESIDENT, TREASURER RESIGN
The head of the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel voluntarily resigned after the denomination lost $14 million by investing in two allegedly fraudulent organizations. According to a statement from the denomination, President Paul Risser and Treasurer Brent Morgan resigned March 10 during Foursquare’s annual cabinet meeting. Risser, 66, led the denomination in the sale of a Los Angeles radio station, and invested almost 6 percent of the $250 million profit in Financial Advisory Consultants Inc. and International Product Investment Corp. Both companies were shut down recently by federal authorities, who described them as Ponzi schemes. Risser had hoped the proceeds would enable Foursquare to “advance the kingdom of God,” the statement said. But leaders were divided on whether he had the authority to invest the money. Foursquare officials said there was no criminal intent on either man’s part, adding that Risser would “continue to be available to serve the church family.”

U.S. MISSIONARIES KILLED IN IRAQ
Four Southern Baptist missionaries who had been working on a water-purification project in Iraq were killed March 15 in a drive-by shooting in Mosul, northern Iraq, Baptist Press reported. Larry T. Elliot, 60, and his wife, Jean Dover Elliot, 58–both of Clary, N.C.; and Karen Denise Watson, 38, of Bakersfield, Calif., died at the scene. David E. McDonnall, 28, of Rowlett, Texas, died in a military hospital the next day. At press time, his wife, Carrie Taylor McDonnall, 26, remained in critical condition.

POSTAL CAMPAIGN TO HONOR WILLIAM SEYMOUR
A Florida evangelist has started a grass-roots effort to have the U.S. Postal Service recognize the black pastor who led the Azusa Street Revival in Los Angeles in 1906. Larry Martin, the academic dean at the Brownsville Revival School of Ministry in Pensacola, wants to honor William Seymour with a postage stamp. On Aug. 1, Martin plans to submit a formal petition asking the postal service to issue a stamp in April 2006 to honor the 100th anniversary of the Azusa Street Revival, which is credited with sparking the Pentecostal movement. For more information about Martin’s stamp campaign, visit .

HOLLYWOOD PONDERS RELIGIOUS FILMS AFTER PASSION SUCCESS
Hollywood is rethinking films of faith after the success of The Passion of the Christ. According to The New York Times, producers and studio executives are asking “whether the movie industry has been neglecting large segments of the American audience eager for more openly religious fare.” At press time, Mel Gibson’s dramatization of Christ’s final hours had been the top film for three consecutive weeks, pushing its total to $264 million in the United States and Canada, the Associated Press (AP) reported. With support from a large number of churches, The Passion was on track to gross between $350 million and $400 million, the AP said.

Karl Strader Marks 50 Years in Ministry

Well-known for hosting what was dubbed the “laughing revival” at his Carpenter’s Home Church, pastor Karl Strader will celebrate 50 years in ministry next month during a reception June 6 in Lakeland, Fla. An Assemblies of God minister, Strader joined the church’s staff in 1966. It grew to 5,000 members at Sunday services in the early 1990s when Rodney Howard-Browne led revival services there. Today the ministry has approximately 2,000 members. The anniversary also marks 50 years of marriage for Strader and his wife, Joyce.

Marlin Maddoux Dies at 70

Christian talk-radio pioneer Marlin Maddoux died March 4 in an Irving, Texas, hospital due to complications from heart bypass surgery, the Associated Press reported. He was 70. Best-known as the host of the Point of View radio talk show, Maddoux was the founder of USA Radio Network, which has 1,300 stations across the country. Maddoux is survived by his wife of 49 years, four children and 10 grandchildren.

Tammy Faye Messner Faces Lung Cancer

In an interview with CNN’s Larry King March 18, Tammy Faye Messner, 62, announced that she has inoperable lung cancer. The ex-wife of televangelist Jim Bakker said she plans to seek alternative cancer treatment in addition to chemotherapy. Since she divorced Bakker in 1992, Messner has become a personality in her own right, writing a book, I Will Survive … And You Will Too, and appearing on the reality show The Surreal Life.

If you have a news tip for Charisma News Service, e-mail us at charisma@.

Traveling by faith on a skimpy budget, Geoff Sadler has been visiting U.S. cities and seaports that were once part of the slave trade.
The Liverpool, England, native begs African Americans to forgive his city’s role as the leading slave-ship port in the 18th century in hopes that genuine reconciliation will bring revival to his nation, theirs and Africa.

Sadler, 42, hatched the idea to repent for his hometown’s past sins in the fall of 2003 after researching Liverpool’s history of building slave ships as well as ships for the Confederate navy during the Civil War. “It shocked me,” he said.

Wealthy merchants also bankrolled slave-snatching expeditions to the west coast of Africa from 1740 to 1808. The ships unloaded their grieving human cargoes in Southern ports. John Newton, the reformed slave-ship captain who wrote the hymn “Amazing Grace,” sailed from Liverpool.

Sadler came to Christ at a Billy Graham crusade in Liverpool in 1984. He quit his job as a carpet installer and attended Roffey Place Bible School. He joined Youth With A Mission (YWAM) and worked in England, the former Soviet Union and the United States. While working for YWAM Slavic Ministries in Oregon in 2003, he sensed God calling him to apologize to black people.

“God started speaking to me about being involved in reaching out to African people both here and abroad, and also being involved in reconciliation and repentance issues concerning Liverpool’s involvement in the slave trade,” he said.

During a Sunday worship service in Albany, Ore., in November, he approached a black churchgoer saying: “This may sound weird but I’m from Liverpool, England, and we were heavily involved in the slave trade in the 1700s. I want to ask for forgiveness and will you pray with me.”

The man didn’t act surprised about Sadler’s offbeat plea and prayed with him. Several weeks later Sadler connected with black people on the street. Hesitant at first, he gained confidence that he was doing God’s will and won over skeptics with his self-effacing demeanor. Then the Holy Spirit prompted him, “Go to places where Liverpool ships docked.”

In January he landed on the East Coast sharing his vision one-on-one with hundreds of African Americans. He visited the site of the main slave market in Richmond, Va., where he prayed publicly and witnessed to passers-by. However, one man challenged, “Oh yeah, we forgive you, but where’s the money?” When Sadler pulled the last $5 bill from his wallet, the young man refused it, but showed him an article about reparations.

Watching Sadler praying by the Mississippi River in New Orleans, two black men questioned what he was doing. When he revealed his mission their eyes moistened. “We wish there were more people like you doing this,” they said.

In Annapolis, Md., he kneeled in a historic pub and restaurant, attracting the attention of kitchen workers. One of them accepted his forgiveness while another one said, “How are you going to make it up to us?”

In Atlanta Sadler spoke to street people loitering near a subway station. “I felt God moving in their hearts,” he said. “Some people became tearful. There was sadness in their eyes.”

Sadler addressed members of Messiah’s World Outreach, an independent African American charismatic church in Scottdale, Ga., a suburb of Atlanta. The congregation embraced his message and was impressed that someone would travel from England to repent for the sins of his forefathers.

“This gentleman is one of the few voices acknowledging that,” said the church’s pastor, Donn C. Thomas. “Rather than reopening wounds, it’s an opportunity to heal wounds that have never been closed. It’s an attempt by God to bring significant healing to the generation that is living today. Who knows, it could start a revival in reconciliation.”

Sadler will join a church in Georgia soon. In October he will participate in a YWAM initiative visiting former U.S. slave markets and ports. They will walk in shackles and chains as a symbolic sign of apology for the slave trade.

Sadler sees all of his efforts aimed ultimately at revival in Liverpool. “I feel this is the purpose God has prepared for me,” he said. “This is my calling now. I see reconciliation and repentance as a foundation for revival in the United States, Liverpool and Africa.”
Peter K. Johnson

BOOKS

Jesus in Beijing
By David Aikman,
Regnery Publishing,
Hardcover, 344 pages, $.

If your spirit needs a boost, read this masterful account of Christianity’s advance in China. Former Beijing bureau chief for Time magazine and Charisma columnist David Aikman predicts this phenomenon could transform the world by 2030.

Full of anecdotes brimming with signs and wonders, the book’s strength comes from its focus on God. It reminds readers that only one Being could have masterminded the events that brought China to this remarkable position.

Though it includes historical perspectives and a chapter on the Catholic Church, much of Jesus in Beijing: How Christianity Is Transforming China and Changing the Global Balance of Power examines the burgeoning house-church movement. The most captivating chapters review patriarchs and leaders of both genders who withstood torture, persecution and imprisonment to proclaim the gospel.

Pentecostals and charismatics will appreciate the tracing of American pastor Dennis Balcombe’s influence. According to Aikman, as an outgrowth of the Californian’s preaching and teaching there, more than half China’s house-church believers belong to the Spirit-filled fold.
Ken Walker

Seven Things That Steal Your Joy
By Joyce Meyer, Warner Faith,
Hardcover, 230 pages, $.

Anointed evangelist Joyce Meyer brings together a number of teachings in her new release, Seven Things That Steal Your Joy: Overcoming the Obstacles to Your Happiness. Meyer’s followers will hear echoes from previous teachings as they learn how to break free from the strongholds that steal their joy.

A list of Meyer’s joy-stealers points to the themes always present in her evangelism: works of the flesh, religious legalism, complicating simple events, excessive reasoning, ungodly anger, jealousy and envy, and habitual discontent. She follows each joy-stealer with a joy-keeper to reinforce her message of trusting God in faith in order to be at rest.

As much as Meyer protests the overuse of secular counseling, this book is vintage Meyer in providing accessible counseling based on God’s Word. It is a complement to the volumes she has already provided in her Christian-counseling outreach. Most important, Meyer ministers powerfully to the real emotional need of contemporary Christians–an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ.
Pamela Robinson

Twentysomething
By Margaret Feinberg,
W Publishing Group,
Softcover, 192 pages, $.

The transition from full-time college student to independent adult involves extensive decision-making. For those in the quarter-life stage, Margaret Feinberg offers a guide to “surviving and thriving in the real world” in Twentysomething.

Using relevant lingo and drawing from interviews with 20-somethings, Feinberg, also in her 20s, discusses topics such as landing a job, managing finances and facing disappointments. The book is sprinkled with supportive Scriptures and “Fast Facts,” including the current number of 25-year-olds buying first homes. The book concludes with six “Freebies,” such as tips for “Moving Back in With the Fam.”

Some of the humor early in the book is youthful sarcasm. The content grows in maturity as the book progresses, focusing more on the spiritual aspects of becoming a well-adjusted adult.

The book’s specific audience is 20-something college grads, particularly those whose college expenses were covered by their parents. The hip, candid writing style of Twentysomething will connect with and encourage its intended readers.
Leslie Santamaria

MUSIC

Faithful

By Hillsong, Integrity Music.

Hillsong is the praise and worship team led by Darlene Zschech, and Faithful presents a series of songs that express appreciation for God’s steadfastness. The reverent “Mercy Endures” paraphrases various psalms to highlight God’s eternal grace, whereas the hushed “Faithful to the End” features a male and a female lead vocalist as it meditates upon God’s sure covenant with the body of Christ.

The general sound of this release is adult pop, although “Wonder” leans just a little toward the dancey side, and this release’s remix of “Magnificent” rides atop a wave of strings and features a delightful flugelhorn solo. By delegating some of the singing duties to her fellow group members, Zschech has given this release much vocal variety. For instance, “Chosen As Mine” particularly stands out for its R&B/soul-inspired male vocal.

Although it’s far from what you might call unplugged, this CD is nevertheless a quiet, meditative collection of songs. Hillsong’s Faithful faithfully follows a smooth music worship path.
Dan MacIntosh

More Than Life
By United, Integrity Music.

Sales sheets for the band United say the group is the top-selling modern-worship act in Australia. It originated from the “United” youth ministry at the 15,000-member Hillsong Church in Sydney.

Like other Hillsong projects, More Than Life shows why this church has inspired a modern-worship movement, with 10 new songs and five favorites that will bring down the house. Recorded live, United opens with the enthusiastic “One Way” and proceeds to use a mix of guitars, bass and drums to deliver the message that God is on His throne and His Son, Jesus, reigns forever.

One reason this album stands out is the unabashed disregard for the radio-friendly three-minute “packaged” song. Free-form worship here runs from three to more than seven minutes, with highlights including “Sing (Your Love)” and “Where the Love Lasts Forever.”

United will sound very familiar to fans of Hillsong, Vineyard and other live, loose modern-worship projects. One of the biggest advantages is that these songs are catchy without being the same worship songs that have been recorded again and again. More Than Life offers a fresh alternative.
Natalie Nichols Gillespie

Hands Lifted High
By Dennis Jernigan, Doxology Records.

On Hands Lifted High, worship leader Dennis Jernigan demonstrates once again the versatility of his talent for praise and worship that edifies the modern church. By blending the styles and voices of top artists in duets and a trio, Jernigan creates an uplifting and inspiring version of greatest hits, with standout performances by special guests, including Natalie Grant, Jeff Deyo, Ron Kenoly and Rebecca St. James.

The opener with Grant, “You Are My All in All,” sets the tone for the avid Jernigan fan to prepare for something different. The instrumental intro is a refreshing variation from the usual and anticipated piano-backed offerings. The bonus track, “Let Freedom Ring,” is the patriotic theme song for the National Day of Prayer 2004 and is an inspiration.

Hands Lifted High is a passionate expression of worship to the Lord which typically characterizes Jernigan’s music, but with added musical diversity and refreshing twists. Listeners who have cherished this worship leader and prolific songwriter’s music will find this album a pleasing addition to their collections.
Elizabeth Witherell

Born Again
By Greg Long, Christian Records.

With song titles such as “Born Again;” “Sing About Jesus;” “The Cross, the Blood, the Love;” and “Savior of the World,” Greg Long makes no bones about what he believes on his new solo project, Born Again. Long stays firmly rooted in adult contemporary and inspirational territory with light pop creations and ballads that accent his beautiful tenor vocals.

The most powerful track is the story song “Fifteen,” a reminder that we are to plant seeds of the gospel continually. The song states: “If it takes fifteen times / To hear about Jesus / For someone to believe / Wherever I stand in line / I’ve got to make a difference / In case it comes down to me … What if I’m fifteen?”

Title track “Born Again” captures the infectious enthusiasm of new conversion and baptism, while “Once Upon a Time” is a quiet gem that retells the story of Christ’s birth, life and saving grace. The R&B-flavored “The Cross, the Blood, the Love” is a winner, and Long waxes pleasantly nostalgic on his rendition of Dallas Holm’s 1970s classic “Rise Again.”

The only missteps may be “Sing About Jesus” and “Savior of the World,” which have great lyrics but a dated sound. Overall, Long’s new solo album deserves to be heard.
Natalie Nichols Gillespie

NEWS

Books Help Kids Experience God

Opening a life-changing moment in children’s lives” is the ambition of CharismaKids and CasaKids books, which launched their premiere titles last month.

“We see children as Spirit-empowered believers,” explains editor Pat Matuszak. “Our message to kids is not about being good Christians; it’s about experiencing God.”

The first six books–four of which are being released simultaneously in Spanish–take advantage of popular Strang Communications authors Dr. Don Colbert and Juanita Bynum, along with Casa Creación publisher Tessie DeVore.

The Toxic Detective by Colbert is an interactive adventure story. Parents and children will learn biblical principles about healthy living.

Bynum boiled down her message from Matters of the Heart for A Heart for Jesus, using a narrative of a girl who sees how God changes her mother from the inside out. Matuszak said she asked women who’ve been changed by Bynum’s message how they would relate that same message to their children.

Interactivity comes into play through a finger puppet in Hover Gets His Wings by Chris Blake, which is about finding courage through the Holy Spirit. Blake also wrote I’m Just the Right Size, the tale of a crab who thinks he’s too small to be noticed. By story’s end, the crab and his fish friends have learned about the self-esteem, patience, power and courage that come from God.

Praying With the Presidents, written by multiple Gold Medallion Award-winning artist Ron DiCianni, helps children get involved with this country’s national leaders through prayer. Study questions and suggested prayers are included.

Happy Birthday to Me! by husband-and-wife writing team David and Tessie DeVore features a child whose parents are Anglo and Hispanic. This story of a boy who celebrates his birthday with multicultural customs incorporates Spanish words into the text in a natural flow.

Releasing this fall are Jack Hayford’s ACTS! Bible Story Book with Carol Wedeven and Big Bad Bible Bullies by Scott Hagan. Hagan uses Bible heroes to teach children how to deal with bullies.

Under the CasaKids imprint in Spanish are ¡Feliz cumpleaños a mí! (Happy Birthday to Me!), Cometín recibe sus alas (Hover Gets His Wings), Un corazón para Jesús (A Heart for Jesus) and ¡Soy del tamaño correcto! (I’m Just the Right Size). Out this month is Una parábola sobre el Rey, the Spanish version of A Parable of the King by Beth Moore.

Matuszak explains: “This is a different take on children’s books because we’re dealing with the Holy Spirit in children’s lives. The use of story opens that window in a child to see how the Holy Spirit relates to his or her life.”

She adds that these products see children as participants with the Holy Spirit no matter what their individual ages, rather than teaching them that the concept applies only when they grow up.

“Our books emphasize the power of prayer and a personal relationship with God,” Matuszak says. “They answer three questions for kids: How can I experience God’s presence, find His purpose for my life and receive His power to fulfill it?”
Elizabeth Witherell

As the “first lady” of Celtic music, Moya Brennan was the ideal choice to lead the St. Patrick’s Day celebrations at Capitol Hill in March. The singer is known not only for creating a new genre with Irish band Clannad but also for sharing her Christian faith.

President Bush, Sen. Ted Kennedy, Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern and political leaders from Northern Ireland were among those who gave Brennan “a fantastic reception.” Her short set included “Theme From Harry’s Game,” a major hit for Clannad in 1982.

Back then, the group’s haunting vocals set a fresh tone and Brennan became known as “the voice of Clannad.” Since then, she has released a series of solo albums that speak openly about her faith. Brought up in a Catholic home, Brennan now attends St. Mark’s, a charismatic church in the heart of Ireland’s capital, Dublin.

However, her latest release, Two Horizons, is not overtly Christian; it’s a concept album about a harp. New Age listeners will love it. Brennan knows that when such fans hear her mainstream material, they investitgate her Christian recordings–sometimes with life-changing results.

“Quite a number” have traveled that journey, she says. “I always include the Lord in all my work.”

It fits the evangelistic model pioneered by St. Patrick and others. The Celtic saints were known for weaving timelss truths into the art and culture of their day.
Clive Price

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