Peter Halldorf, a third-generation Pentecostal preacher, worships in Coptic monasteries and leads a contemplative life
He is a third-generation Pentecostal pastor who says he “could not survive for a day without speaking in tongues.” But he is also likely to be the only Pentecostal minister in the world who focuses on the Desert Fathers of the early church in his preaching and worships regularly in Coptic monasteries in the Egyptian desert.

Meet Peter Halldorf, known in Sweden as the “Pentecostal monk.”

“My roots are sunk deeply into Pentecostalism,” Halldorf, 45, told Charisma. “Both my grandfathers were Pentecostal pastors, my father was a Pentecostal pastor, and I am and will always remain a Pentecostal pastor.”

He said the personal experience of the Holy Spirit was “inalienable” from his Christian walk. But Halldorf also feels “at home,” he added, praying the hours with Coptic monks. “The first office is at 3 a.m.,” he said. “The Psalms are sung just like in Catholic monasteries, but the Coptic melodies have a very different tone, and the atmosphere is noisier [than with the Catholics]. I feel totally free to pray along in tongues, and I could go on for hours.”

The Pentecostal monk reaps occasional criticism for his singular spirituality, but his supporters outnumber his critics 10-1. Very few preachers attract larger crowds in Sweden. Halldorf is one of the most popular speakers in the Lutheran charismatic renewal, and internationally known Swedish pastor Ulf Ekman applauds Halldorf’s theological approach.

Halldorf’s fascination with the Desert Fathers grew out of his concern about superficiality and even worldliness that he felt Pentecostalism and other young church movements could easily fall prey to because they lacked historical roots.

“Without compromising our pursuit of the Holy Spirit and the charismas, we as Pentecostal and charismatic Christians should recognize the need to imbed the charismatic experience in the soil of sanctification, that is in the process of becoming more and more like Jesus,” Halldorf said.

It was this focus on sanctification that led him, literally, into the Middle East deserts. Studying the desert theme in the Bible, Halldorf many years ago stumbled upon a booklet titled Sayings of the Desert Fathers.

“Reading it felt like sand between your teeth,” he said.

Rough and anything but ear-tickling, “I felt it to be a thorn in my flesh–but also a [balm] for my soul.”

Halldorf found out that the Desert Fathers were radical disciples who became hermits in the deserts of Egypt, Syria and Palestine to escape the same problem that concerned him–the worldliness of the church–even though in their case less than 200 years had gone by since the first Pentecost. Decades later, in the middle of the 300s, Copts–the first-nation, pre-Arabic Egyptians–formed the first monastic fellowships.

The desert lifestyle was utterly ascetic. There was a strong emphasis on “mortifying” your body, soul and spirit, as it was termed, and new disciples learned discipline the hard way. But Halldorf claims it was the Desert Fathers who in spite of their “roughness” taught him how to avoid the legalism that had trapped and disabled much of the teaching on sanctification in the charismatic renewal in the 1970s and 1980s.

“The Desert Fathers had a tough surface,” Halldorf admitted, “but if you face the sinfulness of your own heart without making excuses and at the same time experience that God still loves you, you will, as a result, start treating yourself and others with [inner] gentleness.”

Halldorf noted that the Desert Fathers were not in the least impressed by their own spirituality, another characteristic he found attractive. They practiced healing and deliverance from demonic spirits on a daily basis, but as Halldorf puts it, “In the desert there were neither showbiz nor stars.”

And in the desert, Halldorf said he learned to be quiet. “To become like God you must hear Him speak,” Halldorf told Charisma. “If you only listen to yourself you will become your own image. Listening is the heart of prayer, and listening requires silence.”

Halldorf cites historian Frank Bartleman and Swedish “Mr. Pentecost” Lewi Pethrus as examples of early Pentecostal leaders who encouraged a quiet and contemplative expression of faith. Returning to its roots could serve the modern Pentecostal movement well, Halldorf asserts, as end-time Pentecostalism will grow faster in coarse desert sand than in smooth flowerpot soil.
Tomas Dixon in Sweden

Musician Johnny Parks has seen youth from both sides of ‘The Troubles’ unite in worship at Mannafest concerts
A new revolution is taking place among hundreds of young people in Northern Ireland. At the height of “The Troubles,” some of them were lining up to support the “armed struggle”–now many are lining up to praise God.

More than 1,000 youth raise the roof on Belfast’s Ulster Hall every month at Mannafest, an event run by Youth for Christ. The initiative has also spread to Enniskillen–a town that was torn apart by an IRA bomb in 1987.

Each location has its own flavor but shares the same aim–to provide a place where young people can meet and discover more of God. “It got to the stage recently where we couldn’t let people in because it was beyond capacity,” said Mannafest team member Johnny Parks.

“So we’ve opened up the stall seats behind the stage now, which means you can get another 300 or 400 people in. We’re filling that as well.” The 30-
something musician said Mannafest has been “hugely significant” in people’s lives.

“It’s had its highs and lows,” Parks admitted. “We feel like it’s going through a real harvest at the moment. A lot of that is because there’s a good team on board who don’t do anything too radical, and make it accessible to people.”

It’s caused such a stir that a “live” recording was released on a label called Emerge, which offers listeners a sample of new and up-and-coming worship leaders from across the United Kingdom. The CD Close to You displays Parks’ brand of gritty guitar-driven praise.

Leaders say these clear, spiritual songs help the young people open up to God. “It’s simple things that I’d probably notice,” Parks said, “just seeing a lot of young people who at the end of the night are being prayed with and are in tears. God’s moving and speaking to them.”

Parks experienced a breakthrough himself after leading worship at Mannafest for about a year. Then during 2000 he returned home from a U.S. visit–with a broken leg. “One night I thought, ‘Stuff it, I’m going to take my guitar off and dance my heart out here.'”

Parks used to be embarrassed about such behavior. But now he isn’t afraid of what others might think. He started dancing, and the idea caught on. “People came out of their seats into the aisles, up the front and started dancing. It was fantastic. … Now every night you play, they expect you to dance.”

However, Mannafest is not only about one night. “We try to provide facilities and support for people outside the Saturday night,” Parks said. “We would run Bible notes for them, access to the Web site, training events in drama, worship and teaching.”

Parks’ full-time job is directing a secular organization called the Northern Ireland Youth Forum that represents young people’s views to policy makers.

That means he works among a broad spectrum of youth–from both republican and loyalist areas (the two sides of the Northern Ireland conflict). “I love that richness,” said Parks, who has family roots on both sides of the border. “It keeps me on my toes.”

Though he said most Mannafest participants are Protestant, he dares to believe that the sound of praise could help bring Catholic and Protestant together. “I feel the next challenge for Mannafest is to engage in that issue,” he said. “An outsider would probably think it’s quite straightforward–but it’s … very complex. I still think we have a responsibility to think about it and to seek God.”

Parks and his band plan to be involved with Mannafest for another year. They want to make way for younger leaders and musicians, and to honor increasing commitments in the United States and Canada, where Parks is involved in Worship Together conferences.

He finds that American Christians have a particularly keen interest in Northern Ireland. Whenever he leads worship in the States, he said another line appears–this time of people wanting to know more about his homeland.
Clive Price

Jailed Canadian Pastor Cleared of Spy Charges

A military tribunal cleared a Canadian pastor jailed in Lebanon of charges that he was a spy for Israel. Bruce Balfour, 52, field director of Cedars of Lebanon, a ministry that was planning to help replenish the cedars of Lebanon in the country’s northern region, was arrested at Beirut’s airport July 10. Judicial sources said he was jailed on charges of working with the Jewish state to spy on Shiite Muslim Hezbollah guerrillas and the Lebanese army, Reuters reported. On Sept. 1, the court found Balfour innocent of espionage, but ruled that he was guilty of stirring religious strife, court sources said. It sentenced him to one year in jail, but reduced it to the time already served. Grant Livingston, another Canadian pastor charged with espionage, was also cleared, Agence France-Presse reported.

Australia

The Islamic Council of Victoria (ICV) and three Australian Muslims took two pastors to court after the pair made critical statements about Islam on a Web site and during a Christian seminar in March 2002, The Barnabus Fund (BF) reported. Danny Nalliah and Daniel Scot could receive significant fines if they are found guilty of committing blasphemy against Islam under the Victorian Racial and Religious Vilification Act, passed in 2001 to promote intercultural and interfaith harmony in Victoria. The case was due to be heard in mid-October in Victoria, which is located in the country’s southwest region. Many Christians in the state fear the ICV is using the case to stifle all criticism of Islam or Muslims, BF said.

Turkmenistan

Police recently banned members of a Baptist congregation from meeting for services, threatening them with fines if they continued to meet. The raid occurred in late August during a Sunday service in the town of Balkanabad, located in the country’s western region, Forum 18 News Service reported. Leaders said the church has been targeted for several raids this year, and members have been fined the equivalent of $48 each for gathering for worship services in July and August. The church is not registered with the authorities. Turkmenistan has the harshest religious policy of all the former Soviet republics, Forum 18 said. Authorities recognize no faiths except Islam and the Russian Orthodox Church.

Many of the following reports were released during the last month by Charisma News Service. Go to our Web site at to subscribe to the free 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.

VEGGIETALES BOUGHT BY ‘WONDERFUL PARTNER’
In a deal announced Sept. 2, Big Idea Productions sold its copyrights to VeggieTales to Classic Media LLC, owner of such children’s properties as Golden Books and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. “Due to their great enthusiasm for both our business and our ministry, I believe Classic Media is a wonderful partner to help guide Big Idea back to financial health,” Big Idea founder Phil Vischer said. The financially troubled company was forced to sell after losing a breach of contract lawsuit to former distributor Lyrick Studios in July. Forced to pay around $15 million in damages, Big Idea filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy as a condition of its agreement with Classic Media.

CHURCH LAUNCHES MINISTRY TO COMBAT TOWN’S DRUG WOES
An Alabama church has started a drug-rehabilitation ministry to combat a growing methamphetamine problem in its community. The Church of the Rock (COTR) in Piedmont recently launched a chapter of Mothers Against Methamphetamine (MAMA), a national organization founded a year ago by an Albertville, Ala., physician whose brother killed himself while addicted to the drug, which is also known as speed, meth and chalk,The Birmingham News reported. Despite national statistics that say only 6 percent to 10 percent of users ever recover, MAMA founder Mary Holley said more than 80 percent of users can recover with a year of intense therapy if Christian counseling is used. COTR began its chapter after seeing a MAMA ad in Charisma.

FORBES EXAMINES MEGACHURCH GROWTH
Megachurches have a lot in common with corporations, said a September report. Examining Protestant congregations with more than 2,000 worshipers weekly, Forbes found that “pastors often act as chief executive officers and use business tactics to grow their churches.” The report noted also that three of the largest–23,093-member World Changers Ministries in Atlanta; 18,500-member The Potter’s House in Dallas; and 25,060-member Lakewood Church in Houston–run businesses and spend millions on broadcasting. Kingdom Ventures, a company designed to help ministries grow, said megachurches’ use of technology also contributed to their size. John Vaughn, founder of Church Growth Today, which tracks megachurches, said the number of megachurches has risen from 250 in 1970 to 740 today.

SETTLEMENT DISBANDS FIRE CHAPLAINS PROGRAM
A chaplain program by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CDFFP) will be disbanded to settle a lawsuit filed by six firefighters who claimed it violated separation of church and state. Under the settlement terms, CDFFP will disband the program, but will allow employees to provide chaplain services voluntarily, the Associated Press reported. The chaplain corps included 54 employees throughout California who were trained to provide counseling for the agency’s firefighters. Fifty of the chaplains are Christian. Sarcastically calling themselves the Satanic Six, the six firefighters sued earlier this year, claiming chaplains conducted prayers at meetings, wore crosses on their uniforms and sent e-mails promoting a Christian viewpoint.

Churches Fund Jailed Missionary’s Defense

Churches in Oklahoma and Texas have raised more than $15,000 for the defense of a missionary to Mexico who was jailed Aug. 23 for possession of allergy drugs commonly sold over-the-counter in the United States. Police arrested Steve Frey in the border town of Reynosa, Mexico, after they found allergy medications in his van, the Associated Press reported. Frey, a Texas-based missionary with Cornerstone International, is being held in a federal penitentiary in Reynosa.

Harald Bredesen Honored

Some 500 civic and church leaders honored charismatic pioneer Harald Bredesen with a birthday bash Aug. 23 in Beverly Hills, Calif. Bredesen, who turned 85 Aug. 16, helped introduce the gifts of the Holy Spirit to mainline denominations in the 1950s. He later founded the Prince of Peace Foundation (PPF), which honors international peacemakers in a Christian counterpart to the Nobel Peace Prize. Past recipients include Anwar Sadat, Mother Teresa and Jordan’s King Hussein. Bredesen was given a PPF award at the birthday event.

Paramedic Sues Over Firing

A Georgia paramedic filed a religious-discrimination lawsuit against her former employer after she was fired for inviting a co-worker to her church. Sherry Lambert sued Memorial Health Inc. in September, claiming the company violated a federal law prohibiting discrimination based on religion. Her lawsuit seeks reinstatement and back pay. The case stems from an Oct. 31, 2001, incident, in which Lambert invited a colleague to church while on duty. Although the co-worker did not complain, Lambert was later terminated.

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

The former atheist, educated as a scholar, was a forerunner of modern teaching on prayer and the biblical restoration of Israel
Internationally known author and charismatic Bible teacher Derek Prince died of heart failure Sept. 24. He was 88. Prince had suffered from a series of chronic illnesses in the last several years and died in his sleep at his Jerusalem home, a statement from Derek Prince Ministries said.

Prince, who had lived in Israel off and on since the 1940s, had a teaching and healing ministry that spanned some six decades. His daily radio program, Today With Derek Prince, currently reaches more than half the world and includes broadcasts in Arabic, Chinese, Croatian, Malagasy, Mongolian, Russian, Samoan, Spanish and Tongan.

A controversial though popular Bible teacher known for his logical and reserved teaching style, Prince wrote more than 45 books about the Holy Spirit, faith, marriage, deliverance ministry, healing, prayer and fasting, and God’s destiny for Israel. His The Spirit-Filled Believer’s Handbook has been translated into more than 60 languages.

“I really believe he is going to be remembered as one of the leading teachers in the charismatic renewal, and one who helped save the charismatic renewal from extremes,” said author Stephen Mansfield, who is writing a biography about Prince and was with him days before he died. “He always tried to ensure that his teaching was solidly biblical.”

But Prince did not set out to be in ministry. As a university student he was a philosopher and self-described atheist.

Born in India of British parents, he was educated in England as a scholar of Greek and Latin at Eton College prep school and at the University of Cambridge. He held a fellowship in ancient and modern philosophy at King’s College, Cambridge. While serving with the British army in World War II, he began to study the Bible and became a Christian.

After being discharged from the army in Jerusalem at the end of the war, Prince witnessed the return of Jews to Israel from around the world and interpreted it as a fulfillment of biblical prophecy. Israel’s restoration became a main focus of his teaching. His books Our Debt to Israel, The Last Word on the Middle East and The Destiny of Israel and the Church have informed Christians of their scriptural responsibilities to Israel and the Jews.

“He was an example … for many believers throughout the world,” said Batya Segal, who with her husband, Barry, leads Vision for Israel ministry. “He had a tremendous passion for the Word of God, for the land and people of Israel.”

In 1945 Prince married Lydia Christensen, a Danish missionary more than 26 years his senior. He became father to her eight adopted daughters–six Jewish, one Palestinian Arab and one British–and the couple later adopted another daughter in Kenya.

The Princes immigrated to the United States in 1963 and pastored a church in Seattle. In the early 1970s Prince began to teach about the need for Christians to pray for national leaders, and helped found Intercessors for America (IFA) in 1973. Prince’s book Shaping History Through Prayer and Fasting is still one of the IFA’s best sellers, said President Gary Bergel.

“Many people don’t know how much influence he had on the prayer movement,” Bergel said. “That initial teaching really set the course of our ministry.”

Though well-known for his teaching on deliverance ministry, Prince is also remembered for his participation in the controversial discipleship, or “shepherding,” movement in the 1970s. As reports of control and manipulation began to circulate, Prince eventually withdrew from the movement he began with Don Basham, Ern Baxter, Bob Mumford and Charles Simpson. He publicly repented for his involvement, saying, “I believe we were guilty of the Galatian error: having begun in the Spirit, we quickly degenerated into the flesh,” WorldNet Daily reported.

Pentecostal historian Vinson Synan said that although Prince never regained the level of popularity he had before 1977, he had widespread influence in the charismatic renewal and his “well-organized teaching” filled a void for many charismatics.

Prince’s first wife, Lydia, died in 1975, and in 1978 he married Ruth Baker, a single mother to three adopted children. She died in 1998 in Jerusalem, where the couple moved in 1981.

Prince is survived by 11 children and an extended family of more than 150.
Eric Tiansay and Adrienne S. Gaines

BOOKS

Character Matters
By Mark Rutland, Charisma House,

160 pages, hardcover, $.

Courage is the first and great element of character,” author, evangelist, and international conference speaker Mark Rutland proclaims, and it inspires all 10 chapters of Character Matters.

Rutland is sure to bring fire to your cheeks–initially in defense of your character, then in shame for your defenseless behavior. For example, who hasn’t failed the test of loyalty to employers or employees by talking them down? Or who hasn’t displayed disloyalty to a spouse by disputing over the correct date of an event in a tactless effort to keep things straight?

Peppered throughout with such contemporary examples in addition to biblical examples, Character Matters gives Christians a tall order to follow. It will most certainly lead to repentance in one or more of the nine areas of character discussed: courage, loyalty, diligence, modesty, frugality, honesty, meekness, reverence and gratitude.

Rutland calls for Christians to act with the utmost virtue as role models in a nation headed down a slippery slope to character disintegration. Following the call will require not only deep repentance, but also great faith. For in a post-Christian society, our initial reaction may be to label Rutland’s model for integrity as unrealistic and extreme. Indeed, it is. Rutland’s model for character matters is supernatural, the divine Word of God.
Pamela Robinson

Breakthrough Prayer
By Jim Cymbala, Zondervan,
240 pages, hardcover, $.

Subtitled “The Secret of Receiving What You Need From God,” Breakthrough Prayer focuses on the blessings received through prayer. As pastor of the Brooklyn Tabernacle, Jim Cymbala has experienced the urgency that prompts prayer in times of hardship and the desperation that comes before God blesses. He draws upon Scriptures, his own prayer life and that of others in showing how all believers can be blessed by God as a result of intercession.

Cymbala points to the fact that believers rarely pray the “lost prayers” of the Bible, not taking full advantage of God’s promises. Bearing in mind James’ explanation that believers do not have because they do not ask, Cymbala points to the unusual prayers that ought not to be overlooked such as a request for joy or to understand God’s timing in a particular situation. The author also humbly testifies of his own learning experiences in communion with God.

Likely, some Christians will not appreciate Cymbala’s approach to prayer, as it may appear to be more blessing-centered than God-centered, but that does not discount the usefulness of this book that demonstrates the value of intercession and God’s willingness to answer the petitions of His people.
Christine D. Johnson

Deadly Emotions
By Don Colbert, M.D.; Nelson Books;

256 pages; hardcover; $.

Enlightening and accurate is the book Deadly Emotions by Dr. Don Colbert, practicing physician and best-selling author of What Would Jesus Eat (Nelson) and the Bible Cure series (Siloam). In it, Colbert takes a startling look at the adverse effects of negative emotions on the physical, spiritual and emotional aspects of life, and how to overcome them.

Offering scientific evidence, Colbert shows how negative emotions, such as depression, anger, guilt, condemnation, resentment and denial, have lifelong implications for a person’s health. He clearly defines these emotions, examines their origin as well as how they manifest themselves, and offers hope in dealing with toxic emotions through God’s power to help forgive and receive true joy.

Practical, insightful and chock full of good advice, this book can help turn the poison of negative emotions into a balm of Gilead that soothes wounds and brings healing to those who hurt.
Kristy Elkins

BIBLE STUDIES

Focus on the Family Marriage Series
Gospel Light, Group Starter Kit, $.

The all-in-one concept for VBS and children’s programs has graduated to adult curricula with Focus on the Family’s Marriage Series. Based on Al Janssen’s book, The Marriage Masterpiece, this array of resources provides all the ingredients to teach couples about biblical marriage.

The seven books for group or individual couple study are compact, containing four studies each. Couples could easily opt to study one or more on their own, or create a home Bible study. Topics cover unity, commitment, intimacy, communication, service, adventure and devotion.

The contemporary and airy design invites couples to discover biblical guidelines and then apply them realistically and purposefully. A man’s pragmatic perspective and a woman’s relational, emotional sides are both accommodated in the discussion questions and application suggestions. These study guides can also be bought separately.

Couples on their own or churches who want to strengthen their congregants’ marriages or create a marriage ministry will get plenty of well-rounded help with this kit. It’s a masterpiece: complete, well produced and user friendly.
Karen Schmidt

MUSIC

Believe
By Jason Breland, Hosanna! Music.

Recorded live at First Baptist North Mobile in Mobile, Alabama, Believe features Jason Breland and the North Mobile Worship Choir. Breland, a former lead singer and music director for TRUTH, now serves as a worship minister at the church.

Breland’s musical talents are well displayed on this album, featuring a seven-member praise team. The recording opens with the big-church sounding “Make It Glorious” and flows into the upbeat “Let There Be a Blessing.” The track slows down midway through with the soulful “To You” and ends with the piano-laden “When I Think About the Lord.”

Overall, Believe is a solid easy-listening worship album with variety and a strong song selection.
Margaret Feinberg

I Just Want You
By Vicki Yohe, Wellspring Gospel.

Worship leader Vicki Yohe has resurfaced as the first artist on CeCe Winans’ Wellspring Gospel. I Just Want You is a smooth, inspirational collection of worship that should be familiar to Yohe’s fans who are used to seeing her guest star on Trinity Broadcasting Network.

Yohe’s album is a collection of choir-backed worship that will fit right into the contemporary church. The music is simply background for Yohe’s clear vocals and the powerful choir that accompanies her. Throughout, Yohe worships with straightforward lyrics such as, “I worship You because of who You are” (“Because of Who You Are”), an updated version of fan favorite “Mercy Seat.” The only time Yohe tries to pick up the pace is with the jazzy “Almighty” and the pop tune “Help” that closes this project.
Natalie Nichols Gillespie

Visible
By 4HIM, Word.

In 1990, 4HIM released their self-titled debut album. Thirteen years later, the band is still encouraging believers with pop worship songs and church anthems. The group has garnered 22 No. 1 singles and recorded 10 studio albums including their newest offering, Visible.

This album fuses easy-listening Christian music with worshipful lyrics and moments. As usual, the four guys–Andy Chrisman, Kirk Sullivan, Mark Harris and Marty Magehee–add heartfelt harmonies to their timeless musical sound.

Though a bit predictable, the lyrics are filled with encouragement and inspiration. Album standouts include “Fill the Earth” with its reflection on God as Creator and the worshipful “It’s All About Jesus.” “The Final Word” is an infectious ballad about the true meaning of love.

Visible is a great album for 4Him fans as well as listeners of adult contemporary Christian music.
Margaret Feinberg

Kiss of Heaven
By Darlene Zschech, INO.

Australian worship leader Darlene Zschech releases her first solo effort, Kiss of Heaven, and it is breathtakingly beautiful. The worship pastor and songwriter wrote or co-wrote everything on this 14-song collection, except the old hymn “Beautiful Savior” and a fine cover of U2’s “Walk On,” with Delirious’ Martin Smith.

Zschech remains grounded in personal worship throughout, and veers only slightly to incorporate earthly romance on “Everything About You,” the singer’s unashamed declaration of love for her husband (and an album highlight).

Zschech has a supernatural ability to draw listeners close to the throne to worship. This is evident throughout Kiss of Heaven. It draws listeners into a spiritual encounter through the sheer beauty of urgency of worship songs such as the title track, “Faithful,” “Irresistible” and “Wonderful You.” It builds to a climax with the powerful rendition of “Shout to the Lord” and follows that with the gentle “Dream.”

Praise and worship fans can seal their collection with this Kiss.
Natalie Nichols Gillespie

It took broadcast journalist Andria Hall nearly 20 years to learn the secret of true success. She had achieved professionally, working at one of the top stations in the top news market before becoming a weekend anchor for CNN. But it was only when she learned to surrender to God’s will that she found “soul satisfaction” on her job.

Fusing faith and profession has become the foundation of her latest book, The Walk at Work. The book guides readers through a seven-month process of spiritual growth to help navigate workplace sabotage, resolve ethical dilemmas and balance work and family life.

Now host of America at Worship, on the Hallmark Channel, Hall writes from experience. “It’s not about the money; it’s not about the recognition or the fame,” she told Charisma. “It’s not about the image that someone else would think, Oh, now you’ve arrived. If you try to pursue those things it counts for nothing in heaven.”

As the workplace is increasingly viewed as a mission field, Hall tells readers the average workplace can be a higher calling, a place “where true success can be achieved.”

“When you work in a tunnel and someone at the very other end has a match lit, you follow the light,” Hall said. “That’s how I felt [at CNN]. People were following the light in me. I would finish anchoring the news and someone would [ask for prayer]. What I realized was that they hadn’t heard me; they had seen me.”
Adrienne S. Gaines

CHARISMATIC TOP SELLERS

1. Matters of the Heart
Juanita Bynum (Charisma House)

2. Pigs in the Parlor
Frank and Ida Mae Hammond
(Impact Christian Books)

3. Total Forgiveness
R.T. Kendall (Charisma House)

4. A Divine Revelation of Hell
Mary K. Baxter (Whitaker House)

5. The Three Battlegrounds
Francis Frangipane (Arrow Publications)

6. The Tongue: A Creative Force
Charles Capps (Harrison House)

7. A Divine Revelation of Heaven
Mary K. Baxter (Whitaker House)

8. Holiness, Truth and the
Presence of God
Francis Frangipane (Arrow Publications)

9. No More Sheets
Juanita Bynum (Pneuma Life Publishing)

10. Prison to Praise
Merlin R. Carothers (Merlin R. Carothers)

CHARISMA RECOMMENDS

Good for You!
By Mary Ann Mayo, Siloam, 256 pages, softcover, $.

Mary Ann Mayo believes women need to take responsibility for their own health, learn how to make good decisions and build a healthy lifestyle. Topics covered include hormone replacement therapy, if and when a physician should be fired, and what determines good health. Women must learn to ask questions, set boundaries and take charge of their health.

Reversing Degenerative Disease
By Joseph Elrod, Ed.D.; Siloam; 256 pages; softcover; $.

Joseph Elrod explores natural steps to overcoming degenerative diseases such as fibromyalgia, alzheimer’s, arthritis, immune disorders and more. Elrod discusses the importance of de-stressing, detoxifying and cleansing the body, taking the best nutritional supplements and restoring restful deep sleep. In an easy-to-read format, success cases, resources, programs and testimonies will encourage readers to make lifestyle changes to experience better health.

Take Up the Sword of the Spirit
By Lori Strong, Creation House Press, 80 pages, softcover, $.

Lori Strong has seen firsthand the bondage that can result from generational curses. Strong explores 20 different strongholds, including fear of man, pride, anger, addiction and abortion, all of which can hold people captive if not broken. Strong uses Scriptures and optional prayers, to help readers walk through the process of recognizing and breaking generational curses so that they can experience the truly abundant life Jesus wants all of us to embrace.

Man, Listen to Your Woman
By A.J. Beech, Creation House Press, 80 pages, softcover, $.

Communication is key to having a successful marriage. But A.J. Beech believes many men have been taught that they do not need their wives’ input on key issues. Beech explores the diverse needs of men and women, the importance of respect and the need to tear down man-made gender walls in the church. Men who discover the boldness to listen to their wives will experience a new level of intimacy.

Serie La cura bíblica
(The Bible Cure series)
By Don Colbert, M.D.; Casa Creación; softcover; $ each.

Don Colbert, a practicing physician, offers a series covering health topics containing bits of biblical wisdom alongside professional advice and natural remedies. The 12 Bible Cure booklets from Casa Creación address cures for diseases, including cancer, headaches, heart disease, depression and anxiety, allergies and more.

The passing of the giants means it’s time for us to take the baton.
The charismatic community suffered a tremendous loss in September when two spiritual giants went home to be with the Lord. Kenneth E. Hagin Sr., who has been called the father of the modern Faith Movement, died in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on September 19, and Derek Prince, one of the most respected teachers in the charismatic movement, died on September 24 in Jerusalem.

The passing of these two giants was sad for me personally because early in my spiritual journey I learned much from hearing them speak, reading their books and listening to their tapes. In later years I had the privilege of knowing both men.

Though they were dissimilar in gifts, calling and sphere of influence, each of them greatly influenced the wider charismatic community. Each was a man of integrity never tainted by moral scandal. Each left thousands of disciples who were molded by what he taught. And I believe each was way ahead of his time in bringing to the body of Christ spiritual truths that were later widely accepted.

More than 8,000 people attended Hagin’s funeral in Tulsa, including most of the well-known leaders in the Faith Movement. Yet the four-hour memorial service focused not on Hagin’s role in Christendom but on his role as a family man and on the humility he maintained in spite of enormous success.

Hagin was a simple Texas preacher who preached about faith and healing long before it was popular. In the early years he spoke at Full Gospel Business Men’s conferences and at whatever churches would have him, often driving long distances or taking the bus.

His son, Kenneth Hagin Jr., said that even when Hagin rode the bus because his car was broken down, he continued to preach that God wanted to prosper his people. In the early days when his bills piled up, he’d say, “This is just another way to prove God is faithful.”

At the memorial service Ken Jr. asked those who had been influenced by his father’s ministry to stand. Then he held out to those who responded a large baton and urged us to take hold of it and do what God had called his father to do–“to teach My people faith.”

I was reminded that a large part of the story of Charisma’s growth in the early years revolved around my believing God to fulfill the vision He had given me. In those years many of Brother Hagin’s tapes encouraged me when I was tempted to quit.

Derek Prince, who passed away several days after Hagin, was a man ahead of his time. Born in India, he was educated at Eton College and at King’s College, Cambridge University, in England. He wrote more than 45 books on subjects ranging from the Holy Spirit to prayer and fasting to Israel. He was also known for his support of deliverance ministry and in the late ’60s and ’70s was involved in the Discipleship Movement, which, in view of its excesses, he later helped to dismantle.

Prince was in Israel after World II and saw the Jewish people returning to their homeland. He was among the first to teach that Christians owe the Jewish people an enormous debt. He wrote: “Without them, the church would have no patriarchs, no prophets, no apostles, no Bible and no Savior. My most precious possession in life is my Bible, and I owe it to the Jewish people.”

His life and work has influenced the Christian world like that of few others. But now he and “Papa” Hagin are gone.

What does the passing of these giants mean to us? I believe it means that it’s time for us to take the baton. We must ensure that the revelation they brought to the body of Christ continues to be shared through their books and tapes and through the lives of those they touched. By passing on their messages and following their godly example, we can make a difference in the world.

In an era in which many are in ministry for what they can get out of it, we can be pillars of integrity. We can model what a man or woman of God should be: a person who is devoted to the Word, willing to take risks, willing to change, and willing to follow the call of God on his or her life. And in a day when divorce is increasingly common, we can remain faithful to our spouses, as these two giants did. Let’s commit to passing on their legacy through our lives.

Ministry leaders say believers must balance outreach to homosexuals with political activism
After a string of unprecedented public policy gains for the gay community this summer, ministry leaders say Christians must keep a clear head about homosexuality and not be intimidated into silence.

“The confusion in the culture is increasing to such an extent that more people will … become more vulnerable to [homosexuality],” said Andrew Comiskey, an ordained Vineyard minister and founder of Desert Stream Ministries, which ministers to homosexuals and those who are sexually broken. “If Christians got involved in speaking to the culture, it could have a tremendous effect. … There are a lot of people who have a problem with gay marriage. They’re not homophobic. They’re not violent toward homosexuals … but they don’t want to make it normative.”

Clarity, he said, is the church’s greatest strength in the wake of public policy gains that are being described as historic. In June the Supreme Court struck down Texas’ anti-sodomy law, ruling 6-3 that homosexuals “are entitled to respect for their private lives,” Justice Anthony Kennedy said.

The same month, the Canadian province of Ontario legalized same-sex unions, prompting efforts to legitimize gay unions throughout the nation. In August, the Episcopal Church USA elected an openly gay priest to serve as a bishop, and California Gov. Gray Davis passed a law fining businesses $150,000 if they refused to hire cross-dressers. In September the Harvey Milk School, the first publicly funded high school for gay students, opened in New York City.

Those moves don’t include the introduction of the University of Michigan course explaining how to be gay, or the surprising popularity of the Bravo cable channel’s Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, which was followed this fall by the first gay dating show, Boy Meets Boy, also on Bravo.

Nor do they hint at the growth of the gay Christian movement, which includes an increasing number of “welcoming” churches that describe themselves as Spirit-filled, embracing prophetic dance, intercession, miracles and deliverance.

Though he does not consider himself or his congregation to be politically active, the Rev. Douglas E. Clanton, head of Reconciling Pentecostals International (RPI), a network of 25 gay-friendly congregations, filed a friend of the court brief in the June Supreme Court case Lawrence v. Texas, explaining how he interprets Scripture to affirm homosexuality.

The vast majority of Pentecostal groups decried the decision, but Clanton, an openly gay former United Pentecostal Church (UPC) minister, believes he helped make history. “We have the distinction of being the only Pentecostal representative in this brief that was considered by the highest court in the land,” he wrote in a letter posted on RPI’s Web site. “We have so much to be thankful for and a lot to celebrate. God is truly liberating His remnant people.”

Liberty from homosexuality can be found in Christ, ex-gay ministers told Charisma, but they said only a minority of churches offer relevant ministry to gays and lesbians. Pastor Darryl Foster, a former homosexual who now leads Restoration Church Atlanta and helps train urban churches in ex-gay ministry, said his biggest opposition has been from pastors. “I’ve had people tell me we don’t have to have ministry to homosexuals,” he said.

Meanwhile, the leaders of gay-friendly charismatic churches say the caliber of ministers in their circuit is improving, and Christians with same-sex attractions are finding a refuge in their congregations. “The trend in the gay community is toward Spirit-filled worship,” said Randy Duncan, pastor of New Life Community Church of Hope in LaPorte, Ind. “People tell me they didn’t expect God to be here, but He is here in Spirit and power and love–lots of love.”

Clanton said the pro-gay policy moves this summer will likely polarize the church–and he believes that is a good thing. He said there are many gay men and women who have quietly been allowed to remain on worship teams and on staff at Pentecostal and charismatic churches. He said now pastors will have to “be more heavy handed in dealing with homosexuality. Are we going to allow these people on the platform?”

Foster said the answer is easy. “Anybody who is in unrepentant sin should not be allowed to serve in leadership,” he said. Yet he admits the scales are often unbalanced. “People who are involved in homosexuality are set down, but no ministry is set up for them to deal with the sin problem.”

John Wescott, executive director of Exchange Ministries, an ex-gay ministry in Orlando, Fla., said he believes many pastors are naïve about the number of people in their churches who struggle with same-sex attraction. But he said Christians hold the key, noting that he found freedom from homosexuality with the help of a local church. “They embraced me, they loved me, but when they needed to they confronted me,” Wescott said.

Ideally, Christians should offer relevant ministry while challenging pro-gay policies, ex-gay ministers say. “It’s time for the Christian community to stop sitting on the sidelines and be apathetic about public policy,” said Randy Thomas, ministries and media relations manager for Exodus International. “At the same time we don’t need to fall into the trap of polarized thinking. We cannot forget the faces. Christ is more concerned about the condition of a person’s heart. It’s not really a hard balance, but it’s a hard perspective to grasp in a culture war.”

Those on the front lines of that culture war want more Christians to get involved. In September the Canadian Parliament rejected a motion to define marriage as a union between one man and one woman by a 137-132 margin. At press time the issue was still being hotly debated, but Parliament also had passed a bill extending hate speech laws to protect gays and lesbians. Concerned Women for America is one of several Christian groups that believe such classification could be used to label condemnation of homosexuality based on biblical passages as hate speech.

Conservative groups in the United States fear similar legislation may pass here. Focus on the Family has a link on its Web site to the American Family Association’s , which is drumming up support for the Federal Marriage Amendment, designed in part to prevent the Massachusetts Supreme Court from legalizing gay marriage. At press time the group had secured more than a half million signatures.

The Assemblies of God is urging its constituents to support this legislation, and various grass-roots organizations, such as the Theological Education Institute’s , are leading similar campaigns to defend traditional marriage.
Adrienne S. Gaines

Bill McCartney says he’s finished, but the organization he founded 13 years ago will go on. The head of the international men’s ministry Promise Keepers (PK) announced his resignation in September during a quarterly board of directors meeting. He said he wanted to care for his ill wife and spend more time with his family.

“God has assigned me to be a husband and a grandfather,” McCartney, 63, explained. “Promise Keepers is not finished; it is needed now more than ever,” he added. “I am confident that the Lord will direct and empower the ministry to move forward in strength and support–the opportunities for PK are limitless.”

The resignation, which became effective Oct. 1, came just months after McCartney announced he was stepping down temporarily to care for his ailing wife, Lyndi, who has been suffering from “a severe respiratory condition” for some time.

Retired Army Gen. Alonzo Short, chairman of the Promise Keepers board, will serve as interim president until a successor is named. Short praised McCartney for his vision to reach men and for his leadership of the organization.

“Coach Mac has enabled millions of men to find their identity in Christ and embrace true manhood, which has equipped them to be better husbands, fathers and … leaders,” Short said. “[McCartney] will always be the founder, and we expect to solicit his advice, counsel and expressions of love.”

More than 5 million men have attended Promise Keepers conferences since the Denver-based organization started in 1990, PK reported. The ministry’s rise was capped in 1997 with Stand in the Gap, which drew 1 million men to Washington, D.C. At the beginning of 2003, PK cut its staff from 100 to 75, down from a one-time high of 450 employees.

Short said PK must continue because “men of integrity will make the difference in our society. Promise Keepers intends to continue to be there to help encourage empower and equip them in that challenge.”

Harold Velasquez, PK vice president of creative services, pointed to a successful conference season in 2003 and said McCartney leaves the organization in solid shape. The ministry is planning 17 conferences in 2004, built around the theme “Uprising: the Revolution of a Man’s Soul.”

Velasquez said McCartney’s decision to put family first is an example for all men. He concluded: “Coach Mac is, in my opinion, the epitome of a true Promise Keeper. He made a promise to his wife.”
Robert Andrescik

Written and produced by Eddie DeGarmo, !HERO is a modern gospel adaptation that will tour 19 cities this fall
An African American Jesus who sports dreadlocks and was born in Bethlehem, Pa., will be touring 19 cities beginning this month as part of a rock opera that portrays a modern-day Christ who lives out the gospel in New York City, confronting terrorists and raising gunshot victims from the dead.

!HERO, written and produced by Christian music veteran Eddie DeGarmo, stars dc Talk’s Michael Tait as Hero (Jesus), Rebecca St. James as Maggie (Mary Magdalene) and Mark Stuart of Audio Adrenaline as Petrov (Peter).

Ten years in the making, the theatrical production is part of a larger project that includes a 33-song, double-disc CD as well as a comic book series and novel titled City of Dreams, which was written by Stephen Lawhead, an internationally acclaimed fantasy writer and former DeGarmo & Key manager. Dramatic audio books also are in the works along with a sequel to the novel, Rogue Nation, which is set to hit bookstores in April.

Meanwhile, the whirlwind musical tour was to begin Nov. 1 in High Point, N.C., and is set to hit 19 cities in 23 days. DeGarmo declined to tell Charisma how much the production cost, but described it as “expensive” and “exciting.”

The show features performances by some of contemporary Christian music’s top talent, including rapper T-Bone, John Cooper of Skillet and Matt Hammitt of Sanctus Real. Participants at the Christian Booksellers’ Association convention in July were given a sneak peak at Universal Studio’s Hard Rock Café in Orlando, Fla., and for three hours, there was standing room only.

The vision for the project emerged in 1994 after DeGarmo had a talk with his oldest daughter, then a Nashville, Tenn., student teacher who had given her seventh-graders an informal survey about the significance of Easter.

“Only one in 10 could connect the dots between Jesus and the resurrection,” he told Charisma. “They knew the secular stuff. … !HERO was born out of a passion for what I could do to connect the gospel in different ways to a new generation of folks who really didn’t understand what the gospel is about.”

This isn’t the first time DeGarmo has gone out on a creative limb. More than two decades ago he and fellow musician Dana Key became the first Christian artists to successfully get a hit single (“666”) into frequent rotation on what was then a new, all-video network known as MTV. DeGarmo later teamed up with Dan Brock to launch Forefront Records, home of dc Talk, Rebecca St. James, Audio Adrenaline and Big Tent Revival. DeGarmo now heads up EMI’s Music Publishing Group.

DeGarmo hopes !HERO will get people, especially youth, talking. “What would it be like if Jesus were here, today?” he asked. “We all think about these things. My vision was … maybe the audience would connect with dirty cops, power politics and street gangs better than Roman magistrates, centurions and zealots.”

DeGarmo admits his story sometimes gets “a little topsy-turvy.” He cites a scene in which a young girl in Harlem is raised from the dead after catching a bullet in a drive-by shooting. Tait and T-Bone perform a song titled “Raised in Harlem,” which DeGarmo said is one of the highlights of the show. “!HERO is an aggressive story with very modern music,” DeGarmo said. “I’m not trying to rewrite the Bible. I’m just trying to get people talking.”

Though the opera already is being compared to Godspell and Jesus Christ Superstar, DeGarmo insists there is a difference. “!HERO is a story the church can embrace. It is the first adaptation of the gospel that takes into account that the world has had 2,000 years to become a very strange place! We have terrorist groups vs. the zealots, and these groups create a tension that was lost in Godspell and the other adaptations.”

DeGarmo hopes the opera will have mass appeal–edifying those who know the gospel and evangelizing those who don’t. But ultimately, he wants the production to do one thing: get people talking.
Cindi Courbat