The Evangelical Church of Vietnam (also known as Tin Lanh) is celebrating 100 years of ministry in the communist country. Today there are 1.2 million believers in Vietnam, most of them part of the group. However, of the 71 people groups in Vietnam, 52 still include less than 2 percent who follow Jesus. About 40 million people in North Vietnam do not know Christ. “[The Vietnam believers] want to be a force for Jesus,” says Missionary Alliance President Gary Benedict. “They are a sleeping giant in the cause of missions.”

Why Campus Crusade for Christ will be known as Cru in the U.S. starting in 2012

Campus Crusade for Christ in the U.S. is changing its name to Cru. The new name will be adopted in early 2012. The U.S. ministry hopes the new name will overcome existing barriers and perceptions inherent in the original name.

“From the beginning, Bill [Bright] was open to changing our name. He never felt it was set in stone,” says Vonette Bright, who co-founded Campus Crusade for Christ with her husband. “In fact, he actually considered changing the name 20 or 25 years ago. 

“We want to remove any obstacle to people hearing about the most important person who ever lived: 
Jesus Christ.”

The name, selected from a pool of 1,600 potential names, has a track record within Campus Crusade for Christ. Since the mid-1990s it has been used locally on the majority of their campus ministries in the U.S..

“This decision has been saturated with prayer,” says Steve Douglass, president of Campus Crusade for Christ. “We only want what God wants for us. And while we are excited about this name, we are even more excited about our renewed commitment to our mission. We believe this new name will position us to connect better with the next generation.”

Mark Rutland is adding his leadership support to the 2011 Day of Prayer

Mark Rutland, the president of Oral Roberts University and a best-selling author, has joined the Day of Prayer. The event is observed on the first Sunday of every October. This global grassroots prayer movement, led by Robert Stearns and Jack Hayford, calls Christians to unite in prayer across denominational, cultural and political differences on Sunday, Oct. 2.

Prayers will ask for God’s peace, blessing and provision on Jerusalem and its people. Last year, churches in more than 175 nations—including seven predominantly Muslim countries—participated in this multinational and religiously diverse prayer initiative, and prayer resources were translated into some 23 languages.

“Prayer for peace anywhere is blessed,” Rutland says. “Prayer for Jerusalem anytime is blessed. Prayer for the peace of Jerusalem is the perfect match.”

More than 1,200 leaders who are endorsing this year’s day of prayer—including Paul Cedar, Ron Luce, Kay Arthur, Jane Hansen, T.D. Jakes and Ravi Zacharias—represent numerous cultures, denominations and generations. An exciting new development is the spread of this prayer movement at colleges.

“As these global challenges arise, God is present,” says Stearns, co-chair of the event.” His response has been to stir the hearts of Christians from China to Germany and from Kenya to Brazil to raise their voices in fervent intercession with His Son on behalf of Jerusalem and all her inhabitants, both Jew and Arab alike.”

Like Stearns, Hayford of The Foursquare Church, Rutland and others who lend their name and support to this prayer initiative say that intercession must be coupled with practical support for all who suffer in this region.

Stearns has developed a practical channel for support for all those in need from the region through the Jerusalem Fund. On Oct. 2, many participating churches will take up a special collection for this fund as a way to express God’s love to Jews, Arabs and Christians alike in Jerusalem.

South Sudan officially raised its flag on July 9, finally declaring the independence it sought for more than 50 years. The new nation was birthed after decades of civil war with the north that saw about 2 million people killed. “The church played a bigger role in helping the suffering people of South Sudan than anyone will ever know,” Bishop Arkangel Wani Lami told a Samaritan’s Purse blog.

“Though it was a time of great persecution for us, the church was the voice for the voiceless … hope for the hopeless. Pastors risked their lives to feed the people and bring the sick to hospitals. The church risked everything to be a light for Christ during the war. Nobody saw but God.”

South Sudan has made rapid progress on the international front despite armed rebellions at home. The U.S. and Britain have recognized the nation. Israel was among the first to establish diplomatic ties. Yet many are waiting to see whether Christians and Muslims can live together peacefully in Africa’s 54th nation.

DEBATING THE ‘GAY DILEMMA’

“The Church’s Gay Dilemma”—really? The “church” doesn’t have a “gay dilemma.” Church attendees do. The church Christ gave His precious life for was, is and forever will be dilemma-free.

Lee Steele, Winter Haven, Fla.

“A Way Out” by Janet Boynes was a great article (July). I’m happy she has peace with the Lord and is helping the church understand how to reach out in love to those who struggle with same-sex attractions. She is right about the answer being for godly women to love those caught up in the sin of lesbianism. It’s truly a beautiful thing to see believers loving on each other, in spite of our faults. 

Kristen Clark, via Internet

As a baptized Christian for 54 years, I cannot understand Charisma writing anything about homosexuality. We all know it’s a sin, so why do we have Christians getting involved?

Julia Randle, Jacksonville, Ark.

Ronald J. Sider’s “Marriage Under Siege” (July) was spot on. Christians say that gay marriage will destroy the family unit. Considering the growing numbers of out-of-wedlock births among heterosexual women and the high divorce rate and various forms of family dysfunction among heterosexuals, straight Americans don’t need help from the tiny minority of gays when it comes to destroying the family. If the church is worried about America’s cultural decay, they have no one to blame but themselves.

name withheld

‘squishy’ gospel isn’t the answer

I agree with the foundational Christian tenets J. Lee Grady used to address the creeping New Age-style beliefs infiltrating the church (“A Squishy Gospel,” July). The aggressive “turn or burn” types are quickly set aside by seekers in favor of the ooey-gooey God of love. The solution is clear: We must center our evangelistic efforts on love and stay true to the methods in our holy instruction manual. 

Mike Weber, Gurnee, Ill.

Correction: Our story “The Plan for a Gay (Domi)Nation” (July) incorrectly called an advocacy group that includes Wheaton College alumni a “campus” organization. It is not officially affiliated with the school .

Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. —James 4:4

I have never had an enemy in the non-Christian world. Yet that fact doesn’t cheer me up. All my enemies have been Christians. Sadly, Christians are not exempt from jealousy and ambition. I sometimes wonder how many theological controversies—past and present—are, in reality, theological issues. The untold story in so many famous accounts is that there was often a spirit of rivalry that was masked as being a theological issue. The truth will come out in the courtroom of God.

I know that God has enemies. His enemy is the devil; the enemy of Jesus Christ is Satan. The enemy of the Holy Spirit is the devil, the enemy of the truth is the devil, the enemy of the church is the devil, and God’s enemies are those who are against the truth.

God may choose to get our attention and increase our anointing by the rival spirit of an enemy. Now a rivalry can be a friendly rivalry, but sometimes it can lead to hostility. A rival is a person who competes with you. And yet a friendly rivalry can be healthy: “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another” (Prov. 27:17). Every rival in our lives may be seen as a thorn in the flesh to get us to pray harder.

There can be a strategic rivalry. Saul became jealous of David, and David became the enemy of Saul for the rest of his life. David’s hero became his enemy, but it was God’s way of refining David’s anointing—the best thing that could have happened to him. God uses an enemy to refine us. That is why it is strategic.

Be sure that you are in Christ. Be sure that you are covered by the blood of Jesus. Be sure that all your sins are under His blood, because you surely don’t want God as an enemy. Be sure then, that you know that your sins are forgiven and that you are walking in the light (1 John 1:7).

Excerpted from The Thorn in the Flesh (Charisma House, 2004).

After inviting fans to send him their life stories, recording artist Matthew West wound up with 10,000 accounts from every U.S. state and 20 other countries.

Though only a handful made it to his 2010 CD, The Story of Your Life, West now tells the bigger story—this time in a book by the same name—of how the project changed his life.

Switchfoot and producer Neal Avron (Linkin Park) teamed up for the band’s eighth studio record (out Sept. 27), creating a sound that’s exploratory and eclectic but keeps the group’s raw, anthemic power intact. (You’ll still want to crank it up.)

In his book Go Big, Cory Cotton of the trick basketball group and YouTube sensation Dude Perfect covers the ins and outs of pursuing a dream in a world connected by social networks. 

Leeland’s fourth CD (Sept. 20) draws inspiration from historical faith figures such as preacher Jonathan Edwards and Salvation Army founder William Booth, whose passion for God stirred revival wherever they went.