The conference began in earnest today with morning Bible study in the book of Ephesians (we have been asked to study Ephesians for the past year) and discussion around our tables. Then we tackled the issue of “Truth in a Pluralistic World” with multiple presentations and discussion time. After lunch I attended a large group session on media. Probably most interesting in that series of presentations was the creative development of materials geared for Christians to use with a discussion group they gather after watching a major-release film. “United Africa” is such a major motion picture that can be used by Christians to create “public square” interaction about societal values.
All the delegates from the US met for a session late in the afternoon. This was primarily to “prime the pump” about how we could follow up after the congress to keep moving forward.
The evening session focused on what God is doing in Asia, and concentrated prayer on the persecuted church. A young woman of 18 gave a powerful testimony of spending her childhood in North Korea, then fleeing with her family to China where her parents became Christians and her mother died. Her father decided that God was calling him to carry the gospel back to his people in North Korea. Leaving his only child with a Christian family in China, he went back into the North and was eventually arrested and never heard from again. This young woman eventually responded to God’s love herself and with her voice breaking, she shared how she has committed her life to reaching the people of North Korea. The crowd of 5,000 rose to give her a standing ovation in respect for the power of her testimony of God’s love in her life.
Thanks to your prayers, I’m feeling better but tired from a long day. I’ll try to get some pictures tomorrow, although there is no way to capture the impact of believers from 198 countries praising God together or filling the hallways and meeting rooms with discussions in a multitude of languages.
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