These few stories made us smile this year. Hope these cheer you up too.
1. Atheist society secretary resigns after finding Jesus
The former secretary of a society called Atheists In Kenya has resigned from his role after becoming a Christian.
A video has emerged showing Seth Mahiga accepting Jesus in church. He said he had been experiencing “difficulties in life” prior to his resignation from the role of secretary at Atheists in Kenya.
2. A Hillsong member wins ‘The Voice Australia’
A member of the evangelical megachurch Hillsong has won this year’s edition of the singing competition ‘The Voice Australia’.
Bella Taylor Smith, 23, became the competition’s winner after a powerful duet performance of Andrea Bocelli’s “The prayer” with her coach Guy Sebastian, also a devout Christian.
3.589 people get baptised at Elevation Church in one weekend
Elevation Church in the US, which came from the Southern Baptist Convention and from which Elevation Worship arose, has about 23 sites and over 25,000 people – many of whom will already be baptised. In the run-up to Sunday 8th August, it encouraged people to think about committing their lives to Christ and declaring that publicly through baptism.
4. Jordan Peterson’s daughter discusses recent conversion to Christianity: ‘I think I got yelled at by God’
Mikhaila Peterson, the daughter of philosopher Jordan Peterson, has spoken publicly about finding faith.
Speaking on her podcast, she said she was recently encouraged by a friend to explore God after facing four difficult situations in her life.
5. Christian reality star gives away all of her possessions following call from God
A Christian actor and influencer says she felt prompted by God to give away all her belongings in celebration of her birthday.
Khafi Ekpata announced to her 1.4m Instagram followers that everything, other than her baby boy and the bare essentials were up for grabs to mark the special occasion.
6. Church built by its members opens doors after a 10-year construction project
A church in Cambridgeshire that has taken its members more than ten years to build has finally opened its doors.
The Ark Church in Isleham is believed to be one of the biggest self-build projects in the UK.
7. US pastor donates kidney to church member after feeling it was a call from God
A pastor in the US state of Missouri donated a kidney to a member of his church who had been struggling with kidney failure for two years.
The leader of Park Grove Christian Church, Pastor Jack Coultas, had been a friend of the family since 2008 and was well aware of the health challenges the family had gone through.
He told CBN News he wanted to do “something practical to be able to help him”.
8. Bible translated into more languages than ever before, despite the pandemic
Efforts to translate the Bible into more languages across the world are accelerating, despite the pandemic.
Wycliffe Bible Translators says 717 languages now have a full Bible translation – almost ten per cent of the number of languages spoken in the world. That’s an increase of 13 languages in the previous year.
9. 18 to 34-year-olds more likely to pray than over 55s, survey finds
A new survey by Savanta ComRes has revealed 51 per cent of young adults pray at least once a month compared to 24 per cent of those aged 55 and over.
It also found they are more likely to attend church with 49 per cent saying they attend church at least once a month compared to under a fifth (16 per cent) of those aged 55 and over.
10. Christmas jumper becomes new ‘uniform’ for clergy across UK
A Marks & Spencer (M&S) Christmas jumper has become a hit among female clergy across the UK with some calling it the “Christmas clergy uniform” of 2021.
Using the hashtag #TeamBelieve, many female vicars and lay people have taken to social media to share their pictures wearing the jumper on top of their clerical collar.
(Premier News, Reuters)
