FABRICE MUAMBA...remarkable recovery

Spring 2012 35p

DELIA DEFENDSTHEFAITHSEE PAGE 4

ww

w.theson.org.uk

KELLE BRYAN DISCOVERSTHE ETERNAL TRUTH – SEE PAGE 3

BIG NAMES ARE IN THE SON

CHELSEA STAR GIVES THANKS TO

GOD FOR EVERY GOAL HE SCORES

–See Back Page

WHEN Bolton Wanderers midfielderFabrice Muamba collapsed with a cardiac arrest during his team’s FA CupQuarter Final against Spurs it sparkeda remarkable outpouring of prayer andsupport.The 23-year-old’s heart stopped for 78 minutes while paramedics and specialistsat the London Chest Hospital fought to savehis life.

In the agonising minutes after Fabrice collapsed on the White Hart Lane pitch,several players – including Spurs strikerRafael van de Vaart – fell to their knees inprayer.

In the hours after the match players andthousands of fans went onto the internet tocall for prayers for Fabrice, who has astrong Christian faith.

All around the country – and in other partsof the world – people prayed for a man they

knew only through his position as a PremierLeague footballer.

The following day Chelsea players wore‘Pray 4 Muamba’ T-shirts under their kitand at football matches all over the UK fansand players showed their support for him. Remarkably Fabrice stunned medicalexperts with his rapid recovery – whichmany described as ‘miraculous’ – and within a few days he was sitting up in bedand talking with family, friends and fellowplayers.

Two weeks after his collapse a picture ofFabrice was posted on his Twitter feed tothank people for ‘such overwhelming support.’

When prayer is one answer – see page 14 and 15

THE POWER OF PRAYER

Take a Tebow

– see story

on page 13

PRAYING...Spurs starsRafael van de Vaart on hisknees praying for Fabrice

Muamba after his collapse

GUNNER WHO IS GUNNING FOR LOST SOULS – SEE STORY BACK PAGE

Page 2 THE SON Spring 2012

HOMELESS and hopelessly addictedto drugs and alcohol Steph Macleodwas as desperate as a man could be.

Living rough and begging on the streets ofEdinburgh he had broken contact with hisfriends and family, been banned from homelesshostels and was waking up every other day inhospital due to the severity of his drinkinghabits.

He was told by medical professionals that hewould inevitably die if he continued to abusehis body through addiction.

Desperate but unable to rid himself of hisaddiction Steph found out about the BethanyChristian Centre through his GP.

A few days later - in February 2006 – hefound himself in the 17-bed hostel for homeless men with addicition problems.

Steph had once been a promising classicalguitar student at the Royal Scottish Academyof Music and Drama, but personal problemsstemming from his teenage years led to mentalhealth problems. Steph found sanctuary inalcohol and drugs. These problems continuedto grow and grow until they consumed him andbecame his sole priority in every aspect of hislife.

During his eight month stay at the BethanyCentre Steph began to address his reasons fordrinking and taking drugs. It was during thistime that he also found the saving grace ofJesus Christ.

Things started to change dramatically in hislife. In Steph’s own word’s: “I cried out to Godin my darkest hour. I asked Him to save me. I asked for a life worth living. God answeredbig time!

“The morning after I gave my heart to JesusI was still homeless, I still had nothing, and Iwas still estranged from friends and family.The difference was I no longer looked atmyself as the centre of the universe; I looked toGod first in all things.

“After a while I began to see life for what itreally was: beautiful! I then overcame myproblems, well the big ones anyway, and started to work on my relationships, and everything else started to fall into place.”

Steph picked up the guitar for the first timein years and began to write songs about hisexperiences of substance abuse and beinghomeless. It was the first time Steph had everwritten songs or indeed sung anything in thismusical format. In the summer of 2006 Stephrecorded six acoustic tracks at a studio inEdinburgh which he then posted up onMySpace.

The response to songs like AlcoholicSynonymous‚ and Man in the cold were ‘over-whelming’ as many people could relate toSteph’s experiences.

This continued to encourage Steph and gavehim the motivation to continue rebuilding hislife. Steph found great comfort and healing inboth writing songs and his faith in Christ.

After leaving the Bethany Centre he continued to write music and started performing in and around his local area.

Later that year he had married and started afamily which greatly influenced his writing.

He began to network with other musiciansand music lovers via the internet, and continued to travel to play gigs and various festivals.

With the help of friends and college studentsSteph was able to continue recording and performing around the UK. Through enteringvarious competitions Steph was offered sets at

festivals like The Retrofest, The BelladrumFestival, The Wizard Festival, and TheSpratton Folk Festival, as well as globalacoustic gatherings both in the UK and abroad.He also competed and won the 2009Troubadour Acoustic Singer Songwriter competition in Berlin, Germany. Steph has also had his music used in independent film and TV.

In 2008 Steph was performing regularly bothas a solo acoustic singer songwriter and alsowith his newly formed band The WhineyShuffle. The three piece band consist of Steph,bassist Dave Biddulph, and drummer SiWalker. The Whiney Shuffle complement theintimate, personal, and honest sound of Steph’ssolo songs with bold beats, addictive grooves,and energetic performance.

Steph also writes and performs music that isgreatly influenced by his faith.

In 2009 he was invited to contribute toOrigin Scotland’s album Un|Broken. He wrotethree songs for the album. It was during thistime that he got to know Euan MacRae andScottish Christian Charity An Airde and startedtalking about recording his own project.

Later that year, and with the help of OriginScotland’s Exile Band, Steph wrote andrecorded a 12 track Christian album calledDeliverance.

The self-penned songs are a personalaccount of the impact Christ has had on hisrecovery from alcohol and drug addiction theselast six years.

The immediate success of the album hasbeen followed with a five track EP titled MyFather.

He has now been invited to appear on AledJones’ show on BBC Radio 2 – more criticalacclaim for the man who once lived on thestreets without any hope or future prospects.

For more information or to downloadSteph’s music visit www.stephmacleod.com

EINSTEINPROVED HOWFAILURE CANBE A BRIDGETO SUCCESS

This article is reproduced from UCB’s‘Word for Today’ which is availableonline at www.ucb.co.uk

Singer witha song ofreal hope

From homeless, hope-less addict to an inspiring musician and songwriter

PERFORMING

PERSONAL ACCOUNT

DRAMATIC CHANGE

“The morning after I gave my heart to JesusI was still homeless, I still had nothing, and I was still estranged from friends and family.The difference was I no longer looked atmyself as the centre of the universe; I lookedto God first in all things.”

''A righteous man may fall seventimes and rise again...'' Proverbs24:16Until you overcome the fear of failure,you'll be immobilised at the prospect oftaking a risk. The important thing toremember when you fail is not to quit.

History shows that failure can actuallybecome a bridge to success.

In school, Napoleon was forty-second ina class of forty-three, yet he went on tobuild an army that conquered much ofthe world.

George Washington lost two-thirds ofhis military battles, yet against overwhelming odds he won theRevolutionary War and changedAmerican history.

Albert Einsteinwas such aslow learnerthat it was suggested heswitch studiesfrom physics tosome othertopic, yet he'sconsidered thefather of theatomic age.

When yourecall thesenames youdon't remembertheir failuresbut their contributions to the world. Only whenyou consider your failure to be final, areyou finally a failure.

Failure is not an event, only an opinion,and as long as it's not your opinion youcan come back and succeed.

‘A righteous man may fall seven timesand rise again.’

In his first inaugural address FranklinRoosevelt told the nation, ‘The onlything we have to fear is fear itself.’

Failure is not fatal; you can begin again.But the fear of failure could prove fatalto your goals by keeping you from trying again.

After cataloguing every possible scenario that could come against us,such as tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril,sword, Paul writes: ‘Yet in all thesethings we are more than conquerorsthrough Him who loved us’(Romans 8:37 NKJV).

So the word for you today is - don'tbe afraid of failure.

AAllbbeerrttEEiinnsstteeiinn -- ssllooww lleeaarrnneerr

Talented singer song-writer Steph Macleod

THE SON Spring 2012 Page 3

Kelle finds theETERNALtruth...

KELLE BRYAN’S career slammedto a sudden halt at an age whenmost people are just starting out.

At 21, the former singer with girl groupEternal had it all. She’d sold over nine millionalbums, done four world tours, enjoyed astring of solo Top 20 hits and had become amillionairess.

But even her worldwide success had notmanaged to fill an emptiness deep inside.

“It was a difficult time and I felt particularlyempty,” she says. “It was only when I foundGod that something clicked.”

Kelle, now 37, had started her showbizcareer aged just two when she won a MissJunior World competition. But her big breakhappened one night when she when she andbest friend, Louise Nurding (now LouiseRedknapp), went clubbing - even though at16 they were both under-age.

They bumped into record producer DenisIngoldsby who was looking to form an all-girlband and invited them to audition. In the1990s boy bands were all the rage untilEternal - Kelle, Louise and sisters Esther andVernie Bennett - took the pop world by storm.

Their hits included Stay, Power of a Womanand One Step From Heaven. Music critics sayEternal led the way for other girl bands, mostnotably the Spice Girls, to break through.

For Kelle, who rarely attended church as achild, heaven meant wealth and fame.

“Religion was never really a major part ofmy life when I was growing up,” she said.“My nan and grandad were Christians, butmy mum decided not to go to church so I didn’teither. I went to a Catholic church as part ofschool. But I didn’t have my own relationshipwith God.”

As the band came to an end, so too did themarriage of Kelle’s parents. It was a low timefor her, despite floods of TV and music offers.

“Then an odd thing happened,” sheexplains. A friend said she was visiting herchurch and asked if I wanted to go along. Iwent, never thinking this sort of thing would

happen to me, and something just clickedinside.

“Life didn’t change instantly, but witheverything I’d been through to that point, itfelt right, and I’ve been involved as aChristian ever since.”

After splitting from Eternal, Kelle signed toMercury Records and released the solo singleHigher Than Heaven. Her second solo single,I Wanna Know, and debut album Breakfast inBed were set for release when illness struck.

Kelle was diagnosed with lupus - an auto-immune inflammatory skin disease. Shebecame a celebrity patron of the SaintThomas Lupus Trust.

In 2000, Kelle gained a black belt in kick-boxing after taking lessons to help regain her

health following a diagnosis with lupus. Inthe same year she was given the great honourof becoming a celebrity patron of the SaintThomas Lupus Trust, a cause she continues tocampaign to raise awareness of.

Behind the scenes, Kelle was busy developing her own media brand Red HotEntertainment - promoting and managingartists, under the ethos of ‘inspiring self beliefin infinite possibilities, achievement and success’.

Kelle also completed her Masters Degree atMiddlesex University.

2005 saw Kelle return to her acting roots,when she completed work on her first filmThe Virus (Chris Holden films).

For a while she hosted the BAFTA-nominated music programme The N List forNickelodeon, but in the main, concentratedon recovering from her health problems.

TV roles followed in EastEnders and TheBill and a celebrity appearance on TheWeakest Link. There was also pantomime.

But against all this, she says her Christianbeliefs have helped structure her life and giveit purpose. Her only regret is that she didn’tbecome a Christian sooner.

“Had I been a Christian before Eternal,everything would have been different,” shesays.

Some Christians were upset when Kelleagreed to appear on the reality show,Celebrity Love Island in Fiji.

“I didn’t want to do it. I thought it was themost un-God-like thing I could do. I spoke tomy bishop about it, and he pointed out thatreality TV shows are supposed to depict everywalk of life. So why shouldn’t there be aChristian in there?

“So I said, ‘why not?’ And I’m very gladI did - and glad I did it for the right reasons.There were other people in there who neededGod a lot more than me. God spoke to mevery clearly and said this was not about me.And I got a lot of positive public feedbackafterwards.”

Her Christian faith has given Kelle a trueunderstanding of fame and wealth. But she isstill uncomfortable being a role model.

“There are always people looking at whatyou do, what you say and how you carryyourself. You therefore have to be responsiblein what you say and do,” she says.

Kelle in recent years has worked with TheLight House Agency, touring the UK to helpspread the Christian message among youngpeople.

“I was really pleased to be on tour meetingyoung people who haven’t met God yet.People need to develop their own personalrelationship with God,” she says.

“The Bible is very relevant to modern society. When I read it a few years back, Irealised it was a remedy to everything.”

In 2010 she married Jay Gudgeon in a lavish ceremony at a country mansion inSuffolk.

She had met Jay on the internet the yearbefore and the couple shared their vows infront of celebrities including Boyzone’sShane Lynch and British actress and singerMichelle Gayle.

“It summed up so many years of dreamingof my special day. I couldn’t even look at Jaywhen we said our vows. For me, marriage issomething so special and treasured in myfaith, as well as me as a person.

“ I’ve been blessed with an amazing manwho respects that and has stood by methrough a lot of difficult stuff.”Then inOctober last year Kelle’s other dream cametrue when she gave birth to baby Regan.

The one-time pop star has discovered truelove and the eternal truth of God’s word.

As a member of the top all-girl band

Eternal, Kelle Bryan enjoyed fame and

fortune. But now it’s her Christian faith

that’s the driving force in her life

ALL-GIRL BAND

CELEBRITY PATRON

ACTING ROOTS

UNCOMFORTABLE

SHARED VOWS

Page 4 THE SON Spring 2012

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VOICE OF

Why prayer isso important

There’s a lot of references inthis issue to prayer and thevital part it plays in

our community and the lives ofpeople in this country.

Cynics and non-believers dismiss prayer asmeaningless. An atheist councillor whowanted prayers at his local council meetingbanned took his case to court – and won.

But for many millions of people in the UK,prayer is an important part of their dailylives, especially at times of need

This was never more evident than in thewake of footballer Fabrice Muamba’s collapse during the FA Cup with Spurs.

It seemed as if a whole nation was movedto prayer in an outpouring of support for theyoung sportsman.

Thankfully, Fabrice appears to be makinga remarkable recovery. Whether or not this isdue to all the prayers that were prayed forhim we may never know this side of heaven.

However, we do know that scientific testof the power of prayer in the USA some yearsago revealed a positive answer.

About 400 heart patients were all receiving the same good care. But only 200of them were prayed for. The patients werenot aware of this test nor did the doctorsknow which patients were being prayed for.The result revealed that the patients whowere prayed for did so much better than theothers that they needed far fewer drugs. Nonerequired emergency ventilator treatment but12 of the other group had to be placed onventilators.

A later study showed that prayer benefitedpatients with high blood pressure, heartattacks, wounds and anxiety. It also provedthat prayer is effective from a distance. Itdoesn’t matter how far away a person is fromthe person they are praying for. Additionalstudies and reports indicated that people whopray regularly, especially those who meditatewhile praying, enjoy a happier, more serenelife.

Those of us who pray on a regular basisknow that there is a supernatural powerreleased inside of us when we pray. We knowpersonally that when we pray we can senseand ‘feel’ God’s presence.

EFFECTIVE PRAYER

CELEBRITY ‘MILITANT’

CELEBRITY chef Delia Smithhas come to the defence ofChristians she says are facing a ‘running battle’ with‘militant neo-atheists’.

Delia’s comments – posted on herwebsite, www.deliaonline.com –follow a spate of headlines contesting the place of Christianityin the public square.

Her remarks followed the decision by a court to ban prayers atthe meetings of Bideford TownCouncil on the same day as twoChristian guesthouse owners losttheir appeal against damages forrefusing to let a same-sex couplestay in their double room.

Days later, outspoken atheistRichard Dawkins producedresearch suggesting a sharp drop inthe number of people identifyingthemselves as Christians.

He claimed the findings wereproof that Christianity is ‘largelyirrelevant’ in Britain today.

Delia Smith, a practisingCatholic, wrote on her website: “I am, as you may or may not know,a passionate believer but of late, weare somewhat under the cosh.

“There is a running battle goingon in the press, and militant neo-atheists and devout secularistsare busting a gut to drive us off theradar and try to convince us that wehardly exist.”

Ms Smith said she had beenspurred into action by hearingDawkins, claim recently that religion was increasingly irrelevantin Britain.

She said: “Atheists have beensaying that Christianity is dying. He(Richard Dawkins) did a surveywhich said we were not a Christiancountry, which was cheeky – andnot true.

“Secularists and believers havegot to work alongside each other.But Christians are alive and kicking.”

PRAYERS BANNED

ALIVE AND KICKING

A GROUP of MPs have joined forcesto make a stand for the Christianfaith in Parliament.

Christians in Parliament (CiP) is an officialall-party group with a clear vision to encourageand support all Christians who work atWestminster, whether elected or not.

The group recently began an investigation intowhether or not Christian freedoms were beingsqueezed in the UK, fuelled in part by theincreasing number of high-profile court cases inwhich Christians have come up against the lawbecause of their sincerely held beliefs.

The select-committee style enquiry – called‘Clearing the Ground’ – has studied written evidence from over 60 groups and taken oral evidence from over a dozen specialist experts.The group’s preliminary report was publishedrecently.

Gary Streeter MP for South West Devon, whois the chair of CiP, said: “Our report has concludedthat much of the problem flows from recent legislation (notably the Equalities Act 2010)which is largely overseen by a generation that is struggling more and more with religiousilliteracy.

“In short, many large employers, judges,police officers and civil servants simply do notunderstand faith, and do not comprehend the significant minority of people living in the UK

for whom their personal faith is their singlebiggest motivator.

“We are suggesting that more needs to be doneacross Whitehall, local government and largeemployers to better inform decision makersabout the faith motivator if we are to make senseof this problem. We do this for certain minoritygroups, so why not for people of faith?”

He said that Christians in Parliament werecalling on Christian groups and the media to beresponsible and not to exaggerate problems orcry wolf.

“Most problems are sorted out amicablybehind closed doors. We believe that Christianshave made a profound contribution to our societyand we wish to carry on doing so, serving disadvantaged communities because our faithinspires us to do so.

“We are here primarily to follow Jesus, anddemonstrate his love and mercy, not pick fightswith or judge people who do not believe and wholive differently.

“We are here to be salt and light, not a wetblanket. We are not looking for special rights orprivileges, but we are looking for a level playingfield.”

Talking about the work of Christians inParliament he added: “It is great to think thatstretching back to William Wilberforce andbeyond, God has always had his people in thisplace. People will be pleased to know that there

is more Christian activity in the Palace ofWestminster than generally assumed and we aimto work out our faith in these corridors of powerin a way that serves the nation as a whole andsupports all those who work here.”

For more information on Christians inParliament visit www.christiansinparliament.org.uk

DELIA SMITH:‘Christians arealive and kicking’

GARY STREETER MP...‘We believe that Christians havemade a profound contribution toour society and we wish to carryon doing so’

Christian MPs launch inquiryinto the erosion of freedom

SPECIALIST EXPERTS

SALT AND LIGHT

CHEF DELIA CONDEMNSATTACK ON CHRISTIANS

IN HIS BOOK The God Delusion leadingatheist Richard Dawkins famouslyargued that belief in a supernaturalcreator is irrational and that believingin God qualifies as a delusion, or ‘apersistent false belief held in the faceof strong, contradictory evidence.’

But the 70-year-old British ethologist wassinging a different tune recently during anappearance on BBC radio, when he invokedGod to help him remember the full title ofCharles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species, ofwhich Dawkins is a great champion.

Dawkins appeared on BBC Radio 4 Tuesdayto discuss a poll on Christianity in Britain that was commissioned last year by his organisation, the Richard Dawkins Foundationfor Reason and Science.

The results of the poll suggest thatChristianity has become largely irrelevant inBritain and uses as evidence, among other data,the fact that nearly two out of three people who consider themselves Christianscannot name the first book of the NewTestament as the Gospel According toMatthew.

However surprising (or unsurprising) thatfact may be, one prominent British pastorargued it was highly inappropriate of Dawkinsto use that fact to challenge people’s ‘self identification’ as Christians.

To prove his point, Reverend Giles Fraser,former canon chancellor of St Paul’sCathedral, went on BBC radio with Dawkinsrecently and asked the staunch evolutionist toname the full title of Darwin’s seminal work:

Giles Fraser: ‘Richard, if I said to you what

is the full title of The Origin Of Species, I’msure you could tell me that.’

Richard Dawkins: ‘Yes I could.’

Giles Fraser: ‘Go on then.’

Richard Dawkins: ‘On The Origin OfSpecies’ ... Uh. With, Oh God. On The OriginOf Species. There is a subtitle with respect tothe preservation of favoured races in the struggle for life.’

Giles Fraser: ‘You’re the high pope ofDarwinism – if you asked people who believedin evolution that question and you came backand said two percent got it right, it would beterribly easy for me to go ‘they don’t believe itafter all.’

‘It’s just not fair to ask people these questions. They self-identify as Christians andI think you should respect that.’

Dawkins was pretty close; the book’s fulltitle is On the Origin of Species by Means ofNatural Selection, or the Preservation ofFavoured Races in the Struggle for Life.

But his failure to summon the name on command has led a number of British mediaoutlets to label the appearance as ‘deeplyembarrassing’ for Dawkins and claim ‘theHigh Priest of Darwinism doesn’t know thetitle of his own secular bible.’

Linda Woodhead, a professor of philosophyand religion at Lancaster University, wrote inthe Guardian that Dawkin’s poll showsChristianity in Britain is a difficult thing todefine.

Meanwhile Dawkins has also admitted thathe is not 100 percent sure that God doesn’texist – but just barely.

In a 100-minute debate with the Archbishopof Canterbury Rowan Williams, RichardDawkins surprised his online and theatre audiences by conceding a personal chink ofdoubt about his conviction that there is no suchthing as a creator.

But, to the amusement of the Archbishopand others, the evolutionary biologist swiftlyadded that he was ‘6.9 out of seven’ certain ofhis long-standing atheist beliefs.

Replying to moderator Anthony Kenny, anoted English philosopher, Dawkins said, ‘Ithink the probability of a supernatural creatorexisting (is) very, very low.’

Dawkins, author of The God Delusion andother best-sellers, is a leader of the ‘NewAtheist’ movement that aggressively challenges belief in God and criticises harmdone in the name of religion.

‘What I can’t understand is why you can’tsee (that life started from nothing and) is sucha staggering, elegant, beautiful thing, whywould you want to clutter it up with somethingso messy as a God,’ Dawkins told Williams,according to the Daily Telegraph account.

The Archbishop, who heads both the Churchof England and the worldwide AnglicanCommunion, replied that he ‘entirely agreed’with the ‘beauty’ part of Dawkins’ statement— but said ‘I’m not talking about God as anextra who you can shoehorn onto that.’

Oops...atheistDawkins in ‘Oh God’ gaffe

CELEBRITY PATRON

HIGH POPE OF DARWINISM

CRITICISES

Wembley tohost nationalday of prayerand worshipTTEENNSS ooff tthhoouussaannddss ooff CChhrriissttiiaannssffrroomm aallll oovveerr tthhee ccoouunnttrryy aarreeeexxppeecctteedd ttoo fflloocckk ttoo WWeemmbblleeyySSttaaddiiuumm llaatteerr tthhiiss yyeeaarr..But they won’t be there to watch a sportingspectacle – but will instead be comingtogether for a National Day of Prayer andWorship.

GOD TV, Revelation TV, United ChristianBroadcasters, Premier Christian Media, andmany others have committed themselves to getting behind the historicgathering.

The National Day of Prayer and Worship onSeptember 29 is being staged to mobilisethe UK church to pray together for nationaltransformation.

“As GOD TV we hope that we can play amajor part in supporting and promoting thisNational Day of Prayer and Worship. It’skey that as the body of Christ we cometogether to stand as one here across the UKcrying out to the Lord and praising Himbelieving Him for great things across ourland,” said GOD TV UK and Ireland director Fergus Scarfe.

He added: “One of things that we are mostexcited about is that this gathering willallow all the Christian media ministriesfrom across the UK to play a role in supporting this great event. There are issuesthat draw us all together and this is a keymoment across Great Britain in 2012.”

Organisers of the National Day of Prayerand Worship say it will be an historicopportunity for the church of the BritishIsles from every denomination, stream, andtradition to unite at Wembley Stadium topray for the transformation of all sectors ofsociety in our nation.

That’s why UCB UK’s managing directorDavid L’Herroux, says they are partneringwith the National Day of Prayer andWorship: “It will bring people back togetherand ensure that we make a statement in ournations that we as Christian are not hidingbehind a bush, but we are prepared to standtogether and to actually pray for our nationsand see a mighty move of God.”

WEMBLEY... venue for anational day of prayer andworship in September

THE SON Spring 2012 Page 5

Page 6 THE SON Spring 2012

THE SON Spring 2012 Page 7

AFTER being left paralysed by amassive earthquake, you mightexpect to find those left to come toterms with their disability to be feeling nothing but despair.

But Birmingham-based jeweller NormaMurrain found quite the opposite when she visited the Dominican Republic country.

Rather than tears, she found 15 people whowere just glad to be alive. And it was a revelationfor Norma, who believes God is working in thecountry.

“I expected to find pain and despair but thanksto the great work of Haiti Hospital Appeal withthe Baptist Convention of Haiti who built thehospital in partnership, and the God givenresilient Haitian spirit, I found just the opposite,” she said.

Norma decided to fly to the disaster-strickencountry to share her skills to help those left paralysed after the catastrophic quake.

As a Christian, the owner of jewellery firmThe Silver Fish Company felt called by God touse her skills as a jeweller.

She explained: “I had heard of the HaitiHospital Appeal and wanted to be able to help.

“I was told that if I could help those left paralysed find a newtrade then they would beable to sell their goodsto help give them independence and hope.

“I prayed about thesituation and felt thatGod wanted me to go tothe country. I wasn’tsure what I’d find afterthe earthquake or whatthey would think of aChristian in a countrythat has strong voodoobeliefs.”

Norma was given massive support from colleagues within Birmingham’s JewelleryQuarter, who supplied tools and beads for theproject, and raised money to fund her trip.

She set off on her ten-day adventure with hopein her heart but also a little bit of trepidation.

But she need not have worried, becauseNorma found not only a hunger for knowledgefrom the 15 delegates but a hunger for God.

She remembered: “The room was filled withthe electric yet peaceful presence of God: thesimple joy of being alive, friendship and warmth,both from the Haitian smiles and the Caribbeansunshine!

“There was muchhope and optimism for amuch brighter future.”

The workshops were the first activity to takeplace in Haiti hospital’s rehabilitation centre, andNorma felt it a privilege to be part of the centre’s inaugural workshop.

“It was my great privilege to share how tomake a range of jewellery,” she said. “We madea range of jewellery, including crosses, pendants,bracelets and earrings using found, recycled andnatural materials, such as coconut shells, seedsand recycled aluminium cans and horn.”

She now hopes that those who took part willbe able to use their skills to secure their future –and they find faith in God.

“My hope and prayer for all our rehab patients

in Haiti, now my newfriends, is that they willcontinue to use their newtools daily and keep

developing their new jewellery skills and theirrelationship with God!”

Outside the hospital, Norma found that thecountry is still struggling to cope with the resultof the natural disaster – two years after it tookplace.

Buildings are still lying in ruins and there isstill a major need for clean water and shelter.

She explained: “Rebuilding is slow and Ifound that people were without clean water.Rubbish-filled rivers are used by people to wash,and it cholera is a major problem.

“There were 200 patients in the cholera unit onone night while I was at the hospital in CapHaitian. I was told by a medical professional that

A devastating earthquake in Haiti

on January 2010 left an estimated

316,000 people dead, 300,000

injured and more than one million

made homeless.

As the country marked the

second anniversary of the

catastrophic magnitude

7.0 earthquake, Christian

jeweller Norma Murrain

visited the country to pass on her

skills to help those left

paralysed by the disaster.

From despair...

...to hope in Haiti

just one cup of clean water taken at the earlystages of cholera can be the difference betweenlife and death.

“It’s horrendous to see children dying, literallyfor a cup of water, in the western world!

“There are many great charities doing greatwork out there and Haiti Hospital Appeal is agreat example of what can be achieved, but moreneeds to be done.”

She has called for people around the country tohelp achieve justice in Haiti. “The first is freedom, the second: access to a healthy diet;third: shelter; fourth: clean water; fifth: education; sixth: healthcare; seventh: a livelihood.

“I want people in Britain to join the cry forjustice and to help the people of Haiti.”

Norma is now planning to head back to Haitiin the autumn next year to move forward with thenext stage of supporting her 15 trainees in establishing micro-enterprises.

RUBBISH-FILLED

Norma Murrain (left) and pictured above with some ofthe apprentices in Haiti

Big Ben’s

Page 8 THE SON Spring 2012

Christopher LeePower pictured onhis wedding daywith wife Pauline

FROM Shakespeare plays toparts in BBC 1 dramas andCorrie, Christopher Lee Powerhas enjoyed many years as anactor rising through theranks. But his life now is amillion miles away from whereit started.

It was a time when the rich got richerand the poor were worse off. The northsouth divide was widening, as the CityYuppies boasted Porsches and the latestfad – mobile telephones.

Meanwhile, spiralling inflation hit thepoorest, which was coupled with risingunemployment, and desperate people inthe most deprived places began to riot asa recession showed its teeth and bitdeeply.

It sounds all too familiar, but this wasthe 1980s. In the north mine closures andshutting shipyards led to the desperationof the working classes, as whole familieswere ripped apart by job losses andinfighting about the miner’s strikes.

And in Merseyside, a youngChristopher Lee Power was addicted tosniffing anything that would give him atemporary high and an escape from a life

that had been one, long nightmare.

Christopher, from Rock Ferry,Birkenhead, was in his teens, and his lifehad been one of incredible struggle: hehad a speech impediment; his dad was inand out of prison; he’d started stealingfrom the age of five to survive and he’dalso suffered abuse.

“I was angry and had an anger towardsadults because of my abuse,” remembersChristopher. “I was 17 or 18 before I toldmy mum what had been happening, but itwas very painful and embarrassing.”

School for Christopher was one oftrouble, as he took out his frustrations onteachers while hiding his secret of abusethat was slowly eating away at him. It meant he wasn’t being given the education he needed.

It was the height of the Skascene and Christopher found he

had an affinity with the songs

that reflected the mood of the nation.

“I was growing up in an era of angerand with likes of The Specials and theirsong Ghost Town. I escaped by using solvents, glue, butane and eventually I found alcohol as a way of escape,” hesays.

The stealing that began from the age offive spiralled out of control asChristopher then started using his moneyto gamble in the hope of raising enoughcash to help him buy the solvents he wasaddicted to. But then he got caught.

Christopher remembers: “I know itwas wrong. I took the wrong choices andgot sent to a detention centre. This wasthe 80s and it wasn’t like young offenders institutes of today, detentioncentres were like boot camps. They gaveyou a short, sharp shock as a deterrent.”

It was while he was at the detentioncentre that the slow process of his angerand frustration began to ebb away as Christopher was presented with a

Bible from the Gideons.

“I started to read it ansays. “From doing that, change, even the guardsafter me.

“After prison I met areading the Bible and I bI needed to be educated.

Christopher, who is Pauline, says from thabegan to introduce peowho would help and notpath of life would begin

“I started to be taugprayed that God would an actor,” adds Christop

Entertainment was inmum was a Country andwhile his dad was a comthe odds of his earlier began to go to drama sch

At the age of 28, Chri

Christoper Lee Power overcame a difficult upbringing to find faith– and then fame as an actor

DRAMA OF A LIFE CHANG

ANGRY PRAYE

Singer songwriter Rebecca Fergusonis being billed as one of Britain’sbiggest stars of the future.

The 25-year-old mother of two from Merseysidefinished as runner up in X-Factor, losing out to eventual winner Matt Cardle.

It was her stunning rendition of Amazing Grace inthe semi-final which saw her through to the final –and wowed the judges.

It was a bold statement about her faith as aChristian that she dared to sing a song that is probably unpopular to the huge audience of the realityTV show.

Rebecca had wanted to sing the song for a longtime and saved it for her crucial semi-final appearance.

Since X-Factor she has released her first singleNothing’s Real But Love in November last year followed by her debut album Heaven in December,featuring songs she had written inspired by personalexperiences.

“It’s about relationships, looking for love, being

hurt, it’s very, very honest,” she says.

She has just finished a hugely successful UK tourand fame and fortune in the USA also beckons.

Describing one of her tour performances a newspaper reviewer wrote: “Her clear messagethroughout was to love the one you’re with, stay trueto your roots, and that it doesn’t matter about

Rebecca Ferguson

Rebecca shows her fa

s

B I T E SB I T E S

THE SON Spring 2012 Page 9

.

nd I did pray,” hethings started to

s started looking

a friend throughbelieve God knew.”

now married toat moment, Godople into his life

hurt him and hisn to change.

ght drama and Ihelp me becomeher.

n his blood: hisd Western singer,mpere. So against

life, Christopherhool.

stopher’s dreams

of following his passion and becomingan actor started to be realised. He wastaught in a number of drama schools,including Richmond Drama School andRADA.

And as he looks back on his risethrough the ranks of acting, from stage tosmall screen with parts in high profiledramas and soaps, Christopher knowsone thing: he wouldn’t be where he istoday without his faith in Jesus.

“Until the time I turned to God, my lifewas out of control,” remarks Christopher,“and when I started to allow him into myheart the hurts of the past began to ease.

“The Bible is full of stories of peoplewith a sinful nature and I want to use myacting to reach out and convey the message of hope that comes throughknowing Jesus.”

Even when he played a Nazi soldier toAdolf Hitler in The Mystery Files, adocudrama for The Geographic Channel,Christopher, 47, believes he was able toconvey his faith to his colleagues.

“From a Christian point of view I hadto think and pray about playing him. Iwas able to reveal to those I was workingwith that some of the things that happened were of a similar nature to theBible stories, where there is some good

and some bad. Some of it was shockingand very dark,” he says.

Ironically, he auditioned to play thepart of Hitler in Martin Scorsese’s filmHugo and says his earlier foray of portraying the dictator’s soldier helpedhim.

So what next for this versatile actor?Well, he hopes to continue to be ‘salt andlight’ and set a good example in whateverhe does.

“I’m trying to be the best actor I canbe, and also be the best Christian I canbe. I want to show I am polite and I wantto set a good example.

“Since I submitted my life to Christ Igot a new beginning and I know that nomatter what happens next, he will bethere for me,” adds Christopher, who isdad to son Christopher.

For a young boy who struggled with aspeech impediment and spent time in adetention centre, Christopher Lee Poweris growing to be a super role model.

h

GED BY GOD

ED

GOOD EXAMPLE

material things, you should just always have yourfamily around you.

“This led up to her long-awaited hit and final songNothing’s Real But Love. The standing ovationRebecca received as she left the stage is a sight sheshould get used to. Great form and class; what anact.”

But Rebecca has had to overcome a tough childhood and other difficulties in her life to take herplace centre stage as a much-loved performer.Attending church has been a constant part of her life.

Younger brother Sam Ferguson, 21, said: “Whenwe used to go to our nan Caroline’s house inSheffield we’d go with her to church. My nan wouldbe singing loudly to compete with the woman nextto her and Becky would be singing too.

“Nan had a piano in the living room and Beckyloved singing along.”

The family then moved to a house on an estate inthe Woolton suburb of Liverpool when her parentsseparated.

The teenager later moved to Anfield when shebecame pregnant with her first child Lillie May, nowseven.

Rebecca, who also has a six-year-old son Karl,said her whole family supported her ambition tobecome a professional singer and helped her throughtwo previous X Factor auditions.

But she previously admitted she was ‘bullied as akid because my family were poor and I never had theright clothes or toys.’

Despite having a difficult start in life, the hopefulinsisted she wanted people to focus solely on her talent – and was determined not to become the X Factor sob story.

“I thought I was one of those deluded ones whothinks she can sing but can’t. It was just a dream thatwouldn’t go away,” she said of her time before thereality show.

The Liverpudlian star added: “I drew upon pastrelationships and my family member’s relationships- things that I’d seen going on around me, things thathad hurt me or I was moved by so, wrote about it.”

LOVED SINGING

aith in Amazing Grace

Page 10 THE SON Spring 2012

CD REVIEWSMusic Reviews supplied by Cross Rhythms, the UK’sleading Christian music voice. For more than 20,000reviews, music news, articles, online radio and shopvisit www.crossrhythms.co.uk

The Fray - Scars & Stories“We’ve been through a lot of stuff personally, and as a bandwe’re still together, and I think we like the idea of scars,because they’re healed.They are not like wounds necessarily,but they’re still kind of a road map of where you been, andsometimes kinda point to where you want to go.” So saidThe Fray who, of course, everyone remembers for theirhuge international hit How To Save A Life. Producer BrendanO’Brien (Bob Dylan, Pearl Jam) has brought his talents tobear on a set of songs wrenched from personal experience.For instance, Heartbeat - inspired by their trip to Rwanda -is everything we’ve come to expect from the Denver rockers and is as melodicand memorable a song as anything you will hear on the radio today.The chorus’slatter half, in which lead singer Isaac Slade repeats, ‘Cause if you love someone/Youlove them all the same,’ will stay in your mind for a long time. Turn Me On features a particu-larly groovy drum pattern from Ben Wysocki combined with a surprisingly danceable bass linewhile on Rainy Zurich guitarist Joe King takes the lead vocals.The Fray are never going to be afavourite with the critics and some of the sneering reviews you can read online for Scars &Stories say far more about the reviewers’ prejudices than they do about the intelligently exe-cuted pop rock offered here. Suffice to say that though this set doesn’t contain another songof the classic status of How To Save A Life there is still much here to commend.

David Crowder Band - Give Us Rest The Texas-based collective are now no more, of course, butclearly decided on this final release that they would go outwith a bang with a two CD set. CD 1 opens with some downbeat piano yet uplifting vocals. Unless you’ve been hidingfor the last twelve years (or are new to the scene) you’ll knowthe eclectic nature of Crowder and friends. Suffice to say thatthe intricate arpeggio-derived musical patterns of Come FindMe, the driving guitars of Let Me Feel You Shine, the ‘grabs youand pulls you in’ of Blessedness Of Everlasting Light, the genius ofThe Sequence, the worship of There Is A Sound and the upliftingjoy of A Return all show that this is a band leaving at the top of their game.Thesongs follow a well-defined route thematically, but always with the underlyingtruth: no matter how close to the edge we may sail (and even over it) God can bring us back.The Sequence is just superb, comprising seven short tracks of which the Muse-like 1, 2 and 5are brilliant. CD 2 kicks off in joyful style, the country-rock tinged I Am A Seed setting the tonethat continues to the end. Brilliant. It’s a shame there’s no more to come from this band butat least they’ve finished with a flourish.

Nearly one million different people visited the Cross Rhythms website last year, making it one of the most

popular Christian websites in the UK and among the top sitesof its kind in the world. The website includes music reviews,testimonies, prayer rooms, reflections on life and life issues

and an online shop. Visit www.crossrhythms.co.uk

9/10

Rebecca Ferguson - HeavenWhen Rebecca lost out to Matt Cardle on the X Factor in2010 she could easily have put together a quickly recordedalbum of soul music covers.After all, her TV version of Adele’sMake You Feel My Love and Sam Cooke’s A Change Is GonnaCome were stunning. But instead Rebecca took the hard roadand got down to writing her own material and when Heavenwas released in December last year had the satisfaction ofseeing it shoot high into the UK album charts. It deservesevery sale and Rebecca is one of the finest new singing talentsto emerge on the pop scene in the last few years.The producers Eg White (Adele),Wayne Hector (Westlife) andFraser T Smith (James Morrison) have avoided the temptation to over embellish, atendency which drags down the arrangements of much modern R&B while similarly Rebecca avoids the displays of tiresome melisma which clog up a lot oflesser divas’ work. Instead, the tinkling chords, plaintive cello and dramatic melodicswell on Teach Me How To Be Loved are the perfect background for Rebecca’s rich andhusky vocal while the rolling piano and surging strings of Shoulder To Shoulder are as good as anything concocted for Adele.The 25 year old Liverpudlian has had her share of heartaches inher personal life and these are reflected in some of her lyrics but there is also plenty of child-likereverence for love and hints of the transcendent. But it’s that memorable voice - one momentsoft and vulnerable, the next harsh and assertive - that continually connects with the listener. Atremendous debut.

PostScript Picture

CR Son Ad_0312.eps

Jesus Culture -Awakening: LiveFrom ChicagoJesus Culture has made anenormous impact on 21stcentury worship around theworld with their powerful and oftenprophetic worship songs.Thisrecording was made at their firstarena gathering and features pastalbum songs We Are Hungry, Danceand the outstanding rock-based chorus The Anthem which finishes thealbum on an enormous high! Newtracks such as Father Of Lights withits cry ‘Love has a voice/Love has aname/Jesus, Jesus’ and Awaken Me areappearing on disc for the first time.All the energy and atmosphere ishere that you would expect (alongwith the acoustics you get with alarge venue) and it does not takelong to get absorbed. Musically, theU2/Delirious/Coldplay influences arethere with the soaring guitars andanthem style choruses. The impactof this release will be felt for sometime to come.

8/10

10/10

Samestate - The AlignmentThis is the debut from Tennessee-based Samestate.The drivingrock vibe that permeates thisrecording is evident from thefirst bar of the opening track,Realign. This is probably one of thestrongest on the album, along with SonsAnd Daughters and the more mellow closingnumber, Symphonies. In one sense it allsounds fairly familiar: the songs are fairlystandard driving rock numbers that arepleasantly anthemic without being out-standing, but while Samestate don’t bringmuch that is completely new, they seem todo the stadium-style rock thing better thanmost.The musicianship here is excellentand the production is of a high standard.Singer Dalton Diehl has a distinctive qualityto his voice, intriguingly reminiscent ofMarcus Mumford, which lends credence tothe well put-together lyrics. ClearlySamestate are a band who merit furtherattention so it remains to be seen whetherthey will rise above the rest of the modernrock crowd.

8/10

10/10

Phatfish - HigherIt’s hard to believe that thisBrighton-based rock worshipteam have been together for17 years but Phatfish remain aspopular as ever and many are calling Highertheir best work to date. Lou Fellingham ison fine form throughout the album withthe band creating a classy and modernbacking that never overpowers her delicatetones. Faith Is Rising is the most overtlySunday morning track here and does its jobperfectly but, as always, Phatfish aren’tafraid to try something a little differentsuch as a powerful reworking of the classichymn And Can It Be. Higher is a brilliantlyexecuted album that will please old andnew Phatfish fans alike.

8/10

THE SON Spring 2012 Page 11

Page 12 THE SON Spring 2012

When Kerry Cole presented The Purple Veil as a stage production at the Cross Rhythms

festival several years ago, even leather-clad bikers unashamedly broke down in tears at the universal message of the

human heart’s quest to find pure love.

The Purple Veil is a beautifully presented Arts Style book by author Kerry Cole that takes

you on a visual and poetic journey.

www.thepurpleveil.com

BRITISH RUNNER Christine Ohuruoguis the reigning Olympic 400 metreschampion, winning the crown in 2008in Bejing. She is also a former Worldand Commonwealth Champion.

She was also a member of the British 4x400metre relay team which snatched Gold in the2012 World Indoor Championships.

But Christine, who was born in 1984 less thana mile from the Olympic Stadium in Stratford,has had to deal with setbacks as well – but herstrong Christian faith has seen her through.

Her career has had its controversial moments,particularly in 2006 when she was suspendedfrom competing in the 2006 European AthleticsChampionships.

The reason for this was that she missed threeout-of-competition drug tests, known as the‘whereabouts’ system, of the World Anti-DopingCode; one in October 2005 and two in June 2006.

According to IAAF and British OlympicAssociation rules, she received a one-year banfor missing these tests, which expired in August2007.The British Olympic Association alsoimposed a lifetime ban excluding Ohuruogufrom competing at future Olympic Games forGreat Britain. She appealed to the Court ofArbitration for Sport, but the original decisionwas upheld.

Ohuruogu submitted a further appeal, and statedthat she would probably leave Britain and compete in the Olympics for another country if itwas unsuccessful. Her Olympic ban was finallyoverturned in November 2007.

It proved a dramatic turning point in her careeras less than a year later she captured Gold at theBejing Olympics.

Recalling her stunning victory four years ago,the 27-year-old said: “I remember the last 50metres which seemed like forever and thinkingwhat am I going to do when I cross the line.

“I knew at that point that I had won and I remember running thinking ‘oh my gosh it’sactually coming true. What do I do when I finish?’

“It’s like I didn’t want it to finish because Ididn’t know how I would react.”

Christine is a follower of Jesus Christ and herfaith sustains her through the challenges of life asa top elite athlete. “I tend to worry a lot, so I likewhen Jesus says ‘give me your burdens and I willgive you peace.’

“You can get very inundated with a lot of stuffthat happens, you can be challenged in everyway, visually, physically so if you really worriedit’s nice to have that safety net that if you knowyou are worried, Jesus says come to me and youknow it will be alright.”

JAMAICA’S Asafa Powell, one of thefastest men in the world, is expectedto be challenging for the 100 metrestitle at the London Olympics.

The 29-year-old sprinter held the worldrecord between June 2005 and May 2008 withtimes of 9.77 and 9.74 seconds respectively.

In recent years he has been prone to injuryand missed the 2011 World Championships asa result. He has broken the 10 second barrier on80 occasions - more than anyone else in history.

Asafa has a strong Christian faith and hespoke about the main influences on his life.“My parents, my friends and most of all God.My friends have helped me a lot and we havebeen praying a lot and everything is good rightnow.”

Speaking of his relationship with God hesaid: “We have a close relationship: he is myfather, my friend, my brother. He is the one Iturn to when I have problems or trouble.”

Asafa said he felt like giving up when hisbrother was killed in an accident. “I took it real-ly hard, but I continued praying and it helpedme to stay strong.”

GOLDEN GIRL...Britain’s ChristineOhuruogu celebrates (above)after winning the 400 metres inthe Bejing Olympics and (right)enjoying the victory parade on anopen top bus in London

Countdown to the London Olympics is special for one British prospect...

Christine is going for God...and for Gold!

CONTROVERSIAL

CHALLENGES

Sprint ace is on the righttrack with God

Jamaica’s Asafa Powell picturedcompeting in the Bejing Olympicsin 2008

THE SON Spring 2012 Page 13

Tebowing is a term for the act ofkneeling on one knee in prayerwith one’s head resting on one’sfist. It is derived from Tebow’s propensity forkneeling and praying. The origin of thephrase is credited to fan Jared Kleinstein,who posted a picture with friends onFacebook, in which they mimicked a poseof Tebow following the Broncos’comeback overtime victory over the MiamiDolphins on October 23, 2011.

The popularity of the picture ledKleinstein to set up a website showing pictures submitted by people depicting various interpretations of Tebowing allover the world.

After two and a half-months, the sitereceived 20,000 photograph submissionsfrom all seven continents and 20 millionpage views from two million unique

visitors. The New York Timeswrote “it can be hard to tellwhether people tebowing arecelebrating or mocking Tebowfor his virtuous ways.”

Pittsburgh mayor LukeRavenstahl tebowed as part of abet with the mayor of Denverfollowing the Broncos playoffvictory over the Steelers in2012.

Last year Tebowing was recognized as a word in theEnglish language by the GlobalLanguage Monitor, due to itslevel of worldwide usage.

In December 2011, the life-sized wall adhesions company Fathead released a‘Tebowing’ sticker that becamethe company’s best-sellingproduct in two days.

A CHRISTIAN American football player has sparkeda new phenomenon across Britain.

The devout believer Tim Tebow (pictured right) has always kneeledin a particular way to pray before and after games.

Fans started to strike the pose of the Denver Broncos quarterbackacross America – and the act of Tebowing is now spreading across theUK and the rest of the world.

Enthusiasts drop to one knee and bow their head in prayer beforeposting the photos of themselves on Twitter, YouTube and dedicatedTebowing websites.

In Britain, Tebowers have targeted iconic locations likeBuckingham Palace, the Houses of Parliament, Windsor Castle andStonehenge for their backdrops.

Sporting venues for Tebows have included Yorkshire Cricket Cluband the St Andrews Links golf courses.

The term To Tebow has even entered the Urban Dictionary as: “Toget down on a knee and start praying, even if everyone else aroundyou is doing something completely different.”

To take a good Tebowing photo, people are advised to kneel on theknee closest to the camera and place their elbow on their other knee.

They should then place their forehead against their hand on thatarm, drop their other arm and pray.

The pose has been likened to that of Rodin’s famous sculpture TheThinker.

Some of the most popular locations worldwide for Tebowersinclude the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Statue of Liberty in New York andIndia’s Taj Mahal.

NFL quarterback Tebow, 24, is the son of Christian missionariesand he has previously written the names of Biblical verses on his faceahead of games.

During his college football career, Tebow frequently wore references to biblical verses on his eye black. In a 2009 ChampionshipGame he wore John 3:16 on his eye black. The verse was the highest-ranked Google search term over the next 24 hours, generatingover 90 million searches.

Later, when Tebow switched to another verse, there were 3.43 million searches of ‘Tim Tebow’ and ‘Proverbs 3:5-6’ together.

Tebow said of the searches “It just goes to show you the influenceand the platform that you have as a student-athlete and as a quarterback in football.”

TIME TOTAKE ATEBOW

TIME TOTAKE ATEBOW

WINDSOR CASTLETebowing – what

it all means...

From the Taj Mahal to Stonehenge...tewbowing hasbecome a global phenomenon

Even youngsters are catching on to the tebowingcraze as it sweeps the world

ORDER COPIES OF THE SON TODAY:CALL THE ORDERLINE 0N 01752 22562335p per copy 10 copies £3.50 BULK DISCOUNTS 100 COPIES FOR £30 (PLUS P&P)1,000 COPIES FOR £200 (PLUS P&P) BIGGER DISCOUNTS FOR BIGGER ORDERS!INDIVIDUAL SUBSCRIPTIONS ALSO AVAILABLE!

way I think.

“Questions such as where I came from, where Im going, what to do about my sins, and everything else I worried about as a high schoolstudent have been answered by God.

“One of the biggest fears anyone faces is the fearof death. That was certainly true for me. But nowthat I know where I’m going after I die, I am freenot only of the fear of death but from death itself!

“In this way, God has dramatically changed all ofmy thoughts my entire life!

• CONTINUED FROM BACK PAGE

Page 14 THE SON Spring 2012

WHEN PRAYER IS THANKFULLY, it’s not often thatyou see someone having a heartattack. Fabrice Muamba’s appalling collapse whileplaying for Bolton against Tottenham in the FAcup tie was a rare but very public exception.Partly as a result of the high profile of the eventand the fact that Fabrice and his family have aChristian faith, they, his friends and fans havebeen urging us to pray for his full return togood health.

I’m happy to do this and I prayed for Fabriceduring the days after his collapse.

As I write he is still in intensive care but making a remarkable recovery and there seemsto be grounds for optimism about the future.

I have also been praying fervently everyday formy friend Anna who is 24 weeks pregnant,whose waters appeared to have broken lastweek, causing concern for her son, but then aconsultant said they hadn’t broken – a miracle?

There is much to comment on here. For onething, it is a timely reminder in the run-up to theOlympics that there really are some things moreimportant than sport.

For another, it is remarkable that when we areall being encouraged to embrace atheism a crisis like this turns tens of thousands to prayer.

Atheists must accept one of two truths: eitherthere really is a God who is there or we havesomehow evolved to believe in a God who isn’tthere.

I’m not sure which they find more troubling!

The bigger issue, though, is that of prayer andhere two big questions arise.

First, does prayer work? In response, I want tosay, without qualification, that I believe thatGod can – and does – answer prayer today.

I have no doubt that through prayer the sick arehealed – and the work of evil is restrained. Inmy ministry I have found prayer in the name ofJesus to be extraordinarily effective.

Prayer, of course, can work through differentmeans and neither I nor the many Christians inthe health services see any contradictionbetween modern medicine and the supernatural.

If you are interested in the issue of the supernatural and miracles at a deeper level andcan handle big books I recommend the newlypublished two-volume work by the renownedscholar Craig Keener, entitled simply Miracles:the Credibility of the New Testament Accounts.

It is already being hailed as ‘perhaps the bestbook ever written on miracles‚’ and is a robust,solid defence of the miraculous.

A second and more difficult question is whether,by enlisting an army of praying people, we canmake miracles happen.

Does more prayer – or more praying people –guarantee results? Here, pastorally, I have topause. I have known cases of astonishing and spectacular answers to prayer and I have also

known (as all Christians have) occasions whenthere have, at least at a human level, been noanswers.We live in a world of ‘miracle’ and ‘mystery’.Most Christians, and certainly every minister,can tell you of a time when despite ferventprayer, the dying died.

What do we say here? Did the people concernednot pray enough? Did they not accumulate longenough chains of prayer supporters? Did theynot pray in the right way?

This sort of question can, of course, add guilt tosuffering – a most unpleasant and unwelcomeaddition.

In considering this problem I am greatly helpedby the first clause of the Lord’s Prayer, ‘OurFather who is in heaven‚’ because I see in it two complementary truths.

The first truth is in that lovely phrase ‘OurFather‚’ Jesus revealed that God could beknown through him as Father, the loving, caringeternal parent.

If we think of this we know that God desires

our best. We can pray to him knowing that hedelights to answer prayer and that he wants the

very best for us.

This revelation of God’s heart as loving parentis the very basis for Christian prayer. With sucha God it is no surprise that miracles occur.

The second truth that I hold with the first is inthat little qualifying phrase ‘who is in heaven’.

The Father that we pray to ‘in heaven’ is thesovereign God who is Lord. He is not a tamesupernatural being that we can manipulatethrough prayer campaigns or special methods.

Ultimately it is God’s will that will be done, andin saying that I am referring to another clause inthe Lord’s Prayer.

We need to hold the two aspects of who God istogether. Overemphasise God’s sovereignty as‘Lord’ and you will lose the motivation forprayer because you will see him as beingbeyond any human influencing; overemphasiseGod’s love to us as ‘Father’ and you run the riskof trying to manipulate him.

Like so much in the Christian life, it’s a matterof balance.

But above all, let’s pray, not just in high-profilecases like that of Fabrice, but also in thoseeveryday cases of suffering and trouble that wecome across all the time.

Turn every troubled tale you hear, every woerevealed on television, every passing ambulanceinto a petition to God to let his grace and goodness fall. Our world needs it.

There is no denying when we pray coincidenceshappen – so let’s pray! And please pray for myfriend Anna and her son to grow and be delivered at the right time.

J.JOHN the leadingChristian speakerand evangelist reflects on theoutpouring ofprayer afterFabrice Muamba’sdramatic collapse

The Sun didn’t hold back on its headline...reporting that Fabrice Muamba’s fiancee was putting her trust in God in the wake of his cardiac arrest

CONTRADICTION

GOD’S WILL BE DONE

Gunner gunningfor lost souls

Fabrice Muamba in actionmoments before he collapsedwith cardiac arrest

THE SON Spring 2012 Page 15

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ONE ANSWER...

SPURS TOGOLESE striker EmmanuelAdebayor used his Twitter page on theinternet to appeal for prayers forFabrice Muamba after the Bolton player suffered a cardiac arrest duringthe FA Cup game at White Hart Lane onMarch 17.

Adebayor, who is a committed Christian, wasone of the first players to visit Muamba in theLondon Chest Hospital as the Bolton star recovered from his shock collapse in front of36,000 spectators and millions of TV viewers.

Adebayor tweeted: “My thoughts are withFabrice Muamba’s family. We all are praying forhim and hope for a speedy recovery.”

Many people put the amazing recovery madeby Fabrice down to the power of prayer -Adebayor had no doubts after seeing the playerin hospital a few days after the incident.

Adebayor said: “He’s much better, he can talk,that’s the most important thing for me. Wealmost lost him, today he’s with us again. Glorybe to God. We just have to see how he reactswhen he gets back on his feet.”

He told Sky Sports: “He’s in good form andhe’s well. He’s much better, he can recognizepeople and he can talk. We just have to keeppraying for him. Now we have to see how hegoes in the next couple of days.”

Meanwhile the Daily Mail reported one sourceas saying: “The players feel the progress Fabricehas made is nothing short of a miracle. Afterwhat happened on Saturday, seeing Muambaspeak and move was not what they were

expecting at all. The players were low afterSaturday but those who have visited him feel alot more upbeat.”

Less than a week after the dramatic incident inthe match at Tottenham, Fabrice and his familyappealed for people to keep praying for his fullrecovery.

Although he continued to make good progressthe 23-year-old remained in a serious conditionin intensive care.

A statement from his partner Shauna andfather Marcel read: “We would like to firstlythank God for answering our prayers.

“Thank you to everyone for the love, prayersand support over the past few days. In particularwe owe an enormous gratitude to the Bolton andSpurs medical teams for their quick reaction onSaturday, and the fantastic team here at TheLondon Chest Hospital.

“We have been overwhelmed by all the kindmessages we have received. The support we havehad from the fans not just from Bolton but football supporters around the world has given usso much strength.

“We have been particularly touched by thesupport from the football community globally.

“Thanks also to our family and close friendsand thank you to the media for respecting ourprivacy during this very difficult time.

“Even though Fabrice has made great progressover the last couple of days, he is still in intensive care, and still has a long period ofrecovery ahead. He has asked that you pleasekeep him in your prayers.”

Spurs ace calls forprayer as footballworld unites in support of Fabrice Muamba

Chelsea’s GaryCahill – who wasa team mate ofFabrice Muamba’sat Bolton – madehis own appeal for prayer afterscoring againstLeicester the dayafter the incident

Real Madrid players showing their support for Fabrice Muamba before aSpanish League match

AMAZING RECOVERY

GLOBAL SUPPORT

Page 16 THE SON Spring 2012

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LOCAL DETAILS:

Editor: Chris Girdler

WingerDanielSturridge celebratesone of hisgoals forChelsea in thePremiership

Daniel Sturridge Fact FileFull name Daniel Andre SturridgeDate of birth 1 September 1989 (age 22)Place of birth BirminghamHeight 1.83 m 6 ft 0 inPlaying position Forward/wingerCurrent club ChelseaSquad Number 23Youth career 1998-2002 Aston Villa; 2002-2003 Coventry;

2003-2006 Manchester CitySenior career 2006-2009 Manchester City 21 appearances 5

goals2009-present Chelsea 74 appearances 20 goals2011 Bolton Wanderers on loan 12 appearances8 goals

International England U-16 5 appearances 6 goals; career England U-17 9 appearances 7 goals;

England U-18 1 appearance 2 goals;England U-19 3 appearances 1 goal;England U-20 1 appearance 1 goal;England U-21 15 appearances 4 goals;England 2 appearances 0 goals

ARSENAL forward Park Chu-Young isincreasing his fan-base at the EmiratesStadium.But the main reason the captain of the SouthKorean national team says he plays football is toevangelise people.

The devout Christian who also writes JesusChrist whenever he signs an autograph said:“The first and main reason why I play football isto evangelise people. It would make me happy ifjust one person became interested in Christianitybecause of me.”

And you won’t find 26-year-old Park – who hasan IQ of 150 – cartwheeling after scoring a goalbecause he prefers to get down on his knees topray.

However, during his time at AS Monaco, the rest

of the team decided to dive onPark – likened to DavidBeckham for his dead-ball skills– and left him with a kneeinjury!Park is not the only Christian onthe South Korea team. FormerSpurs left-back Lee Young Pyois also keen to talk about hisfaith.

He said: “I became a Christianin 2001. Before that, to be honest, the idea of God was afairy story to me. I thought thatbelieving in God was just for strange people.

“Growing up in Korea, I was heavily influencedby Buddhism, and if I had chosen a religion then,I probably would have become a Buddhist. Then

some friends of mine told meabout God.

“Still, I was not sure whether Ireally believed God existed. If hedid, I felt he needed to revealhimself to me.

“Over time, I became quite eagerto find an answer to this question.Then one day God revealed himself to me exactly as I hadrequested. I was amazed!

“After that, I began to learn moreabout God, and I came to knowHim more and more. Since then,

everything in my life changed, especially the

Gunner gunning for souls

• CONTINUED ON PAGE 14

CHELSEA’S red hot strike sensation DanielSturridge puts the fear of God intoPremiership defenders and that maybebecause he has the Creator on his side!With 11 goals from 23 Premiership appearances thisterm, the 22 year old is on a high and is very much inthe frame as a Euro 2012 squad member for theEngland team.

England’s caretaker manager Stuart Pearce showed hisbelief in the player bringing him on as a substitute inthe recent friendly with Holland. Pearce worked withSturridge in the England Under 21 set-up, with theChelsea flyer making 15 appearances and scoring fourgoals.

And it may be that his belief in the Lord is the secret ofDaniel’s instant success in a first season that sees himbecome a better and better player with every game.

And he’s as fearless in his proclamation of his Christianfaith as he is when flashing into a crowded penaltyarea.

The speedy winger has a very supportive family behindhim and a strong religious faith – he thanks God outloud after every goal he scores – which seems to behelping him reach the top.

He declared: “My prized possession is probably myBible. It’s important to me because I’m very religious.

“I believe you have to pray, as well as work hard, inorder to get what you want from life.

“When I was growing up I prayed every morning andnight - and I still do that to this day.”

A fervent Christian, he has already decided that hisfuture will remain entirely stress-free from the problems of management when the time comes for himto call it a day.

The frontman added: “I would like to say now that Idon’t think I will ever become a manager. I think

Speedy strikerpraises Godfor every goal

there’s a lot of stress that comes with that comes with management and Idon’t think I could handle that.”

ON A WINGER AND A PRAYER

ON A WINGER AND A PRAYER

Arsenal striker ParkChu-Young