I feel the need, and a nudge from the Lord (and my wife), to take a summer break (starting now) from preparing these studies. I am open to continuing them later on, as the Lord directs, but only if folk would like me to. I would appreciate your prayers and opinions as it's not clear to me at the moment.

_______________________________________

 
This morning, in the post, Sue and I received the unexpected gift of a new book sent to us by its author. "Dare to Believe!" by Terence Ascott contains riveting and life changing "Stories of Faith from the Middle East". It is Terry's autobiography and chronicles the incredible journey of SAT-7 which is a Christian satellite television network broadcasting in Arabic, Persian and Turkish across 25 countries in the Middle East and North Africa. It was founded as a non-profit organization in 1995 with support from Middle Eastern churches and is the first, oldest and largest Christian satellite organization operating in that very needy part of the world. 

Terry's introduction starts with these words: "As I looked back at the finished text of this book, I was shocked at the number of stories of death and martyrdom that I included. I wondered if it would be too depressing for Western readers. But it reflects the reality for our Christian brothers and sisters in the Middle East and North Africa and it is also the history of much of the global church. In fact, some sections of this book look as though they were additional chapters in the book of Acts." George Verwer has written the foreword – describing this as an honour and privilege – which is a weighty recommendation in itself.

In my teens, when I had one foot in the church and one foot in the world, it was Terry's example – his zeal for God – that prompted me to leave the secular band around which my life revolved. On my way home that night I asked God for a new set of friends and stipulated they had to be like Terry: cool but sold out for God! My prayers were answered and Terry himself was part of the mix! We are still friends today.

All this underlines how powerful our example can be in the lives of others and what truly amazing things God can do in us and though us when we "Dare to Believe". The following link takes you to where the book can be purchased. It is cheaper direct with SAT-7 than it is with Amazon and SAT-7 would then get more of the proceeds.

https://www.sat7uk.org/product/dare-to-believe-by-dr-terence-ascott/

Amazon's description is as follows: "'Dare to Believe!' is the breath-taking story of someone who has followed Jesus' lead through civil wars and unrest, arrests and deportation, as he sought to effectively use media in support of the life, work, and witness of the church in the Middle East and North Africa. The book journeys from the publication of a Christian newsstand magazine for the Arab world to the birth of the region's first Christian satellite and online television services attracting millions of viewers from all faith backgrounds and ages, unlike Christian television as we may have seen it in the West. Readers will discover and be encouraged by dynamic and courageous Christian communities in the Arab world, Iran, and Turkey, some of whom date the founding of their churches back to the first century, and how God provides for his children and his ministry, even through difficult times."