Ravi Zacharias, a well-known Christian author and apologist, recently made it public that he is about to undergo chemo after discovering that he has a rare form of cancer. The announcement came amidst the national panic over the COVID-19 pandemic, but Zacharias will still be able to make the move from Atlanta to Houston so he can receive treatment at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.

Zacharias said the Lord “did a miracle” by allowing him to undergo treatment. According to Faithwire, Zacharias said in an email, “Our doctors in Atlanta were concerned I couldn’t start treatment until fully healing from the back surgery. However, since then we have been able to consult with doctors at the renowned M.D. Anderson [Cancer Center] in Houston, TX. Truly God did a miracle in getting me here, literally a day or two before they had to close to treating any patients outside of Texas.”

Zacharias shared his diagnosis last month after undergoing surgery to repair his back. He said that he faced excruciating pain for weeks after the surgery and assumed that it was part of the recovery from surgery. However, he learned a few weeks later that a biopsy taken by doctors during the surgery indicated the presence of a malignant tumor on his sacrum. It is a rare form of cancer called Sarcoma.

Source: Christian Headlines

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Apologist Ravi Zacharias shared a health update amid his ongoing battle with cancer, revealing that while “some nights have been painful” as he begins chemotherapy, his heart has “been at rest that this is all God’s plan.”

In a Wednesday blog update, the 74-year-old chairman of the board at Ravi Zacharias International Ministries, revealed that after discovering a malignant tumor on his sacrum during back surgery, doctors in Atlanta were “initially concerned that I couldn’t start cancer treatment until fully healing from the back surgery.”

However, since then, Zacharias was able to consult with doctors at the renowned MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas. The bestselling authority called the opportunity a “miracle,” as the appointment took place “literally a day or two just before they had to close to treating any patients outside of Texas.”

“My doctor, a Sarcoma specialist, feels confident in starting a regimen of chemotherapy and we have begun that,” he shared. “Since this treatment is coinciding with the COVID-19 pandemic, I will remain here in Houston for the next few months until I finish the chemotherapy treatment. I am so grateful that both Margie and Naomi can be here with me. God has given me the best doctor, and I look forward to gradually seeing this disease mend.”

In times of trouble, the Bible “assures us that at all times God is with us,” the apologist said, adding: “He is our comforter; He is our healer. He is our physician; He is our provider. He knows better than we do.”

“While some nights have been painful, my heart has been at rest that this is all God’s plan. I want to get better; I want to be well. I want to be in his will and honoring to Him,” he said.

While it is “too soon to begin making plans to speak and travel—due to my treatment progress and the uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus,”  Zacharias said doctors are “eager to extend my active ministry.”

SOURCE: Christian Post, Leah MarieAnn Klett

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NASHVILLE (BP) — I don’t have any data to back this up, but I don’t really think I need it: It is safe to say that more churches and pastors have used social media to connect with their people in the last three weeks than ever in the history of the Church or the internet. It has been a sight to behold.

I am part of a church social media managers Facebook group with nearly 50,000 members, and the group has been more active the last few weeks than ever. Church staff and volunteers have popped in constantly with questions on social media, live streaming and everything in between. Questions like: “Has your pastor done a Q&A during all of this? How did it go? What did you do?” or “Anyone have any ideas on how to keep a congregation of about 50 people more connected right now?”

In my role at LifeWay, I am responsible for advising our 60-plus social media managers on social media best practices. I meet with all of them over the course of a given month. My advice to them the past few weeks has been this: “It has never been a better time to experiment on social media.”

That is also my advice to you today. It has never been a better time to learn, and grow and experiment on social media. Why? Two basic reasons:

1. More people are using social media than ever

Toward the end of March, Facebook reported that record numbers of people were using their apps — specifically, countries hardest hit by coronavirus had seen a 50 percent increase in messaging on Facebook-owned platforms.

We have seen a serious increase in engagement across almost every active social media account we manage at LifeWay. A lot more people are spending an above-average amount of time on social media. Some folks are doing it because they can’t go to work. Others are doing it because they can’t go to church or other activities.

For a whole host of reasons, more people are scrolling social media platforms than usual. This means that you have more people paying attention to your church social media accounts than ever. When you have a captive audience, it’s the perfect time to try all kinds of experimental content: live Q&As with a pastor or staff member, Facebook Live worship sing-a-longs with the worship pastor, bedtime stories with the children’s minister. Try all kinds of fun content you’ve never tried before to serve your people and see what sticks.

Source: Baptist Press

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A Presbyterian pastor in Miami is set to launch a fully immersive virtual reality worship service in a digital replica of Miami’s oldest organized congregation.

Christopher Benek, who pastors First Miami Presbyterian Church and is the CEO and pastor of the tech nonprofit CoCreators, believes a virtual reality service is an effective evangelistic tool to reach gamers and others with the Gospel.

“I think that it is important to understand that creation of CHVRCH+ (pronounced “Church Plus”) is not to displace the local congregation. That’s part of why we called it CHVRCH+ — because it is meant to be an additional complement to the existing physical church,” Benek told The Christian Post in an interview Tuesday.

Benek loves his local congregation, which is located in the heart of Brickell community and has nearly doubled in membership in the past year.

“But we also realize that we, like the rest of the church universal, have a lot of work to do. We live in one of the highest population densities south of New York City, and the COVID-19 pandemic has only intensified our understanding that we need to meet people’s needs both physically and digitally,” he said.

Digital and virtual spaces are no less God’s territory than our physical spaces, he continued, and when Christ called His followers to “Make disciples of all nations” he was not excluding digital ones.

“‘There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry, Mine!’” Benek said, referencing the words of the Dutch Reformed theologian Abraham Kuyper.

“Certainly this applies to digital spaces as well.”

Creating virtual spaces is not a way to escape our present reality or ignore incarnational blessings, but rather a way to extend our understanding of reality and open our minds to the new possibilities that might exist in Jesus, the pastor elaborated.

“I think that it is the destructive flaw of many armchair theologians to assume that when faced with new ministry options that we can only experience God in one way. God is the Creator of the cosmos. Certainly, we are not so prideful as to assume that we know all of the ways that God might reveal God’s-self to us?” he said.

SOURCE: Christian Post, Brandon Showalter

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As churches across the country change their plans for Easter Sunday in response to coronavirus, one congregation in Texas will be taking their Easter Egg hunt to the digital world.

Tate Springs Baptist Church of Arlington, Texas, will hold an Easter Egg Scavenger Hunt on a customized Minecraft game on Easter Sunday, which falls on April 12.

Jared Wellman, lead pastor of Tate Springs, told The Christian Post that the digital Easter egg hunt event came as a way to better engage younger children with the church’s online services.

“I noticed that as we’ve moved to online streaming services that the content is not necessarily engaging for younger kids,” explained Wellman. “I thought, ‘We need to engage kids somehow, especially on Easter.’ Of course that’s difficult without the traditional egg hunt, which we were going to offer.”

Wellman said he talked with Tate Springs’ Family Pastor Curtis James about the issue and he with his ministry team responded with the Minecraft egg hunt.

“Our ultimate goal in all we do is to show and share the message of Jesus,” said Wellman. “As a church, holding a virtual egg hunt for the purpose of holding a virtual egg hunt would be no different than just asking kids to play a video game, and that’s not why we exist as a church.”

“So we created a sign-up form for the event to gather email addresses so that we can do our best to follow up with participants electronically to make sure they get access not only to the private server on Easter, but to the explicit message of the resurrection of Jesus.”

SOURCE: Christian Post, Michael Gryboski

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Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro is calling for a national day of prayer and fasting this Sunday to “free Brazil from this evil” coronavirus pandemic.

Following criticism over his management of the increasing number of coronavirus-related deaths, Bolsonaro met with Pentecostal evangelical pastors, Reuters reports.

“With the pastors and religious leaders we will call for a day of fasting by Brazilians so that Brazil can free itself from this evil as soon as possible,” he said to the radio station, Jovem Pan.

CBN News previously reported that Bolsonaro confirmed his faith in Jesus while attending the Christian worship and missions event called “The Send” back in February.

As of Friday, Brazil’s COVID-19 cases rose to 9,056, while deaths from the virus increased from 299 to 359. 

Last month, Bolsonaro’s communications director tested positive for the virus, just days after traveling with Bolsonaro to a meeting with President Trump in Florida.

Brazilian Congressman Marco Feliciano, who is also an evangelical pastor, said, “Brazil is in a serious crisis. The forces of evil are rising against a God-fearing Christian president and family defender. Sunday will be a day of fasting.”

One pastor tweeted support, saying, “President Bolsonaro called the Brazilians to a national fast and prayer of repentance on April 5th.”

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President Bolsonaro called the Brazilians to a national fast and prayer of repentance on April 5th#COVID19 #Brazil #nationalfasting pic.twitter.com/xcrIvbeFMg

— Daniel Lucena (@DanielL17703012) April 3, 2020

Assemblies of God Pastor Silas Malafaia suggested that the national day of prayer begins at midnight on Saturday and lasts until midday Sunday.

Bolsonaro’s motto is: “Brazil above everything, God above all.” He believes it is a powerful statement about the importance of the higher truth beyond politics.

Eu creio!!
I believe!
God Save Brazil and the world.

— Luciane Valeria#Aco(@lucianevaleria) April 3, 2020

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