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HEALED Real life stories

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EVERYONE REACHES out for friendship. Half of all people in the UK now link up with friends on the social networking website Facebook. We all want to be in touch with other people. But many people still feel hurt, lonely, empty and isolated. We need true, “face to face”, honest, trusted friends. Through Jesus and among His people,

His church, you can find real friends who won’t let you down. They’ll stick by you through the great times – and the tough times that we all face sometimes in life. These are friends who you can really open up to and share your pain and your fears. And together with friends like this you can make a difference in a hurting world. When the love of Jesus gets hold of people, He joins them together to become a force for good. Give it a go: you’ve got nothing to lose.

THUMBS UP Young Jesus Army member, Kane, “likes” friendship that’s real

’ mE?

19/05/2011 16:50:55

modern JESUS army Streetpaper No. 922

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“tHEY KIssED!”“THEY KISSED” was “trending” on Twitter immediately after the royal smooch on April 29, and didn’t leave the trend topics for a good while. For the Twitless uninformed, that means a lot of people were talking online about Will and Kate’s kiss – the iconic moment on the balcony – for a long time. It was the climactic celebratory moment of the day, in front of the cheering thousands. Jesus said hosts of angels celebrate when people turn to God. Squillions of angels go wappy when someone realises that they are loved by God and, knowing the emptiness of their own way, turn to Him. Then the angelic beings all start tweeting, flapping, pulling heavenly party poppers – or whatever they do.

Why? Because it’s the triumph of truth, the landslide victory of love, poured out lavishly from God upon a returning son or daughter. It’s another major, electrifying SCORE! in the great and serious and terrifying and beautiful game plan of God to save people. When anyone turns to God, like the balcony kiss, it heralds the start of a wonderful and permanent – in fact, eternal – relationship. The start of a never-ending love affair, an undying romance, an ecstatic union. It’s good to see the crowds in London enjoying themselves, and all the street parties going on. But the angels’ rejoicing puts all these festivities in the shade; they know that a person turning to God and discovering the powerful reality of His love, is something that’s really, really worth celebrating. Photo: americanistadechiapas, flickr.com

sEX nun

HEROINE Lynda Dearlove

sPIRItuaL

ANGELS Not statues

stREEt saInts

CRIME On the decrease

Women @ the well win awardAFTER STARTING a charity in London to help prostitutes and trafficked women, a Catholic nun, Sister Lynda Dearlove, was chosen as Britain’s entrant in The International Women of Courage awards by the US ambassador to London, Louis Susman. Her charity is called Women@thewell; it gives food and legal advice to sex trade workers. In 2009, Sister Lynda received an MBE for the same work. The event celebrated the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day and coincided with the presentation of the Awards to ten winners at the White House by Hillary Clinton and Michelle Obama.

We’re loving angels insteadA THIRD of Britons say they believe in angels according to this year’s survey of British beliefs by The Bible Society and Christian Research. Young Brits are more spiritual in their beliefs than the secularist agenda would have us believe. Research revealed that 31 per cent agree that angels exist and 29 per cent believe they have a guardian angel watching over them. The pollsters asked 1,038 Britons and found that women are twice as likely to believe as men. Just 27 per cent of young people between 18 and 24 accept that they have angelic company, while among 45-54 year-olds the number rises to 37 per cent.

Crime-fighting street PastorsVIOLENT CRIME in Kingston-upon-Thames has dropped by almost half in the nightspots, and that has partly been attributed to Street Pastors in the area. Police superintendent, Paul McGregor, praised the Street Pastors’ work and said they’d won “respect and gratitude”. He continued “They’ve contributed to making Kingston a safer place. I’m confident Street Pastors will continue to play a vital role in reducing crime.” Hosting over 20,000 peo-ple every weekend, King-ston is one of London’s most popular nightclubbing des-tinations, yet since Street Pastors have been working there, crime as a whole has fallen by 25 per cent.

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JESUS Fellowship Church is an evangelical Christian Church with a charismatic emphasis. It upholds the full historical, Christian faith, in particular it upholds the doctrine of the Trinity and the full divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus Fellowship Church is a part of the Multiply Christian Network and a member of the Evangelical Alliance. modern Jesus army Streetpaper No.92 © 2011, published three times a year by Jesus Fellowship Church, Nether Heyford, Northampton NN7 3LB. Editor James Stacey. Photographs in this newspaper are copyright Jesus Fellowship Church or royalty free stock photos from sxc.hu unless otherwise indicated. Printed by BGP Ltd., Bicester, Oxon. Reproduction of any part of this newspaper in any form requires written permission. All Bible quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189, U.S.A. All rights reserved. All articles are contributed by members of the Jesus Fellowship Church, also known as the modern Jesus army. Some members live as part of the New Creation Christian Community. Readers wishing to contact authors may do so by writing to the Jesus Fellowship Central Office.

19/05/2011 16:47:43

modern JESUS army Streetpaper No. 92 3

‘Don’t gIvE uP’

SAVED Chris is a new man

a voice in the dark on a freezing night rescued Chris from the brink.

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THEY SOLD the TV and the X-box. Now they had only a Birmingham flat, empty except for one bed, and a heroin habit each. Chris Needham and his twin brother James were down on their luck. “It was the middle of winter with no heating” says Chris, now 29. “We could see our breath.” Being penniless was a new experience for them. They’d always had plenty of money from the age of 12 when they first started to deal drugs. Chris was the young-est of four boys, younger than James “by a whole minute”. “Dad was an alcoholic” says Chris. “He left when we were 11. Mum was mentally ill. When the dog died, her mum died, and Dad left, she lost the plot.” For the next seven years, she was in hospi-tal more than she was at home. The four boys fended for themselves. Mates of Chris and James’s older brothers, “looked after them” by supplying drugs for the younger boys to sell. “We were industrious” says Chris. Profits from the school playground, then Birmingham’s nightclub scene at the weekend, made the brothers rich. “We had

‘Pringles’ tubes stuffed full of cash” recalls Chris. And both boys had growing drug habits of their own: “E’s at the weekend and weed to come down.” There were some heavy episodes: a gun pulled on them in a local park, the time James was beaten up by some bouncers. But they sur-vived: “James was the

muscle, I was the mouth” says Chris. “It worked.” They steered clear of heroin because they saw “smack heads” as “dirty”. But when they ripped off a local lad and found themselves in possession of 24 grams of heroin, the brothers couldn’t resist trying it. “We smoked an impos-sible amount of heroin that night” remembers Chris. As addiction set in, Chris replaced clubbing

with “getting caned on crack and smack. I was a heroin addict for 11 years” he says – 11 years that led to a freezing flat in Birmingham. “The money ran out. We had no food. My body was a mess. I was inject-ing smack.” “It was the middle of the night” remembers Chris. “James was asleep next to me. Suddenly –

ping – the room became warm. I felt someone was there and sensed a voice saying ‘Don’t give up. You’re both spe-cial. Something good is coming.’” Chris wasn’t religious, though sometimes he sat in churches, enjoying the peaceful atmosphere. But comfortable Christians turned him off. James thought Chris was “off his head” when he told him about the voice. But another mate told

him about the Jesus Army house where she’d been a few times. “When I walked in” says Chris “there was the same peace I’d felt in the churches – in abun-dance. But, flippin’ heck, the people – they really cared. They weren’t in it for themselves.” Chris barely looked back. It took him time to get off drugs, but his new friends were with him through it. Some months later, Chris was baptised as a Christian. Powerful prayer and an experience of God’s power at a Jesus Army event was a turning point. An “unbelievable” and unexpected blessing came three years later. James came to a Jesus Army festival and to Chris’s amazement, “stuck his hands in the air in the first song”. By the end of the festival, he’d experienced God for himself and wanted to be a Christian. Chris was blown away. But James had seen the reality of what had happened in Chris’s life – and he wanted it, too. Now they both have a purpose in life. As Chris says “I’ve realised that Jesus died for me – the weight of that. Also – these beautiful people! I owe it not only to God, but also to them, to live a new life.”

Desperate? Need a life-line? Text the Jesus Army on 0774 0774 200

“BECausE WE’RE WoRtH It”

SO MUCH brain power, time and trouble (not to mention $) goes into making us try to buy beauty. Cosmetic company L’Oréal’s famous slogan was “Because I’m worth it”. In the mid 2000’s, this was replaced by “Because you’re worth it”. In late 2009, the slogan was changed again to “Because we’re worth it” following motivation analysis and the work in consumer psychology of Dr. Maxim Titorenko. But whether it’s me, you, or all of us, every day it’s the same message: pamper yourself. Augment your life.

Get whiter teeth. Remove those wrinkles. Get a superb all over suntan. All men now know they can shave so much better with that all-important extra blade. All women now know which canned drink contains just the right number of calories for them (usually as few as possible). A mind-boggling array of consumer goods with one essential promise: change the surface and you’ll create a happier you. God offers no cosmetic treatments. His one offer meets our real need: heart surgery. His reality can cut into our life, exposing who we really are. Selfishness is

uncovered. Insensitivity and insecurity come to light, those dark impulses of our nature which burrow at our core like parasites. God’s love, applied through the power of the Holy Spirit He sends, digs out the rottenness in our lives. It’s not an easy fix, nor is it a one off experience; it takes a lifetime to complete this surgery. It’s messy, painful and expensive: God allowed the death of His Son to complete the work. If you want the only beauty treatment that works, God offers it to you now. God has made it possible for us to be fixed from the inside out. He seems to think we are worth it.

19/05/2011 16:47:58

modern JESUS army Streetpaper No. 924

Prayer P werPeople experience healing through the power of prayer by JaMeS STaCey

STreeTPaPer eDITOr

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IN NORTHAMPTON, some Jesus Army members prayed for their friend when a scan had showed a large tumour in his stomach. After their prayers, there was no trace of the tumour. In London, a Jesus Army member prayed for her grandma, who subse-quently recovered from cancer. Around the same time, a child at one of their children’s schools received healing. Another man was healed of a neck problem at a church event.

Jesus Army member, Hannah Asprusten, 23, said: “It’s exciting to see all the things that God is doing – and to be a part of it!” But it can’t be as simple as that, can it? Just pray and be healed? Well, no – and yes. The fact is that Jesus does heal. He did it when He walked the earth, and He does it still, because He’s risen from the dead and has sent His Spirit to empower His follow-ers. Christians can and should pray for people to be healed and restored by the power of Jesus. Yet not everyone is healed physically, and

sometimes God works differently. Sometimes he brings peace to people suffering in sickness, or teaches us les-sons through hard times. If God were a “slot machine” for instant healing, we’d soon see Him as nothing else. And death is a fact of life in our sin-wrecked world, and will remain so until Jesus returns and makes every-thing new. But it is right to ask God to heal. God is good. He

loves us. He knows what’s best. We can trust Him.

ANNA God healed M.E.!

THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU will surely be “must watch” material for fans of the Bourne movies. Matt Damon plays a senatorial candidate who falls in love with a woman. But if he’s going to fulfil his destiny (and she hers) he has to let go of her. The “Adjustment Bureau” are the shadowy “men in black” who watch the universe and are determined that the way they want the future to be will prevail. But the Matt Damon character wants to be with his woman, and this is Hollywood. Will it all end in tears and the seeming failure of his and her dreams, or will they live happily ever after? In real life, the unglamorous sacrifice of our agendas is sometimes called for. Witness the soldier in Afghanistan laying down his life for his brothers in arms, shielding them from the grenade blast with his own body. What would have been the state of America today

if Martin Luther King had decided that speaking out against institutional racism was too risky? Would Gandhi have achieved all he had if he’d wanted a quiet life? What about the most famous person who has ever lived – Jesus of Nazareth? Jesus didn’t exactly relish the thought of going through crucifixion, the most obscene of all executions – but he willingly did so. Why? Because without his death on the cross none of us could be reconciled to God. The cross was a nightmare, far worse than any of us can imagine. That didn’t stop God, in Jesus, enduring it so that our future would be far better than we deserved. Jesus said “If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it” (John, chapter 12, The Bible). Is there anything you wouldn’t – or couldn’t – give up for the one who gave everything for you? If there is, you need to adjust your thinking. Your future depends on it.

“HaS yOUr LIFe BeeN aDJUSTeD?”

Photo: neeravbhatt, flickr.com

LONDON DAYSATURDAY 25 JUNE1.00pm March from Hyde Park Corner to Trafalgar Square 2.00pm Jesus Festival, Trafalgar Square LONDON WC2N-----------------------------------UK JESUS CELEBRATIONSATURDAY 30 JULY2.00pm & 6.00pm Jesus Centre, Abington Square NORTHAMPTON NN1 4AE-----------------------------------RAW - REAL AND WILDWED 03 - SAT 06 AUGUSTJesus Centre, Abington Square NORTHAMPTON NN1 4AE-----------------------------------WINNING FESTIVAL WEEKEND FRI 26 - MON 29 AUGUSTGiant Marquee Cornhill Manor, Pattishall NORTHAMPTON NN12 8LQ-----------------------------------UK JESUS CELEBRATIONSATURDAY 24 SEPTEMBERNORTH - The Black-E, 1 Great George Street, LIVERPOOL L1 5EW SOUTH - Hove Town Hall, Norton Rd, HOVE BN3 4AH-----------------------------------UK JESUS CELEBRATIONSATURDAY 22 OCTOBER2.00pm & 6.00pm Ponds Forge, Sheaf Street SHEFFIELD S1 2BP

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19/05/2011 16:46:29

modern JESUS army Streetpaper No. 92 5

Prayer P wer

PRAYER CARE People pray for each other at Jesus Army events

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Streetpaper commentLaUreNCe COOPer

I FIND TV illusionist Derren Brown a wee bit creepy. What trig-gers my reaction to him is my sense that he is dishonest in a damaging way. In Derren Brown’s recent programme, Miracles for Sale, Brown coached a British man into being a fake faith healer so he could convincingly

perform “faith healing” on churchgoers in Texas. Brown said he wanted

to show that these healings

were a big fraud carried out in God’s

name: God isn’t involved in the healings that take place in these Christian meetings; it’s nothing but a

money-spinning racket. Criticisms of money-grubbing televangelists are nothing new. I, like many, despise confidence trickery in God’s name. It happens too much and has hap-pened all through history. It’s stomach turning. But Derren Brown doesn’t just attack the ugly scams of greedy conmen; he tars all people of faith with his brush. There’s no balance in his programme. Not a single look at non-dramatic healings that take place often in churches. Brown doesn’t interview a single sane, sensible person to testify to God’s healing – and there are many, some of whom I know personally. Brown wants to sling mud all over the place and he does so very effectively. He’s sowing the seeds of his own barren outlook on life: “God doesn’t exist. Religion is a fantasy”.

That, in my view, is a pretty weak angle on a vast topic that has thrilled minds and filled hearts for centuries. Ignorance is bad enough. But I think it’s worse than that. Does Brown really want to help people who are being conned? Is that his main motive here? Or is it more about amassing the benefits of celebrity? Trumpeting his own powers of sleight of hand and eye? Not that Brown’s “pow-ers” are actually very convincing to anyone in the know. His fake stage prayers ring hollow to someone who prays and is involved with true prayer all the time. It’s like handing me a chocolate coin and expecting that I will accept it as a pound. The hidden motive is obvious. In the end, in fact, doesn’t it all boil down to just – money, Derren?

DerreN BrOwN: THe TrUTH FOr SaLe?

Anna’s modern day miracleThe power of prayer brought healing from M.e.

AT THE AGE of 19, Anna Purkiss began suffering from M.E. This is an extremely d e b i l i t a t i n g illness involving the immune and nervous systems. Anna says “Even things like reading or talking to people wore me out, let alone any physical activity. The pain was a major problem for me: it was like how you ache after

you’ve done a lot of exercise, but really badly all

over my body.”

Anna was so ill that she had to take a year out of university in the first year. She struggled to come to terms with a huge change in life, dealing with the illness itself and trying to cope with the sudden isolation caused by her condition. Anna was desperate, and received prayer for healing at a Jesus Army event called “Winning Weekend” in August, 2010, in a giant marquee in Northamptonshire. “I was prayed for by two friends” says Anna. “We all prayed. I cried – a lot! – and then I fell to the floor, overcome. I felt peace and a cool sensation go through my body, from my toes to the top of my head. I opened my eyes, and sat up. I felt completely

normal again; properly awake, with a clear head, and not in pain for the first time in three years!” Anna was a bit in shock, but delighted! She immediately felt better, so stayed until the end of the event. That represented a huge turnaround. Now, almost a year later, Anna is still going strong: “I’m feeling really great, and have managed to do so much stuff. I have visited people, gone swimming and shopping, walked quite a lot, volunteered at my local primary school. It feels like I’ve got my life back – and I’m so happy!” Although she was already a Christian, Jesus, the miracle maker, is now more real to Anna than ever before.

TO HeaL Or NOT TO HeaL?(1859-1947) was an early twentieth century Pentecostal pioneer from Yorkshire. When he prayed for people, truly remarkable things happened: some people regained their hearing and sight, and cancerous growths disappeared,

new limbs even grew. Despite Wigglesworth’s remarkable healing gift, not all he prayed for were healed. His own wife died six years after he became a Pentecostal, his son two years after that. His daughter, who assisted in his meetings, was never healed of her deafness. For three years, Wigglesworth himself suffered with gallstones.

SMITH WIGGLESWORTH

STUART PATNELLis a leader in the Jesus Army. He remembers another leader praying for a friend’s mother. She had a pain-ful, long-standing back problem. She couldn’t walk prop-erly. After prayer, she walked with-out difficulty or pain. “Everyone in the room

was crying because it was so amazing” says Stuart. “Her husband fell over in sheer shock.” Stuart also has a gift of healing. Yet he has himself suffered illness over the years. “God has given me the strength to live for Him and even to pray for others’ healing while I’ve been ill myself” says Stuart.

JOHN WIMBER(1934-1997), founder of the Vineyard movement, was a “beer-guzzling, drug-abusing pop musician”, who was converted at age 29. Wimber was known for his honesty. In a 1996 article, he told of amazing healing success stories, but

also of some sad examples of people not being healed. Wimber also had cancer at the time and said “Some Christians believe we should never struggle. If that’s true, then I’m not a good Christian. Not only have I suffered physically with health problems, but I also struggled with depression during my battle with cancer.”

19/05/2011 16:46:49

modern JESUS army Streetpaper No. 926

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BinLaden – the bad news

streetpaper@jesus.org.uk

CAN ANY TRUE follower of Jesus have been out on the streets, whooping, cheering and celebrating the death of Osama bin Laden? It’s not conceivable. It’s not possible. It is like saying that cats can write sonnets or that snails can drive cars. Christians do not glory in death. They love their enemies and glory in the resurrected son of God who triumphed over death. “Love your enemies” said Jesus, not “Laugh, dance and holler over their tattered corpses.” No, the repulsive scenes of crowing outside the White House and in New York and elsewhere are the carnival celebration of the old lie: that violence is a bringer of peace, rather than a generator of further carnage and mayhem. Those who celebrate imperial executions with joy accept with shocking ignorance the deadly fiction that a bit of gun-slinging can deal once and for all with those evil Red Indians. They worship the power of the gun, the missile – the might of Caesar, not the rule and reign of the Prince of Peace. And yet they may call themselves Christians; many do. Bad news. The gospel of Jesus is actually bad news for those who think they are already sorted, rather than acknowledging that there is a bit of Bin Laden in all of us. It’s bad news to think you’re sorted when you’re not. To think you’re a Christian when you’re not. Jesus came for those who knew they were in need, not the ones for w h o m nominal subscrip-tion to a creed takes the place of a living, moment by moment, connection to Christ. The good news of Jesus is, therefore, terrible bad news if at the last you have to face the fact – when Jesus returns – that you never knew Him. The healed sick, the saved criminals, yes, even some rescued terrorists – along with all the rest of those saved by grace – will go in to feast with the crucified revolutionary. Jesus, the most famous victim of an impe-rial execution in history, invites you to join in. Mind your head in the doorway as you come in. You’ll need to enter on your knees.

Photo: Pixel Form, flickr.com

...they may call themselves

Christians...

6

“SELF-HELP OR SELF-HELPLESS”

Photo: Robert Banh, flickr.com HOW TO Get a life

THE SHELVES of the book stores groan with self-help books, all utterly useless if self is all there is.

After all, what are you? What is your self, exactly? You’re an organism with a very short shelf life on a planet in a vast universe. Don’t mean to depress you, but in 100 years or so, it’s more than likely that no one will remember you. Those relationships with friends, family that you treasure so much and which define you? They’ll cease to be, in the blink of a galactic eye.

Where will you be then? We live in a society dedicated to the improvement of self, but without an eye to ultimate value. The truth is that our “self’s” story has no meaning unless it is part of a bigger story that reflects existence as it really is. Otherwise, you’re just reading one sentence (your life) in a big book (existence), over and over again, never digesting the whole. You won’t see where the story is going. Really, the important part of the story is not you at all. You won’t find this advertised much, but in fact, existence is centred on the glory that is God. We only

live and breathe and have our being because He does. Yes, your hopes and dreams and pains and longings are significant, but only because they are – unfathomably, incredibly – of interest to God. The TV won’t tell you this. Google ads won’t tell you this. The commercial world exists to tell you that you are the main event – and that you can improve yourself by buying product X. But you can’t. And you’re not that important. Sorry. Only He is really important. But if you can start to get your head around this then you can come to a place

where, ironically, you realise that you are actually of incredible value since you’re made in the image of the creator God You’ll realise that you’re helpless to fix yourself, but that you’re important enough for the awesome God of the Universe to want to help, to fix, to heal. I would tell you to go and look for a Bible in your local bookstore, but the section is so small you won’t easily find it. It’s not a self-help book, you see, it’s not entertainment. It’s about uncomfortable truth and a God who doesn’t sit nicely on your coffee table.

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Male bondingIN MARCH this year, 600 men from all around the UK met in Northampton for the Jesus Army’s annual “Men Alive for God” conference. One commented: “It’s unusual to have an event with just men, but it’s really powerful. You can go deep in a different way and face up to issues honestly. It was pretty life-changing.” Meanwhile, women from the Jesus Army in Brighton were joined by women from another church, Kings Church, in Medway, Kent, for a day with an international flavour. They sang “Glory to God” in the mother tongue of the various nationalities represented at the event.

Well wateredA JESUS ARMY house in Coventry have been getting experimental in bringing life to the people they meet. They gave out free bottles of mineral water to runners at a local fun run. One came back, after he’d finished, to tell them that he was really refreshed by their generosity and that he looks forward to seeing them again. A lot of those in the Jesus Army group are young people or students, so they often bring their friends along. They met a young man recently who is scripting a Christian version of Have I got News for You? called Have I got Good News for You?

Right royalALL AROUND the UK on the day of the Royal Wedding, people celebrated with street parties. In Sheffield, a Jesus Army group enjoyed getting involved in a street party in their neighbourhood. “The Royal Wedding proved to be a good way to meet the locals, have nice food and a good laugh” says Charis Kurpiel, 16, “It was a great day and we made some new friends.” They weren’t the only ones to make the most of the day. Members of the Je-sus Army in Coventry hosted a street barbecue in their area, which was “really well-attended”, and the Jesus Army in Northampton also played host to their local street party.

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19/05/2011 16:45:40

modern JESUS army Streetpaper No. 92 7

Hayley Woods was afraid to go out of the house. Now she’s more outgoing than most. She told Streetpaper why.

NO FEAR!

UP AND AT ‘EM Hayley’s had a new lease of life

06-07.indd 7

“PRETTY MESSY” is how Hayley, now 25, describes her childhood. Her parents divorced when she was 7, but before that she witnessed her dad repeatedly abusing her mum. As if that wasn’t enough for a seven

year old to cope with, Hayley was sexually abused “a few times, by different people.” Abuse and bullying caused Hayley to sink into a deep depression, when her teenage years hit. She had to start taking medication at 16 for depression, and soon discovered that it

had left her

feeling too vulnerable to leave the house alone. “Most of my depres-sion came from anger” reflects Hayley, “Anger at God – why did He let that happen to me? I thought it was my fault. I felt paranoid, like people were look-ing at me and thought I was this dirty, horrible person.” When she was 14, Hayley had a panic attack when her mum went into a shop and left her standing out-side. From then on, she developed a type of agoraphobia. “I was too afraid to leave the house on my own.” says Hayley. “It carried on until I became a Christian. “God healed me. “I never really prayed about it, I just realised one day that I wasn’t afraid anymore.” Hayley’s mum and her brothers had met the Jesus Army in Briar Hill years before Hayley became a Christian herself. She was “wrapped up in her own little world”,

six years and didn’t see her need of God. “One day, I don’t know why, but I asked my mum if I could come with her to church” she recalls, “I remem-ber looking around, thinking, ‘you can feel the love’ – that sounds cheesy, I know! But it’s how I felt.” It triggered in Hayley a love for God, and for the Jesus Army. In 2008, Hayley was baptised. “It wasn’t a ‘sparkly’, dramatic experience. But as soon as I came out of the water, I knew things were going to be different from then on. It was a definite turning point for me.” But not long after, Hayley moved into her own flat and started spending a lot of time in the pub and smoking weed. Her depression came back, stronger than ever. At a Jesus Army celebration in London, there was a drama about Jesus dying for everyone’s sins, which moved Hayley to tears, and caused her to find

real love. It was her break-through moment. “I fell in love with Jesus” she says, sim-ply. “I’d never known anything like this before. “God is amazing, really” enthuses Hayley; “He’s done so much in me. He’s healing me of depression. Recently, I got prayer from some friends, and since then, things have been much better. “Through Jesus, I’ve been able to forgive people who’ve hurt me. I would never have been able to do that on my own.” Hayley wants to share the reality of God’s love with others. She is helping to lead a youth group in Briar Hill, befriending and bringing love to young people who’ve had simi-lar experiences to her. What about the future? “I’d love to see some of those young people get baptised,” says Hayley, “I feel like all the things I’ve been through have been for a

with her boyfriend of deeper forgiveness and reason.”

AGORAPHOBIA - THE FACTS

AGORAPHOBIA is a term that is used to describe a number of related phobias (irrational fears) that are connected to situations such as:• leaving home • entering shops • being in crowds or public places • travelling alone on buses, trains or planes

Mind, the mental health charity, estimates that in the UK there are around 5 million people with agoraphobia. Agoraphobia is twice as common in women as men, and the condition usually starts between the ages of 18 and 35. For help or information about

agoraphobia, visit the following websites:• nhs.uk/conditions/agoraphobia• bbc.co.uk/health/emotional_health/mental_health• anxietyuk.org.uk/about-anxiety/anxiety-disorders/agoraphobia For prayer text the Jesus Army on 0774 0774 200

JOIN THE Jesus Army for a year! The modern Jesus army training year is an intensive, action-packed year, full of challenges to help you grow in faith. It’s particularly suitable for school leavers or those on a gap year.

UP

FOR INFO: jesus.org.uk/training or email training@jesus.org.uk

FORIT?Wanna make a

DIFFERENCE?

Looking for a CHALLENGE?

19/05/2011 16:45:44

modern JESUS army Streetpaper No. 928

Rough and scRumble!

SCRUM IN BRUM: lively lads in Birmingham last year

08.indd 8

“WHEN THE guys started to get crushed up against a huge tent pole, we had to call off that bit of the plan!” says Andy Lantsbery, 24, a leader at “Real and Wild”, the Jesus Army’s annual youth event. The lively men-only workshop was part of the event held in a giant marquee in Birmingham.

“The workshop was about men being men and having the courage to rise up and meet the challenges that come to them” says Andy. “The scrum was a warm-up to get the lads out of their inhibitions. It got a bit rowdy” he says with a grin. “It was a powerful few days” he adds, more seriously. “People’s lives were changed.” It wasn’t just the guys who found the event electric. “RAW is a chance for loads of young people

to get closer to God” enthuses Amy, 19. “People break out of their comfort zones, make friends and get inspired about the future. I love going to RAW with young people who have never been to church before and seeing how God changes them.” This year RAW is taking place in Northampton (see the ad right). “Join hundreds of young people” says event leader, Stevo Scott, on a promo video “as we leave behind old junk, find new

Jesus army youth event “Real and Wild” lives up to its name

life in Jesus and together experience God’s power in life-changing ways.”For more on RAW visit: realandwild.com

It was a powerful few days. People’s

lives were changed

ANDY

03 - 06 AUGUST 2011JESUS CENTRE, NORTHAMPTON NN1 4AE

realandwild.comREAL AND W

ILD

REAL AND WILD

ft

www

@WEB www.realandwild.com

EMAIL raw@jesus.org.uk

FACEBOOK facebook.com/realandwild

TWITTER twitter.com/realandwild

For local information contact:

BUDWEISER ‘66’: the beer to go for at the moment? Budweiser ‘66’: it’s new (has to be good, doesn’t it?) and it boasts that it’s “lightly carbonated” with a smooth, easy taste, which is a reassuring factoid for those who don’t like their tastes “hard”. Whatever that means. The TV ad also promises that the beer won’t “wear you down”. Make you staggeringly, pukingly, falling-down drunk if you have too much, yes. Wear you down, no. So how about a swig of uncreated life, which means you’ll never die and, in fact, will

taste immortality now? Not a feature you associate with many food products, eh? The woman whom Jesus met at a well must have looked at Him gone out when He started talking about giving her “living water” to drink (John chapter 4, The Bible). What’s living water? It’s Jesus’ way of saying that He meets our deepest need in life. Think about it. You’re going out to get beered up again. It’s going to be a great party night out with your friends. But will it get you to that place you want to be? Deep inner satisfaction? Self acceptance? Peace? Did it get you there last

time? Or the time before? – I mean in a lasting sense rather than just a fleeting buzz? Legions of hung-over people, vowing “never again” would agree: No, we never got there. If you want to experience what life’s really made of, don’t have what everyone else is having; have the drink that only Jesus is giving: real life. Cheers. Pray (talk to Jesus) like this: Jesus, I need the life You give. Thank You for dying and rising from death, so that I can live. Thank You for pouring out the life of Your Spirit. I drink that life in now. Come and fill me. Change me and make me new. Amen.

“The beeRs aRe on me”

Photo: Budweiser66, flickr.com

JESUS SAID... “If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you

would ask Me, and I would give you living water.”

John 4:10, The Bible

Newspapers support recycliNgRecycled paper made up 79% of the raw material for UK newspapers in 2009

mJa: 0845 123 5550jesus.org.uk

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FREEPOST, Nether Heyford, Northampton NN7 3BR

Tel: 0845 123 5550 Fax: 0845 166 8178

19/05/2011 16:44:21