Faith News Network

The International Christian Film Festival has truly been a fierce competition this year. Producers from around the world submitted their best films, documentaries, music videos and more to try to win the top prize. There were many submissions but only a few official selections in this very tough competition. The winners were selected by 3 judges, these judges have extensive film and TV experience. Following are some of the winner’s from the festival.

Sunday, June 2, 2013, will be different from all the Sundays that preceded it. It will be a friendlier, more cheerful and more affirming day. Gone will be the rancor and demeaning verbiage. Across the nation churches will celebrate the Seventh Annual Say Something Nice Sunday. As bullying has escalated in all walks of life including some churches, the imperative to be more Christ-like in our speech takes on even greater significance.

May 9, 2013 is “Ascension Day,” marking the day when Jesus Christ ascended up into heaven, as recorded in Acts 1.3-11. It starts a global countdown of ten days of international prayer leading to Pentecost Sunday and the annual Global Day of Prayer on Sunday, May 19.

Empowered21 (www.empowered21.org) is committed to seeing new generations experience the power and presence of the living God by providing resources at www.pentecostsunday.tv and encouraging ministry leaders to preach and teach on the Holy Spirit during the weeks leading to Pentecost Sunday, May 19 2013.

National Christian leaders recently joined the Awakening America Alliance—an alliance formed six years ago from a broad coalition of Evangelical, Pentecostal and Charismatic ministries—at a historic leadership summit in Jacksonville, Florida. Leaders at the summit focused on American history while evaluating and engaging the future with regard to awakening.

Want to be happier and live longer? Who doesn’t? According to a recent article in the Washington Times, having an active spiritual life is one of the best ways to accomplish this. The Times article reported that those who attend church regularly tend to live an average of 35% longer than those who do not.

The 24th annual U.S. Capitol Bible Reading Marathon began at 6:00 PM Sunday evening. For 90 continuous hours, beginning with the reading of Genesis 1:1, every word of the Bible will be read aloud and without commentary, culminating at 1:00 PM on Thursday, May 2, with the reading of the final chapters of the book of Revelation. During these five days, hundreds of Bible believers will gather on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol to read a portion of the Bible, to listen and to pray.

This September, around 20,000 churches will reach out to 10 million unchurched Americans for National Back to Church Sunday.

Christians in many nations are being encouraged to set aside time with the Lord in their homes or local churches during a 72 hour window, April 30-May 2, to repent, to fast, to pray, individually and for the United States to return to its earlier dependence on God.

This international prayer event will begin with a National Day of Repentance on April 30 www.dayofrepentance.org and conclude with the National Day of Prayer on May 2 www.nationaldayofprayer.org.

This unique call has been encouraged by Australia’s national day of prayer team, who are spreading the event to other national prayer teams www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNe0hJvLSr0.

The International House of Prayer ihopkc.org will help focus this 72 hour world prayer event through its live website which draws up to 75,000 “hits” in 130 nations each day.

April 30 is an appropriate day for repentance. The legislature in Pennsylvania has designated April 30 as its day of fasting and prayer. And April 30 marks the 224th anniversary of President Washington’s inaugural remarks thanking God for His miracles in founding America. April 30 also is the 150th anniversary of President Lincoln’s “National Day of Humiliation, Fasting and Prayer” in the midst of the despair of the Civil War. Issuing the proclamation, Lincoln said in part: “we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us. It behooves us then to humble ourselves before the offended Power, to confess our national sins and to pray for…forgiveness.”

The international call to repent, fast, and pray for America will conclude on May 2 with the 62nd annual National Day of Prayer. The theme verse this year is Matthew 12:21: “In His name the nations will put their hope.”

National Day of Repentance is a nonprofit grass roots coalition of more than one hundred fifty Christian ministries across denominations now in forty states and twelve nations. Following II Chronicles 7:14 participants in their local churches set aside days of repentance to seek God’s purity in their lives and His mercy to forgive sins and heal nations. www.dayofrepentance.org

(Source: Christian Newswire)

The Orange Conference, one of the most important family ministry team events happening today, will be hosting a Live Stream April 24-26, 2013, from their sold out Atlanta conference. Drawing together over 5,500 key influencers — senior, student, children’s and preschool leaders — to discover new strategies for sharing God’s truth with the next generation, attendees will discover what it really means to clarify the essentials and eliminate distractions with the theme of “Focus.”

The Wheaton Park District will host a new summer event, Gospel Jazz Fest, on Saturday, June 29, 2013 from 6-9pm.

American patriotism shone brightly during last weekend’s conference, The Awakening 2013, an annual event staged by the Freedom Federation. Compelling speeches and a call to return to biblical principles from several nationally influential figures were the order of the day.

This Sunday, April 14, is Global 4/14 Day. An international coalition of one million Christians, known as the 4/14 Window Movement, will partner together in prayer on six continents. They will specifically be praying for children in the “4/14 Window.”

Murfreesboro, Tennessee is the primed destination for a unique event — a dynamic combination of one of the largest men’s Christian initiatives spanning across four continents and one of the fastest growing churches in the Southeast.

What comes to mind when you hear the word Easter? Some might think of colorful eggs, chocolate bunnies, special church clothes or tulips. But for 5-year-old Joshua Miller, the word means one thing: “joy.”

Fueled by a goal to see numerous church leaders, small groups, church planting launch teams, individuals and even full churches participating in the discipleship conversation, Exponential has announced plans for a high-quality live webcast from the upcoming Exponential 2013: DiscipleShift conference in Orlando (April 22-25) — free to anyone who registers.

Azusa Street Mission & Historical Society is returning to São Paulo to host its 6th Annual Gospel music festival and gathering, Azusafest, at Centro de Exposições Imigrantes from April 19-21.

The annual Global Leadership Summit 2013 convened Monday night in Los Angeles with some of the worlds’ prominent Pentecostal leaders under the invitation of Rev. David Andrade. They came from North, Central and South America, the Middle and Far East, Africa and India and represented all races. The vast list of names included David Andrade, Verna Linzey, Steve Dittmar, Gershom Sikaala, Keith Brandt, Jenni Lia, Eli Elibadi, Samuel Padilla, and many others.

It’s the 99th year of the Assemblies of God, and General Superintendent George O. Wood delivered a 1914 doctrinal foundation message to a 2013 congregation last week at SAGU’s National Prayer Conference. The event was marked by unity and a renewed vision to experience and follow the Holy Spirit as the movement’s pioneers did.

World Congress of Families invites pro-family leaders, activists and scholars to join delegates from over 80 countries at World Congress of Families VII (May 15-18, 2013) at the Australian Technology Park in Sydney. The theme for WCF VII is “Happy Families, Healthy Economy: A New Vision for National Prosperity and Social Progress.”