GOD IN THE NEWS BULLETIN

GOD IN THE NEWS BULLETIN
NO 1, DECEMBER 2009


LEKAN OTUFODUNRIN

GODLY MESSAGES
While reading secular newspaper and magazines, I usually find mention of God in interviews and articles which can make both believers and unbelievers better appreciate God’s awesomeness.
I have always had this vision of highlighting the “Godly” messages through a bulletin, but never got round to do it.
Last week while reading The Saturday Punch newspaper, I found it difficult to resist the urge to commence what I call “God in the News” bulletin.

The weekly bulletin is here to stay and I will appreciate your readership and support by sharing the content with others and drawing my attention to useful materials for the bulletin



CHRISTMAS TRAGEDY: HOW I COPED WITH THE LOSS OF NINE FAMILY MEMBERS

“It was my relationship with Jesus that pulled me through. Serving Him helped me cope with the loss”
Sarah Boulous, ballet dancer and Chairperson of the Society for the Performing Arts, Nigeria, The Punch November. 28, 2009


Comfort Oseghale the reporter who interviewed Sarah, mush have been shocked to learn that her interviewee once lost seven family members on a Christmas Day in an air crash.

How did you receive the news of the crash she asked Sarah, who responded that the question “is a million dollar question”
“I was devastated. It was the suggest tragedy my family had ever experienced. It was something you can’t have any feeling about. It’s like you are basically paralysed” Sarah, a Lebanese, stated.
Expectedly getting over such tragedy must have been hard for Sarah but the Punch reporter preferred not to imagine but asked her to describe the recovery process in her own words.
“It was my relationship with Jesus that pulled me through. Serving him helped me to cope with the loss “Sarah responded.
The circumstances of the tragedy was enough to break anyone’s heart but for God who granted Sarah and other family members the fortitude to bear the loss.
“I lost seven members of my family on a Christmas Day. My husband’s sister (through whom we met) and her husband died in a fire started by a Christmas tree in 2003.
So my mother, brother, sister – in – law and her father, uncle, aunt, cousin all traveled on Christmas Day for the funeral and the plane carrying then all first crashed” she recalled.

Serah, 33 who says God called her to dance for Him is grateful for the progress she has made so far in fulfilling her organisation’s vision to empower artistes to express the gifts they have been called to exploits in life.
“I would say God has been merciful in seeing us through this, God allows certain challenges so we can be transferred. I see miracles happen everyday. Every time we needed money, something came up and brought money”.
To God indeed be all the glory, honour and adoration

REPORT FROM LITTWORD CONFERENCE (2)

LIMURU NOTES : REPORTS FROM LITTWORD CONFERENCE (2)
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2009
Lekan Otufodunrin
lekanagency@yahoo.com

QUOTES

We don’t know what will happen tomorrow but here we are talking about the future of Christian publishing in the next 20 years. What is sure is that change is coming and we have to prepare for it.
Greg Thornton, Vice President (Publications) Moody Bible Institute, Chicago, US


Amidst all the changes that is here with us and will come, we must always remember that we serve a God that never changes. He is the same yesterday, today and forever.

We may be surprised about the changes we experience in our lives but He (God) is not.
Ramond Rocha III
International Literature Development Coordinator of OMF International, Philippines

FROM THE DINNING TABLE

Every dinning table at the conference centre where this conference is holding has a Bible scripture on the table. The one on the table I eat yesterday afternoon was from Isaiah 49: 10 They will neither hunger nor thirst.

LITTWORD CONFERENCE REPORT

LIMURU NOTES : REPORTS FROM LITTWORD CONFERENCE
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2009

Jambo. Karibu Kenya. Hakuna Matata
Lekan Otufodunrin
lekanagency@gmail.com

Hello. Welcome to Kenya.

Greetings from the top of Limuru hills on the outskirt of Nairobi, Kenya where I am attending a print media conference: LittWord 2009 Conference organised by the Media Associates International (MAI).
The theme of the conference is One in Word and there are almost 150 participants (writers, authors, publishers, booksellers, graphic artist and many more) from all the continents.
The programme kicked off on Sunday night with a keynote message on the theme by Ambassador Bethuel A Kiplagat of Kenya who took us through a session of “eating the word” (tell you more about this later).
He ended his presentation with a story of one Mr John, a former janitor with a University in Kenya who according to him triggered off a chain of reactions that led to the resolution of the political crisis in Mozambique (more about this later). John’s name is nowhere in the history of efforts to resolve the war in Mozambique.
Earlier in the day, there had been four early bird supper sessions. I attended the one on Writing for the secular press. Though a secular journalist myself, it was indeed a refreshing lessons about why and how Christian writers can write for the secular press.
The conference scheduled to end on Friday is packed full of sessions and God’s willing I will bring you some reports on the happening here.
There is indeed no problem here (Hakuna Matata) except for the cold weather. Even participants from countries with regular cold weather are complaining. As I type this note on Monday, November 2 morning about 6.30 am local time, it’s raining. My room is very cold and I can’t wait to get back to bed and wrap myself up with the blanket for some sleep before getting a hot bath ahead of today’s programme.
We were warned ahead of the weather but I didn’t realise it would be this cold.

Thanks for reading and God bless you.

November JFC Fellowship