Salvation Army in Indonesia provides medical assistance after volcanic eruption

From the Salvation Army International web-site:
SALVATION Army medical workers are providing assistance to people affected by the eruption of Mount Merapi in Indonesia. At least 64 people are known to have lost their lives in the disaster and an estimated 75,000 people have had to be evacuated from their homes, with many now living in temporary camps.

An assessment was carried out by personnel from the William Booth General Hospital in Samarang and The Salvation Army's Java and Bali Divisional Headquarters. They reported that the government is providing meals, shelter and general health services but that there is an urgent need for nutrition and milk for children, and for health provision for children, nursing mothers and pregnant women.

Mid-week review - week 45

My personal reflections from my view-point in the middle of the week..
Right now intensive preparations are going on for the twenty years anniversary of the Salvationa Army re-starting in Latvia after the occupation. The Festival will take place the 18th of November, the national day of Latvia.

You can hear people practice in all corners of the building. Tamburins, Choir and Brass Band. The builders working with the new entrance to the Riga 1st corps are working late all days of the week. Preparations are also going on of the exhibition, the drama and the publishing of the Latvian War Cry .

Last Sunday I saw the manuscript of the War Cry on it´s way to the printing office. There was an interview with Ruth and myself and in one of the questions we were asked about what we were dreaming to accomplish in Latvia. The interview took place in September. The two dreams we told about in the interview were to create a Children´s House in Sarkani and a social Center in Riga. At the time the interview was made it was only dreams. Today the work with the Children´s House is going on intenseively...

...and the Social Center is situated in the corner between Avuto iela and Stabu iela and is right now preparing for the official opening the first of December.

Dreams are coming true! I believe that God has heard the desperate prayers from the children in Sarkani and from the poor people in Riga.

The coming weekend Ruth and myself will have meetings in the Mission Church in Fristad. Our oldest son and his family are active members in that church. On the Saturday we will have meetings informing about Latvia and on the Sunday we will have the service in the church. During that service we will play a cornet trio, played by three generations. Myself, our oldest son and his second oldest son. I look forward to that.

Peter Baronowsky

24-7 prayer

A Global Call to 24-7 Prayer

"And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night?
I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly."  Luke 18:7,8

Salvationists from nations around the globe are being called to united, focused intercession - the need for justice for the oppressed: a day-and-night cry for justice, starting 1 January 2011 and continuing indefinitely.

Sign up now to register your participation in this global prayer initiative.

Michael W. Smith in Latvia

Festival of Hope in Riga with Franklin Graham

World Youth Convention in Stockholm 2011

A Revival of Hope in Latvia

Bishop Peteris Sprogis, the executive chair of the Ceribas Festivals with Franklin Graham, recently talked to Decision Magazine about the past and present challenges of the church in Latvia, and why he believes that God is doing great things in this Baltic nation of some 2.2 million people.
Learn more about the Festival that will be held Nov. 5-7 at Arena Riga in Riga, Latvia.

Q: Could you briefly explain the recent history of the church in Latvia and the obstacles it has overcome?


A: It’s a complicated history. The hardship of 50 years of Soviet occupation protected churches in Eastern Europe from the humanism and secularism that affected the West. However, the church in Latvia became ingrown because it had no dialogue with the outside world. It was unable to reach out because it was focused on protecting itself. So the castle has now become a prison, and the door is locked from the inside.


But the church is not called to operate in a perfect world. We are called to bring the Kingdom of God to a hurting world. Today, we have new challenges and opportunities. We are facing the same problems that weakened the Western church—post-modernism and materialism.


But I am optimistic because this creates a kind of desperation to look for genuine Christianity. The world is looking for a church that has answers.

Read more at the BGEA web site