There is an earnest search among the believers across the world for a real Church where a person can commune with God and relate to his fellow brethren. After trials and experiments the Indian Church is forming “Troop Church”.

The Army of Jesus was experimenting with the “Troop Church” for the past 20 years. Started in the year 1998, it has so far registered thousands of  troops . The experiment with Troop Church has been successful.

1. It has independent first line second and third line Troop Churches.
2. It has raised many leaders, pastors, prophets, counselors and other ministers and gospel workers.
3. It has no visible leader or hierarchical structure
4. It has no office, no full timer, no paid worker etc.
5. No organizational (hierarchical) set up.
6. No money collection or transaction.
7. No election, board, Committee etc.
8. Every Troop Church trains up believers in their gifts like worshipping, preaching, prophecy etc.
9. Since the mother troop disperses and starts new troops after 2 months, there is no stagnancy.
10. No pollution or corruption with money or power.
11. The two wings of Troop Church are Decentralisation and Multiplication .

Warfare prayer of the soldiers of the Army of Jesus to bind and destroy the works of the devil

Let us bind and destroy the works of the devil in the name of Jesus Christ who has conquered sin, satan, curse and death on the cross

Pro  18:5   The spirit which makes one  show partiality to the wicked

Pastor in Eritrea Released after Decade in Prison

International Christian Concern (ICC) has learned that Pastor Oqbamichel Haiminot has been released after more than a decade of imprisonment. According to VOM Australia, Pastor Oqbamichel was the first senior pastor in Eritrea to be arrested and held after the controversial and wrongful crackdown on religion in 2002. Though he was only in jail for a short period after his initial arrest in 2003, he was constantly harassed and rearrested over the next four years. In 2007, he was finally arrested and jailed for more than 10 years even though no charges were ever filed against him.  

Pastor Oqbamichel is one of hundreds of Christians in Eritrea who have been arrested and held for years due to their faith. In 2017, more than 200 Christians were arrested, yet never charged with any criminal activity. One of ICC’s sources shared, “There are only four legalized religions allowed in the country, which include Eritrean Orthodox, Catholic, Lutheran, and Sunni Islam. The regime touts this as religious freedom, however, to join any of these religions, people must first make four pledges.” One must pledge to never be “born again,” that his or her loyalty is to the government, not God or the Church, to never carry a Bible outside of church or the home, and to turn in any missionaries or evangelists to the government. When you turn in a missionary or evangelist, you get paid three months’ wages.
 
The Eritrean government is willing to go to great lengths to arrest and eradicate Christians. According to another underground pastor in Eritrea, Abraham*, “There are false brothers among us, who gather information. [He comes] to you, believing in the name of Jesus, you baptize him, but he is a spy.” These spies are sent by the government to find those who are not part of the four legal religions, and arrest them. 

Abraham experienced this government-led persecution firsthand in 2010. He shared,“In 2010, we were gathered for a meeting in Asmara, 34 or 35 together, and we were arrested and taken to the police station.” He was then moved to an underground prison where “there was no sun or light or [fresh air]. It was underground and we could only see each other when we went to the bathroom.” These jail cells keep those imprisoned in the worst conditions, with extreme temperature changes, a lack of light, no space, and often isolation. The only time they experience any freedom from their cells is once or twice a day when they are allowed to use the restroom. Abraham was held in this prison for one year.

This is the type of treatment that Pastor Oqbamichel suffered for the past decade. According to VOM, he is in need of medical assistance as his health has deteriorated due to his treatment in prison. 

Nathan Johnson, ICC’s Regional Manager for Africa, stated, “We are rejoicing for the release of a faithful man and are praying for his health and safety as he returns to a somewhat free life. We also remember the hundreds of others who are still suffering under this cruel and inhumane regime. The world must come together to end the abuse of human rights in Eritrea.”

Algerian Pastor ‘Amazed’ as Three Churches Reopened

Three churches recently closed down by authorities in Algeria’s northern province of Oran were permitted to re-open on Sunday, 10 June.

The three churches, located in Oran city, Ain Turk (30km west of Oran), and El Ayaida (35km east of Oran), were closed between November 2017 and February 2018.

On Sunday, the three churches were allowed to re-open following a notification issued by the governor of Oran province.

Rachid Seghir, who is the pastor at the main church of Oran city and also oversees the other two churches, told World Watch Monitor about the moment he received the notification.

“It was about 1pm when I got a call asking me to get to the police station as soon as possible, without giving further details,” he recalled.

“I first informed some church members, before heading to the police station which is about 300 metres away from the church in Oran.”

At the police station, Pastor Seghir was handed a notification to sign.

“It was hard to believe, as I was not expecting such a positive surprise!” said Pastor Seghir, who could barely hide his emotions. “Honestly, I have not understood anything that happened: I had read the notification and understood it correctly, but I remained amazed. ‘Maybe it’s just a trap,’ I thought.”

The pastor then left the police station and went directly to the church to share the news with some church members, as he continued to reflect on the event.

Recalling how events had unfolded since November last year, the pastor said: “First we were notified that we have to regularise our situation according to the safety regulations, or we will have to close our premises in three months – something which was impossible for us. Then, one month later they came and sealed off the doors of the church. And now they are notifying us that we can reopen and carry out our services in peace.”

Just 45 minutes after he was first called to the police station, three officers in uniform came and removed the seals from the church’s main door, without making any comment.

In their notification, the local authorities also did not provide any reasons justifying their change of stance.

The document only stipulated “the place of worship belonging to the Protestant church located at Abane Ramdane street will be re-opened”, and that state services, including the police, “will work towards the implementation of this decision”.

Later, Pastor Seghir received two other notifications regarding the churches in Ain Turk and El Ayaida.

“The procedure was identical to the first one,” he explained. “And it was such a surprise for me, as well as for all our brothers and sisters in Christ. We were asking ourselves the same question: ‘Should we trust them?’”

“We are very pleased to be able to resume our activities without fear of new threats. We hope that all churches can be regularised and able to work in peace and freedom. Such a thing can only be beneficial to the image of the country,” he added.

L’Eglise Protestante d’Algerie, the umbrella organisation linking 45 Protestant churches in Algeria (EPA), has welcomed the decision to reopen the three churches.

In a statement issued yesterday (12 June), the EPA expressed its gratitude to “all those who, in one way or another, through their support, have made this happy event possible”.

However, the EPA decried the initial decision to close the churches, saying: “These three churches have been arbitrarily closed down by the authorities for several months, having prevented their members from worshiping God freely, and this is in clear disregard of the Algerian Constitution and human rights.”

The grouping called on its supporters “to maintain the pressure, until all decisions to close places of worship in Bejaia and Tizi Ouzou are lifted”.

In all, six churches and a day nursery had been closed since November. The most recent closures were on 26 May, when churches in Ait-Mellikeche (Bejaia province) and Maatkas (Tizi Ouzou province) were ordered to close. In March, the village church in Azagher, near the town of Akbou (Bejaia province), was forced to stop all activities. A number of other churches have also received notifications to close down immediately.

The three churches in Ait-Mellikeche, Maatkas and Azagher are still closed.

The government accused them of not complying with safety regulations and of operating without permission. But the EPA denied the accusations, stating that the government is simply implementing the 2006 law of regulating non-Muslim worship, which stipulates that permission must be obtained before using a building for non-Muslim worship, and that such worship can only be conducted in buildings which have been specifically designated for that purpose.

But in practice, the authorities have failed to respond to almost all applications from churches for places of worship, including churches affiliated to the EPA, which was officially recognised by the government from 1974 until 2012, when new laws meant it had to re-register.

Despite meeting all the legal requirements and applying for re-registration in 2013, the EPA is yet to receive an official government response, meaning, technically, it lacks official legal status.