Prince’s Drummer Hannah Welton “Never Scared To Talk About My Jesus”

Hannah Welton is the drummer for the band 3RDEYEGIRL and is touring the world with Prince, one of the biggest musicians in history.

She’s also a very devout, open Christian in an industry where Christians are not usually made welcome.

“I’m never scared to talk about my Jesus, I will say though that there is a time and a place,” Welton told The Christian Post. “And you kind of have to be sensitive about faith and religion and how often you bring it up because you never want to come across like you’re trying to shove it down people’s throats.”

“Everything I do, whether it’s music or dance or writing poetry, I do for God and for His purpose and for His will in my life,” she said. “Same as [my husband] Joshua. Literally every decision is made with prayerful consideration. God impacts everything in my life.”

Welton received negative reaction from the social media world last week when she said that scantily clad pop stars are sending the wrong message to the young women who follow them.

“I do really want to clarify that I am never bashing or slamming other artists. My problem with what is being seen and what is happening in the industry goes far beyond the individual people,” she explained. “I’m thinking about the message being received from the little kids that are idolizing these people. I’m thinking more about the spiritual aspect of it rather than the people. My intention is never to degrade people. Everybody has a hustle. Everybody works hard and I would never bash another artist for doing what they love.”

She says the time on the road has given her multiple opportunities to share the gospel with her bandmates and with Prince himself.

Students Worldwide Gather For “See You At The Pole”

The annual See You At The Pole event today brought millions of youth around the world together for a time of prayer, praise and petitioning God for the schools’ safety and well-being for the upcoming year.

The event had a humble beginning in the town of Burleson, Texas in the early 1990s and now takes place in all 50 states and over 20 countries around the world.

“A small group of teenagers in Burleson, Texas, came together for a DiscipleNow weekend in early 1990,” the See You At The Pole website explains. “On Saturday night their hearts were penetrated like never before, when they became broken before God and burdened for their friends. Compelled to pray, they drove to three different schools that night. Not knowing exactly what to do, they went to the school flagpoles and prayed for their friends, schools, and leaders. Those students had no idea how God would use their obedience.”

Every year has a theme, with this year’s theme based on Ephesians 6:18, “Never Stop Praying.”

The Alliance Defending Freedom had been active in the days leading up to the event, providing students with information for administrators that might try to stop them from praying.

“Students don’t abandon their constitutional freedoms at the schoolhouse gate,” said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Jeremy Tedesco. “They continue to have the freedom to peacefully express their beliefs while at school, and that certainly includes prayer. The First Amendment protects freedom of speech for all students, regardless of the students’ religious or political beliefs.”

Smokey Robinson: God Set Me Free From Cocaine

Music legend Smokey Robinson is speaking out about his cocaine addition and how it ended instantly at a church in Los Angeles 30 years ago.

Robinson gave an interview with a London newspaper where he said the prayer of a pastor snapped the control the vile drug had over his life.

“She told me that God had told her I was coming [to the service]. And she told me all the things that were happening to me, physically and emotionally and mentally – which I shared with no on one earth,” Robinson said in an interview with The Telegraph. “No one knew. She told me every one of them that night. She said God had showed her what was going on. And I walked in that church an addict, and I came out free. May of 1986. Never looked back.”

Robinson said his addictions began smoking marijuana but he never thought he could end up a drug addict.

“I thought that it couldn’t happen to me. That’s the cunning of drugs … Because when I was younger I used to smoke a whole lot of weed. But weed was always manageable for me. I could have some killer weed and put it away for a year and not touch it! It never had the handle on me. I had the handle on it,” said Robinson.

Robinson travels around the world sharing his faith in places like prisons where he feels his testimony of overcoming drugs can be an inspiration to those jailed on drug related crimes.

LA Dream Center Opens Transitional Home for Foster Care Youth

A partnership between Free Chapel church and the LA Dream Center is opening a transitional home for youths between 18 and 23 who are coming from the foster care system.

The residence, called Freedom House, will also help young adults who are dealing with the probation system.

“More than a transitional home, we are believing Freedom House will be a place where students come to know the love of Jesus Christ, that He is our only hope and our Savior,” Pastor Jentezen Franklin of Free Chapel told The Christian Post. “…We are just so privileged to be a part of the dream … we can provide resources but we can’t do the other things that they do so well, the programs the facility.”

Pastor Matthew Barnett of the Dream Center told the Christian Post “the hope of America is in dynamic partnership of churches working together.”

Statistics show that up to 50 percent of foster kids end up homeless or in jail after they reach 18 and are forced out of the foster care system.  Barnett says they hope the Freedom House will help individuals make “positive lifestyle choices” that promote physical and mental well-being.

Bayless Conley Preaches Again After Near Fatal Accident

(Note:  This is an update of a story we brought you in January.)

Pastor Bayless Conley, almost killed in a boating accident in January, made a successful return to the pulpit.

The pastor sent a message on Twitter that read “Well, I did it.  Preached 1st time since the accident.  Thanks be to God, I had enough vocal strength to get through the entire message.”

Conley had returned to the church in a supervisory role earlier but Sunday marked the first time he attempted to deliver a sermon since the near-fatal accident.

Conley was riding in a boat at the end of January that collided head-on with cliffs on the north side of Catalina Island off the Southern California coast.  Conley suffered severe head and neck trauma including serious wounds to his throat.  He was in critical condition for weeks from the accident.

Doctors said that Conley would need 18 months of healing and rehab before he could return to the pulpit. Instead, it took 6 months.

Staff at Cottonwood Church said that Conley had some trouble pronouncing certain words but that everyone in attendance could understand the message.

Alabama Megachurch Opens Family Center To Community

An Alabama megachurch has opened up a facility made of a bowling alley and six giant interconnected domes to the public as a community outreach.

Faith Chapel Christian Center near Birmingham, Alabama has opened the center they call “The Bridge” to the public after opening it last year for the 6,400 members of the church.

The church says the delay came in getting staff in place for the entire facility, which beyond the bowling alley has basketball courts, fitness center, banquet hall and more.

Pastor Michael D. Moore says the goal of “The Bridge” is to “bridge people from the world to the kingdom.”

“People may not want to come to a church, but they’ll come to a bowling alley,” he told the Christian Post. “People have needs other than spiritual needs. There’s a need for safe, clean, uplifting, family-oriented entertainment.”

Moore founded the church with his wife, his mother and a friend in 1981.

Pastor Arrested For Crossing Police Barricade Found Not Guilty

A Texas appellate court has found a Texas pastor and a member of his congregation that had been arrested for crossing a police line at an event where they were protesting not guilty.

Pastor Joey Fault and members of the Kingdom Baptist Church in Venus, Texas were protesting at an event in Fort Worth Texas in October 2012.  When some of the event’s attendees were upset the Christians were passing out information and pamphlets that disagreed with the event’s mission, the police formed a human barricade to keep the Christians from being able to reach attendees.

Pastor Faust told the Christian News Network police told them that they could go no further and they were forbidden from even crossing the street.

The pastor and his group continued their protest but then noted police were allowing those who were not part of the church group to pass through their line and across the street.  The pastor then attempted to cross the street and was immediately seized upon by the police and arrested for “interfering with public duties.”  He was jailed for 20 hours and released on $1,500 bail.

Last May, a judge said the pastor and another member of his congregation who arrested on the same charge were guilty.  The case was appealed to the Second District of Texas Court of Appeals that ruled the men were not guilty and that the police had infringed on the First Amendment rights of the church.

“The skirmish line prohibited all member of the church from exercising their right of free speech merely because of their association with the church,” the court rules.  “This is too far a limitation.”

Four Million Bibles Given Out At World Cup

The Brazilian Bible Society says they will be handing out more Bibles at the World Cup than the population of 23 of the 50 U.S. states.

Leaders of the BBS say that they have four million Bibles that will be handed out to competitors, officials and attendees at the 2014 World Cup soccer tournament.

“Brazilians are football-mad and their obsession with football will reach fever pitch over the next few weeks,” said Dr. Rudi Zimmer of the Bible Society of Brazil, reports the United Bible Societies. “We want the Bible to have a prominent presence amid all the excitement. It’s an unprecedented opportunity for churches and Christians here to share God’s Word with local and foreign fans, and we want to equip and encourage them to do that.”

In addition to the Bibles, over 20,000 copies of the Gospel of John will be handed out in Portuguese and eight other languages.

Over 1,600 churches have joined together as part of the outreach effort in what is called the “Fair Play Brazil” outreach.  Those involved say “Fair Play Brazil” was inspired by the apostle Paul.

“Corinth was one of the largest and busiest cities of the Roman Empire and hosted one of the biggest sporting events in the calendar; the Isthmian Games,” said Zimmer. “There, Paul found the opportunity to preach the Gospel to people from all over the world. We and our partners share that same vision now – both for the World Cup this year and the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2016.”

Thousands Accept Christ At Franklin Graham Crusade

God’s family has grown by thousands.

Franklin Graham hosted a Festival of Hope in Warsaw, Poland on Sunday where thousands came forward to give their lives to Christ.  Over 30,000 people attended the event according to the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association.

“God loves you,” Graham preached to those in attendance, “And God wants to give you everlasting life, but that only comes through faith in Jesus Christ.  Will you accept His love?”

Graham shared a message based on Mark 8:34-38, emphasizing that there is nothing in the world that is more valuable than a relationship with Christ.

“You could have all the iPhones in the world,” Graham said, “Control of all the armies of the earth.  You could put all the euros and stack them in his arena.  Your soul is still more valuable.”

The event with Franklin Graham capped off a weekend of celebrations that included the annual March for Jesus through Warsaw.  Concerts took place throughout the weekend including CCM superstars Michael W. Smith and Newsboys.

“For all the new believers out there who gave their life to Christ,” Newsboys singer Michael Tait told the crowd, “I want you to live your life with abandon!”

The festival’s executive chairman told the Christian Post that many connected to the festival have been waiting for Sunday night for many years.

Christians Allowed To Meet Again In Plano, Texas

Christians in Plano, Texas are no longer breaking the law when they gather to praise God.

The Agape Resource and Assistance Center had been holding Bible studies in the homes of members before the city told them they violated an ordinance that you cannot have more than 8 people inside a home at any one time.

The ministry contacted the Liberty Institute who informed the city they were in violation of the Texas Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

“It is unlawful and unjust for the City of Plano to ban the ministry of Agape Resources and Assistance from fulfilling its calling to serve local women and children in crisis,” Hiram Sasser, Liberty Institute’s director of litigation, stated. “We are hopeful that the City of Plano will lift its unlawful ban, and no further legal action will be necessary. This is an outrageous violation of our client’s religious freedom.”

The city of Plano responded June 12th with a letter apologizing for an error.

“It has come to the [city’s] attention that the aforementioned Notice was issued in error and should therefore be disregarded,” Cynthia O’Banner from the city wrote in the response letter.  “As previously conveyed, the City of Plano appreciates Agape Resource & Assistance Center for services rendered to citizens in need.  Please accept our apology for the misunderstanding.”