Hope and Hopelessness, promotional videos, envelopes and further encouragement

It’s been a while since our last news blog, so it’s time to send you a further update on how things are going with HOPE Animation. Over the last few months we’ve been sending out hundreds of DVDs (mainly to the UK), but there’s also an increasing demand from countries abroad, especially Asia where churches request the DVDs as teaching material for their churches.

Many thanks to everyone who has pledged a donation as your support has helped us to cover postage for the parcels, which is critical as we operate as a very small start-up organisation from a livingroom in Canterbury.

The slumber of Christianity

In light of HOPE 2008 there’s an excellent book that I would like to recommend to you as I believe that it is critical to understand and apply its principles before we as churches are able to share HOPE with our nation. Whilst its title “The slumber of Christianity” or as initially proposed “The hopelessness of Christianity” sounds rather depressing, I must say that there have been very few books that have encouraged and uplifted me in such a profound way as the truth that’s depicted in its pages.

Author Ted Dekker explains the incomparable great power that we as believers have if we are firmly grounded in HOPE. By understanding the dynamics of HOPE and HOPELESSNESS we will be able to distinguish where our feelings of happiness and deep discouragement come from and learn that HOPE (of all things) is the single most influential element in achieving happiness: “Without HOPE our faith is dashed and our love is empty.”

Starting with his own life story of worldly success, Ted describes his journey of seeking happiness and earthly fulfillment. The narrative, reminding a great deal of King Solomon and the book of Ecclesiastes, tells about Ted’s upbringing as a missionary child, his entrepreneurinal spirit, early success within a Marketing firm, his highly lucrative set up of a multimillion dollar enterprise, the acquisition of further companies, his ever growing hunger to consume luxuries and wealth and eventually his total collapse after disappointment and frustration when all his riches failed to deliver the happiness that he had hoped for.

Only after months of depression, the loss of his business and the death of a loved one, Ted discovers a true and living faith that he recognises to be founded in a deep and longing hope for heaven. Whilst the book is a surprisingly honest resume of Ted’s life, he also describes a slumber that he encounters within the lives of most of us Christians in the western world. It seems like we have fallen asleep to the HOPE of heaven that is mentioned on nearly every page of the New Testament and eternity has become more of a crutch in Christianity than a prize.

We are far more occupied with this life than the next, which is mirrored in our surprisingly worldly attitude towards death, our profane aspirations for success in this life and our faded vision for the future. Christians are not much happier than the rest of the world (which is reflected in divorces, depression and burn-outs) and misguided theology often burdens us with an expectation for more earthly fulfillment and satisfaction than we manage to realize.

Now there is also real Christianity that we were saved for. A kingdom so rich in reward that our HOPE for that kingdom causes us to groan! HOPE is imagination put in the harness of faith, being driven by a compelling motivation, a persistent preoccupation with an idea that is beyond our ability to reason: an obsession with God, a desire for the heavenly bliss that awaits us and a passion that will make us to go to unthinkable lenghts to find ways to communicate the Gospel.

So, the question to us as the church is this: If we ourselves do not have much HOPE in our own hearts and lifes is it possible to share HOPE and demonstrate it through word and deed? Maybe HOPE 2008 will be less about telling the world about our HOPE in Christ and far more about the church rediscovering its lost sense of HOPE?

Well, let me encourage you to read the book, let’s rededicate our lives back to God, fully sell out our churches to God’s eternal HOPE and then get stuck into preaching the word of HOPE through our lives, words, actions and deeds!

Promotional Materials & Jiffy Envelopes

Coming back to HOPE Animation, some of you have asked previously whether there are any promotional materials for the HOPE Animation website that you could use in your churches. At the moment, we only have a short DVD with all our film trailers set up in a menu but might be producing further materials in the future. Let me know if you would like a copy of the promotional DVD. Whilst I can post a copy to you, you can also download the DVD file and then burn yourself your own copy of the trailers.

Oh, and by the way, if you have any spare Jiffy Bags that we can recycle and use for sending out DVDs please get in touch too! :)

Some final comments

Ok, it’s time to finish this rather long newsletter with three comments that we have recently received about the animations. I hope they might inspire you to use the films for whereever you see fit.

“My 11 year old son and I saw Noah’s Ark and we were captivated. Thank you again. It’s brought to life this story for my son and I know your DVDs will impact my students in such a positive way.”

“Once again, many thanks for my copy of the Pilgrim’s Progress. It is a wonderful resource which has enhanced my understanding of my Christian journey, my youngest son has been watching the DVD almost every night since it arrived in our home, which also means that he is watching less of the Disney channel and the Simpsons.”

“We have shared the DVDs with a church leader (a person who is a biblical scholar) and he thought they were suitable for any age group and made no criticism only praise as you covered the areas where people usually nit pick.”

New Year's prophecy and new Pilgrim's Progress Trailer

As HOPE Animation has been started as a HOPE 2008 Project, we would like to share with you an important word from Mark Stibbe, St Andrews Chorleywood, to encourage us at the start of this new year and the beginning of HOPE 2008.

2008 IS THE YEAR OF THE GATE

Pass through, pass through the gates!
Prepare the way for the people.
Build up, build up the highway!
Remove the stones.
Raise a banner for the nations. - Isaiah 62:10

In Hebrew, the number eight is rendered by the letter CHET, which is depicted in the form of a GATE



The number eight is related to new starts and new life in the Scriptures –
Eight is the number of the gate… And I sensed the Holy Spirit saying this:

2008 is the year of the open gate. Prepare to pass through the gate. There are new beginnings ahead for those who have been waiting patiently for their moment to come. Obstacles are being removed. The Father is breaking his children out of a sense of captivity to past restrictions. The anointing for new beginnings is on many in this year. The time of frustration and exile is coming to an end. This is the Lord’s time for his people to rise up and follow him through the gates of opportunity. New starts are looming. Many are on the point of experiencing the new life that convergence brings. And the true church – even though it will know many trials - is on the point of experiencing new life, a new season of vitality and creativity, a brand new Reformation. A highway is being built, stones are being removed, and a banner is being raised for the nations.

So get ready… and do not be afraid. Do not be anxious. 2008 is the year of the gate… And there is a BREAKER ANOINTING on those who are pushing up to the threshold of their opportunity:

"One who breaks open the way will go up before them; they will break through the gate and go out. Their king will pass through before them, the LORD at their head" - Micah 2:13

Finally, there's also a new version of our Pilgrim's Progress Trailer available now:

HOPE Animation on Australian TV!

Completely unexpected and as a total surprise we had an email from the Australian Christian Channel asking whether they could broadcast some of our animations. In return we were offered a 30 second advertising slot for our HOPE Animation website. Here's the schedule for the broadcasts:

A Christmas Journey – 4pm Christmas Eve & 6am Christmas Day
The Pilgrims Progress – Friday the 4th of January at 4pm & Monday the 7th at 7am
Noah’s Ark – Friday the 25th of January at 4pm & Monday the 28th at 7am

Whilst you probably won't be able to receive and / or view the programs on ACCTV, you still can order your free copies of our animations from our website and watch our new promotional trailer here:

"Pilgrim's progress" as an entertaining teaching resource for youth workers

Are you running a youth group, Sunday school or Kids church? Why not try the HOPE animations as entertaining teaching resources and discuss the themes within the group:

"I just watched the pilgrim's progress dvd. I'm so inspired right now, loved the story and the messsage. I think I'll read the book again.

My brother played the Pilgrims progress dvd to the the youngins at Church last Sunday. They only got to watch a bit of it and then discussed the issues raised. Apparently when they had to come back into the main service they wanted to stay and watch the rest. My brothers says it went well and he'll carry on showing it next week."

UCB TV (United Christian Broadcasting UK) is currently planning to air the Pilgrim's progress for a second time on 15 December and during Christmas week. After premiering the animation on the 22 September 2007, there have been some very positive responses from many of their viewers. If you would like to watch the broadcast, make sure to tune in to Satellite Channel 766 or watch online at http://www.ucb.co.uk/.

Two short reviews

Just thought I'll quickly share the reviews that we've recently received from two of our viewers:

• "Very many thanks for the DVDs. I was very impressed when I watched Pilgrim's progress on UCB TV and feel this is a film which will toucher older children and adults alike. I found it very moving. It's a book which is under appreciated in these days, and I hope your film will encourage more people to read it - or a modern day version."
  
• "Thank you so much for sending the DVD animation of Pilgrim's Progress. I found it so helpful and encouraging having my husband, in Feb going home to be with Jesus, my life felt like ashes, the DVD was part of my healing for going on and going forward with a joy and sure hope, that life is not an easy journey but keeping our eyes on Jesus we will make it. Friends have watched it with me and are encouraged too.

If these short testimonials have touched you or stirred your interest in the "Pilgrim's progress", then make sure to order your free copy from http://www.hopeanimation.com/ today.

Welcome to the HOPE Animation Blog

Welcome to the HOPE Animation Blog

Our aim is to keep you regularly updated about the DVDs available at http://www.hopeanimation.com/, to provide you with testimonies and reviews from people around the world that have watched the films and to inform you about any updates and developments of HOPE Animation.

Thanks for visiting our site and please tell your friends and church about our free resources!