Thousands have gathered to celebrate the movement of Christ as ‘Soul Week 2006’ kicked off on Saturday, 29 July at the Kingsway International Christian Centre (KICC) in Hackney, London.

|PIC1|Passionate worshippers filled in the seats row by row, as popular praise group Noel Robinson & Nu Image led songs like “Lord I lift Your Name on High” and “Here I Am to Worship”.

Pastor Jonathan Oloyede, Senior Associate Pastor of Glory House, and Patrick Regan, CEO of XLP and Soul in the City opened the event with a warm welcome and introduction of Soul Week 2006.

“Mission is meant to be a lifestyle,” Regan noted. “We need to engage the culture into our lives.”

Meanwhile, Superintendent Leroy Logan of Hackney Borough Police acknowledged the hard works of 'Street Pastors' and community outreach led by US-based evangelist Nicky Cruz and his sister Hip-Hop ministry TRUCE (To Reach Urban Communities Everywhere) in the past month.

Since July, over 1000 people and 150 gangs were reached in the most corrupted areas in East London.

Pastor Oloyede said: “We believe more people should throw down their guns. More people should hand in their knives. We need to change the atmosphere and landscape of London.”

|PIC2|Later in the evening, TRUCE shook up the stage with a dynamic rap/dance performance and testimonies of their mission in London.

“Hip-Hop can be used as a ministry tool, because it works,” Director of TRUCE David Ham noted.

TRUCE opened their performance by addressing the audience: “I want to challenge you all to be a living witness. Now, CAN I GET A WITNESS?”

The response from the crowd was a loud “AMEN,” as TRUCE pumped up the congregation with their song “Witness”.

Before stepping down the stage, Ham said: “May Soul in the City truly bring ‘souls in the city’.”

Following, Nicky Cruz, evangelist and author of renowned book Run Baby Run, came out to speak and testify about his conversion to Christianity, as he was a former member of one of New York's most notorious gangs, ‘The Mau Maus’.

|AD|“The great thing about evangelism is that you share Christ with others,” Cruz shared. “I want to challenge young people to give out your flesh.“

“Arise, and don’t be afraid.” He claimed: “Let the Holy Spirit take over your soul. God can use you. If God can use Nicky Cruz, He can use you.”

Cruz additionally urged Christians not to “apologise for their faiths” but to testify boldly. He claimed: “If you’re going to die, die for your faith.”

The evening concluded as hundreds of young people were invited to step forward to pray with Cruz, ministry pastors, and the TRUCE members.

Soul Week 2006 (29 July- 5 August) will host various projects, leading up to the Big Event at Brixton Academy on Saturday 5th August, where over 5000 people are expected to attend. The line-up includes Andy Flannagan, 29th Chapter, Jahaziel and Judah and Secret and Lou Fellingham.

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