The Profile

When 15-year-old Natasha Ednan-Laperouse died from a severe allergic reaction to an unlabelled Pret a Manger sandwich in 2016, her young face graced newspapers across the country and her story travelled the world. What failed to be reported at the time was that her father, Nadim, who was with her when she collapsed, had a powerful spiritual experience that ultimately led him to faith. In this in-depth interview, Nadim describes how he saw angels hovering over his daughter's body, and how the experience led him to the same Christian faith that was so important to Natasha. Read the full story in Premier Christianity magazine.

Known as ‘Napalm Girl’, Kim Phuc is recognised globally as the nine-year-old running from a napalm attack during the Vietnam War. The image was recently voted the most iconic photo of all time. In this in depth interview with Premier’s Jess Lester, Kim shares her remarkable story of how she came

Justin Brierley speaks to church leaders, evangelists and authors from lockdown in their homes about what the Coronavirus means for them, their ministry and the church. Evangelist JJohn talks about faith instead of fear in the storm, RT Kendall believes God is trying to get our attention, Rob Parsons reflects on how to make lockdown work for families and Philip Yancey reflect on God’s purposes in the crisis.

Will van der Hart is a pastoral chaplain at Holy Trinity Brompton, London and a director of The Mind And Soul Foundation. Since struggling with anxiety following his experience of the 7/7 London bombings Will has worked at the forefront of helping Christians and the church to understand and engage mental health issues. He speaks to Justin Brierley about his life and ministry and how Christians who suffer from anxiety and depression can maintain a positive outlook during the Coronavirus quarantine. www.mindandsoulfoundation.org

Andrew Brunson is a American pastor who lived in Turkey for more than 20 years as a missionary with his wife. He was imprisoned for two years on what religious freedom campaigners say were bogus terrorism-related charges including leading Turkey’s failed 2016 coup and being the head of the CIA for the Middle East. His detainment drew international attention from world leaders including Donald Trump. The US president even put sanctions on Turkey, demanding that it set Brunson free. Tola Mbakwe, journalist at Premier Christian News, interviewed Brunson a little over a year after his release. He opened up about his harrowing experience in Turkish prisons, what it was like to be used as a political bargaining chip, and also the experience of having a massive prayer movement centred on him, ultimately strengthening his weakened faith and leading to his freedom.

“How do we bring enemies together?” That’s the question which has dominated much of Canon Andrew White’s ministry. For many years he was the only Anglican vicar in Baghdad, staying there throughout the most recent Iraq war. He only left when the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby told him: “You’re more use to us alive than dead, Andrew”.  In this in-depth interview with Premier Christianity’s Sam Hailes, Canon Andrew opens up about his early life, his ongoing health issues and why he’s been investigated twice by the Charity Commission. The Profile is brought to you in association with Premier Christianity magazine. For a free sample copy of the latest issue visit premierchristianity.com/freesample

Working in Nigeria as a medical missionary, David and his wife Shirley thought they were safe. “That was an illusion,” David now says. On 13 October 2017 the couple were awakened by a pounding on the door. The power lines had been cut as a gang stormed the compound and kidnapped them along with Alanna Carson and Ian Squire. Soon afterwards, Ian was shot dead. In this interview with Premier Christianity’s Sam Hailes, David explains how the other three Christians survived the ordeal, why the Bible was “fundamental” to their survival, and what the traumatic experience taught him about God’s sovereignty. The Profile is brought to you in association with Premier Christianity magazine. For a free sample copy of the latest issue visit premierchristianity.com/freesample

Nims Obunge loves an acronym. Hope stands for “Helping Other People Excel”, while Dream means “Develop Real Examples and Mentors”, he says. As a preacher and pastor, Nims is passionate about motivating his people to live for God and make a difference in their communities. His Christian roots are evident. He talks about growing up in the context of 6am family prayer meetings and how he’s gone onto lead Freedom’s Ark church in north London. Best known for founding The Peace Alliance and working at various levels of society including working with the police to tackle gun crime and helping to rehabilitate prisoners, Nims isn’t a stranger to the world of politics and public service. And he’s unfazed by the suggestion that independent candidates like him are at a disadvantage. Speaking of the upcoming election on 7 May he says, “I know I can win”. The Profile is brought to you in association with Premier Christianity magazine. For a free sample copy of the latest issue visit premierchristianity.com/freesample Listen to our interview with the Conservative candidate Shaun Bailey here. Premier is approaching the other candidates with interview requests.  

‘Open the Eyes of My Heart’ has been sung by millions of Christians across the globe. Writer Paul Baloche, who has also penned many other hit worship songs including ‘Hosanna’ and ‘Our God Saves’, never expected his music to travel as much as it has. Ahead of the release of his new record Behold Him, Paul talks about the tension found in promoting his own music (admitting the publicity side is his “least favourite part” of the album making process). He also talks about the importance of discipleship and mentoring, and explains his philosophy of giving other Christians the benefit of the doubt, or in his words, ‘a grace pass’. The Profile is brought to you in association with Premier Christianity magazine. For a free sample copy of the latest issue visit premierchristianity.com/freesample

When God told Nona Jones to quit her job, she was shocked. But minutes after she handed in her notice, Facebook called. They were offering her the chance to become the company’s head of global faith partnerships. In this in-depth interview with Premier Christianity’s Sam Hailes, Nona explains what the role involves and how she’s helping churches get the most out of social media. She also opens up about the trauma and abuse she suffered as a child, how she was able to forgive and move on, and why perfectionism and untamed ambition can be so dangerous. Nona, who is on first names terms with Mark Zuckerberg, also gives her views on parents allowing children to have their own smartphone at a young age, and responds to accusations that Facebook has been limiting freedom of speech on its platform. The Profile is brought to you in association with Premier Christianity magazine. For a free sample copy of the latest issue visit premierchristianity.com/freesample You can also read the interview online here