Amal* was one of our previous teammate’s language helpers who shortly after we got to know her had a horrendous physical attack by a local man who left her for dead. Our team members walked through this dark time of court appearances and physical healing with her and it has resulted in a deep relationship with her and her husband Aarat*. Aarat* interestingly is part of Elizabeth’s* family and the brother to Mama Eliphaz* who we also know well. Pray for an openness to Jesus Truth by whole families and that this family will move towards Jesus and know that with God everything is possible. MARK 10:27
House of Prayer
Pray for a pastor’s family who live next door to a medical clinic in a village. He and his wife offer water, porridge, and prayer for those who await medical care and for those who have accompanied the sick to the clinic. The ministry is growing and the neighbors are now recognizing their home as a “house of prayer”. He and his wife have found many receive the Gospel message and are thankful for prayer for their physical and spiritual condition. Pray that they would see God’s hand at work in their lives and that new believers would join in regular fellowship with other Christians.
Diaspora in Minnesota
• Many of our Somali connections have been fairly silent lately. Pray that we might reestablish those
connections or discern the cause.
• Praise God for a good connection with an Iraqi family. Pray that this might develop and become a good friendship.
Hope and Life
Pray for the healing & protection for our watchman who is ill. Ask for more times to share hope with him and that he would receive Hope and Life.
Pray for pastors
Pray for Pastors Mateus, Joaquim and Isaac and their churches: for grace, wisdom, discernment and endurance in every trial and situation that is ahead; that they’d be a united testimony among the Ndau people and that many would come to salvation.
Diaspora in Atlanta
* Please pray for clarity about which African UPGs we should reach out to in the Atlanta area. Pray also for local churches to participate, and also even US office staff. Pray for introductions to Africans in the area. Pray for many to come to faith in Christ and be discipled.
* Pray for enduring connections and friendships as a group of us visit a nearby mosque Feb 3 or 4.
Please pray for the Holy Spirit to guide our prayers and answer them, as we ask for the tools, seed and workers to be provided for this corner of our Father’s field. (John 15)
Diaspora in Washington
We praise Jesus! for a healthy in-person semester of over 100 English students this past fall. We pray that God would continue to bless us with continued health for the anticipated 150+ English students in-person in 3 locations this spring. Pray that our students will receive life from God’s Word. Psalm 119:25
• We praise Jesus! for wonderful Christmas celebrations, one of which led to a student asking for and
receiving a Bible. It appears this student has a sister who is a follower of Jesus. Please pray with us for the several scattered believers and seekers from these near-culture people groups and how God may use them as living stones. 1 Peter 2:5
• Please keep praying for “Anthony.” During December we explored “who is God?” in the book of Luke.
Praise Jesus! He even asked for another Bible in his language to share with someone. 1 Timothy 2:3-4
Survey
Pray for mission survey to be done from 4th Feb to the 11th. Pray for the survey participants to see the needs of the Jiye and know what the Lord would have them do.
Pray for Elijah and family as he starts his two year work amongst the Jiye in Lopyat, Kassengor.
Healings and Deliverances!
God is doing great things in this new village of Befotaka where Melias is based now. The village is full of spirit-possessed people and they know it is a power that controls them. They did not know that there is a more powerful name that can deliver them from this oppression. The gospel was made known to a very small circle of people and they were delivered from the oppression. They like studying the Bible, twice/ three times a week. God literally accompanied this ministry with miracles. A few got delivered and sick people got healed when they prayed to the Lord. People knocked on Melias’s door at night asking him to come to pray for their sick. They got healed. This is just God! Praise be to His name.
Security concerns
This week, at least 4 major foreign embassies issued alerts of possible terror attacks in Nairobi/Kenya. When this happens (and it has happened in the past), our students do not come to class. I suspect this could be due to expected heightened security checks, etc …
Most of them did not respond to our calls or messages.
Please pray that this whole issue may be resolved to bring confidence to our students so that they may return to class. May God who gives us peace that the world does not know, touch their hearts and show His Light to them. May His Light transform their hearts to see Him as the Saviour of the world.
Diaspora in UK
Thankful for high attendance and receptivity in our sewing group as we discussed the meaning of Christmas just prior to stricter Covid restrictions being reinstated.
Thankful that God has provided opportunity in midst of a pandemic to deepen relationships with the
ladies in our classes. Through these difficulties, there has been a new spiritual openness.
Targeted for Good News.
We have a meeting set up tonight with a young man and his family who God has led us to target to share good news with. Pray that they will not fear! Pray that the young man will invite several of his age mates to join him, as well as his family. Pray that the Holy Spirit would empower our words and our time to be the beginning of much lasting fruit!
Choose to follow
Alan* is now a senior government official in the town. He still identifies as a Muslim but in the past, through a Muslim Background Believer (MBB) who he worked with, has encountered Jesus and knows about his saving grace. He has helped believers in this town (including ourselves and our team) to maintain our presence and witness and has encouraged us by helping us navigate some difficult cultural issues. Pray that he might choose to follow Jesus unswervingly. There are several covert believers in the town in a similar position to Alan* and they are networked together even if in a very loose way. May they choose to follow Jesus and may they function as Christ’s body and bear witness to Him.
New believer
Praise God for a new believer, who heard to gospel from other local believers! Pray for his protection, growth, and witness.
Diaspora in Canada
• Please pray for my Somali friend; his mental health, protection for him against the devil’s wiles, and against clan and family pressure to revert. Please pray that he will speak and live out the truth of his hope in Christ with boldness, gentleness, and respect.
• Praise for good time of fellowship, encouragement and the Word with Christian friends and J, our “bicycle building buddy from this summer”, who is still running from Jesus.
• Pray for my friend I who calls me frequently, alternating between plans to evangelize his homeland
and to imprison me for sending out CIA contracts on his life. His relatives plan to take him back to the
homeland soon. Please pray that Jesus will heal his psychoses and that he will remember the
commitment he once made to Jesus and live accordingly.
Rainy season isolation
During the rainy season, it’s difficult for the workers of the Community Health Department to visit the small groups of Christians in the remote villages.
Please pray the believers would stand firm in their belief during the time that they’re isolated.
Thank God for technology like SD cards on which sermons, Bible studies, and songs can be registered and can be listened to in times of no visitors.
God so loved
Ask that Truth sets my friend free. Although she thinks God loves her, she has doubts.
She believes that God is harsh and able to change his mind at any moment.
As such, he cannot be ‘trustworthy’, so how can she know she really is loved?
Pray for a revelation for her and many others in this land, of the God who so loved the world he sent his son.
Tropical Storm Ana
Tropical Storm Ana is wreaking havoc in Madagascar and Mozambique. Nampula province has been hit by heavy rains and strong winds, which has affected 100,000 people in this province alone. These people are already reeling from previous natural disasters and conflict. Pray for the Lord’s mercy, for the church to minister to hurting people, and for many Mwani to turn to Christ in their suffering.
Diaspora in Australia
Tanya in Melbourne recently contacted the AIM Australia office:
“I’m getting to know my neighbour, who is from South Sudan. She’s a new Christian and she speaks Lopit (and some English). Do you know how I can receive a Bible in the Lopit language? Tanya had tried unsuccessfully to find the Lopit scriptures.
We inquired of Marlene from NZ working among the Lopit, and overnight received and passed on a written draft and audio copy of Genesis and Exodus from Marlene and her SIL colleagues.
A day later we heard from Tanya again: “Last night, I gave my neighbour, “J”, the Lopit book of Genesis and we listened to the first few stories that we’ve done in DBS. J was ecstatic to hear the Bible in Lopit!”
• Please pray for Tanya and “J” as they study the scriptures together.
• Pray the Lopit people in Australia and South Sudan to have a hunger for God’s word.
• Pray for the SIL team and Lopit committee currently working on the New Testament. Marlene said she hopes to have trial versions to pass on within the year.
Headed back
Pray for SLM team heading back to field. We thank God for good time he gave us during our home assignment. We will be traveling on Friday.
Pray for the Disciples in all villages as they engage in their second and third generation mentoring.
Pray for the March IDLF training in Kapoeta East
Pray for youth camp in Kapoeta South.
Thank God for loparinga as he graduates in February and joins his people to make disciples.
Diaspora in France
January will be the beginning of another semester. Pray for the Lord to send us new students that He is seeking.
• COVID cases are rising. We do not know how strict the measures will get. Pray for the Lord to give us creativity and adapt to the context around us.
• Pray also for a few students with whom we have started building really good friendships. Pray that they will be open to hearing the Lord’s voice
Local believers
Pray for local brothers and sisters who have a burden to share the good news with their families. Pray for wisdom and boldness to share the good things God has done for them.
Jesus Film
The Jesus Film is being recorded into the Kanembu language this month. Pray for good recording process. And pray many would watch the film with open minds and hearts.
Kingdom of Light
Pray for a family as they begin studying Bible stories about living in the Kingdom of Light. Ask the Lord to speak to them and grant them faith to believe.
Amos
Amos, Jared, and another man were discussing the conditions of the world, when Jared said there is a solution. Jared asked his Christian friend, Amos, what the solution was and he replied “prayer”. Jared said it is the blood of Jesus Christ because he washed our sins away. Pray for Jared and Amos to have more opportunities to discuss these important topics.
Cancer?
Pray for a local sister as she is facing a possible cancer diagnosis: pray she will receive healing, grace, and strength; and through whatever plans God has for her, that her unbelieving family will see His glory and come to the Truth.
Loss and gratitude
Today on the way to the church, we found several flocks that died during the rain because they were too weak from the long drought. It is very difficult to explain the feeling of loss and gratitude for the rain at the same time.
Pray for the families who have lost their entire herd, since for most of them it is their only source of income. Pray for the Lord’s provision and that in the midst of all this, we can see the manifestation of God’s Power for the salvation of many.
Gospel seeds
Pray for the seeds of the gospel being sown amongst the Karimojong to grow deep roots and bear much fruit as the Lord transforms lives. Pray for many Karimojong to be born again and walk in a manner worthy of the Lord.
Afghanis
Pray for churches to develop hearts and programs to reach out to Afghani refugees. As these traumatized people come, pray they will be welcomed by Christians and the Lord would soften their hearts towards to the truth and power of the gospel to save.
Healing and drawing
A woman (A) is dangerously ill with preeclampsia in her 24th week of pregnancy. She’s the leader of the occultic worship in our village, and her husband (U) and extended family are very resistant and hard hearted to the gospel, and to adhering to medical treatments! Pray that God’s unfailing love will draw her and her extended family (including a chief and some very influential people) through His healing power and grace, to COME TO JESUS, and be His vessels in leading others to Jesus’ saving grace!
Stone to flesh
The god of this world has blinded the eyes of those who don’t believe, but the Lord opens blind eyes and turns hearts of stone into hearts of flesh! Pray for the Lord to stretch out His merciful hand and save many Antandroy.
Mama S and Mama H
I have started reading the Bible 3 times a week with 3 of my Muslim neighbors. Mama S has said she believes Jesus is God. Mama H has said she needs to follow Jesus. Please pray for these meetings that knowledge would form about the Truth but more importantly that the Holy Spirit would transform their hearts and that they would turn to Jesus and follow him whole heartedly.
A change of heart
Lokwangan went to school outside the Laarim community up to grade eight. He speaks good English and is volunteering at a primary school in Napak. Lokwangan had been abusing alcohol a lot, like many other teachers at that school. After he and Noblesse spent time looking together in the Scriptures, Lokwangan’s desire has changed. He has stopped alcohol consumption and he is very interested in the Word of God. Noblesse and Lokwangan have been using the Bible in English, and a book by Navigators called “Knowing God” to study together. Pray that the truth of God’s Word will keep transforming him into a strong believer who will soon be ready to reach out to many others for Christ.
Transformational thinking
By request from some new Som.* students, we started a second English class, though they are not beginners. One of the books we are using is ‘Mental Independence – an innovators guide to transformational thinking’. Please pray with us, the students have found this book very helpful in assisting them to think outside the box. It helped us delve into matters of faith very easily as we accept each other’s independent views and opinions. This was new to them. Acceptance. We discussed about building bridges (not walls) between Muslims and Christians. Pray that God will help them see the Light of His Word as we share what the Scriptures say. One lady was also excited to know there is something like unconditional love and forgiveness.
Fun classes
Pray for our relationships with our English students as we have some fun classes going on right now. Pray for friendships to grow and for more than just English to be shared with our new friends.
Ponder
Just met B, a mother of a 9 month old and 4 year old who just got divorced. Life is hard for her! No real interest in talking about spiritual things but I got to share of the personal joy that comes in knowing Jesus is near rather than distant in hard times. Please pray that seed would cause her to ponder.
Stand firm
Pray for the few Fulani believers to be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might, and to put on the whole armor of God, that they might be able to stand against the wiles of the Devil.
Faster Beats the Drum
Late into the night until the early morning the drum beats, faster and faster. Those following traditional African religion have gathered this month for large meetings, dancing to the beat of drums, loud and fast. With such intensity on their worship grounds, up on the hills – sites chosen by a witchdoctors’ revelation – those lost without God seek lost powers and answers when rains are late or sickness visits them. Locals are asked to contribute towards the purchase of the animals to be sacrificed. Pray that God would show forth His power and control, love and grace for those caught in the traditions of their ancestors’ black magic and witchcraft. Pray for present day Elijahs to share God’s rescue plan from the darkness. May the Holy Spirit lead them to choose to trust in Divine protection through the blood of Jesus Christ.
New missionaries
Please pray for Lawrence and Simple, Ugandan missionaries who have recently moved to Karamoja. They are focusing on working with local churches to share the gospel with the Tepeth, an unreached people group. Pray for them as they settle into a new culture and community, as they seek to learn language and build relationships in the community. Please pray for invitations and opportunities to reach new villages, and for people of peace in those villages who will welcome the gospel.
Movement!
We would like to thank God for the movement which is going on now among the Datooga. Many people are asking us how to believe in Jesus. The other thing to praise God is that two church planters will be graduating from college this year and will work to plant two Datooga Churches. Pray for the Lord’s blessing on these two men.
