Continue praying for Ruth who still enjoys hearing the word of God and says she has no fear now. (Persecution from neighbours made life difficult for her before but wasn’t violent in any way.) Today, hearing the parable of the sower, she said she wanted to be somebody who followed God well and produced fruit in her life. Pray that this might be so and for her husband that she might be able to explain to him so that he will want to follow too. She has just delivered her 6th child.
Demon possession
Pray for S., who has struggled with demon possession for years and has asked the believers in the village for prayer. Yet he refuses to believe the gospel and turn toward the God who can deliver him. Pray for salvation and healing.
Have mercy
Diaspora in Hong Kong: Please pray for Y, an Indonesian Muslim who is married to a Malian Muslim. Her weary soul yearns for You. May You show us the way to share the gospel with her.
Pray for L as we have been reading the Injil, but her mind has not been stable. We ask for Your mercy upon her.
Released from fear
Pray that believers would be released from fear and that they would stand firm in Jesus…even in persecution.
Source of Hope and Salvation
Pray for Mama Hamisi, a Digo woman, who attended church seeking healing for her sick child. Although her daughter has not experienced physical healing, Mama Hamisi continues to listen to the word of God. Please pray for Mama Hamisi and her daughter, asking that they come to know Jesus as their ultimate source of hope and salvation.
Chance to share
Diaspora in Minnesota: Praise God I was given a chance to share at the Somali Community Center event. Pray for opportunities to have follow up conversations.
Counter culture
Pray for the Spirit to work in the hearts of our local brothers and sisters. Walking counter to the ingrained culture is so difficult. The ways in which their core cultural norms are opposite to the way of Jesus, stunts the growth in Christlikeness. Division, pride, and hardness are valued where as unity, humility, gentleness and kindness are not.
New believers
In Ambilobe there has been fruitful evangelism in rural villages by Malagasy Christians trying to reach the Antakarana. Pray for the Disciple Makers and the new believers that they will grow in faith.
Sweet times
Pray for opportunities to love on neighbors and friends this week as many people are very against the idea of “Christmas” thinking it has to do with drunkenness and debauchery. Pray for sweet times of sharing cookies and time and the Truth of Jesus with all we meet.
Winter camp
Diaspora in France: Pray for the AEM International Student winter camp from
27th Dec – 2nd Jan. Pray for many students to register and for the team as they prepare the program and share the Gospel and live as Christian community for the week. This has proven to be an excellent time for students who have been participating in the international students gatherings throughout the year to go deeper in discovering Christ and his church.
Pray for those in prison
Pray for those who are still in prison for the sake of the gospel to have sweet intimate times with Jesus, be used mightily to reveal the glory of God… and that God would reunite them with their families soon!
Listening with interest
Pray for ‘Beth’ who has been listening to parts of the good news with interest. Just this last week her husband divorced her. Where can she go? Who will help her? She told me that she has kept everything in her head that we talked about and saw (parts of the Jesus film) last week and is thinking about it. Pray that I can continue to talk with her after she has travelled to ask her brothers for help. Pray that God will console her in her difficult situation. Her husband had not been giving her anything to live on for two years so maybe he is no loss except that living without a husband means a low status in this community. Pray that she will believe!
Preaching over Christmas
Yesterday I started my trip to Njombe with Matthew and Joel. This is a week long trip where we will be preaching over the Christmas Holiday. Plan is to be back next Wednesday evening. Pray for the Holy Spirit to move in the hearts of the people as they hear the Word preached. That they would be challenged to be witnesses to the Hope that is within them to their Muslim neighbors.
Christmas meal
Tomorrow we are organizing a Christmas meal with the neighborhood, Pray that God reveals himself in a very special way. Sunday will be our Christmas service with the small church community, pray that everyone will be encouraged and strengthened. Also continue to intercede for Peace on this island- the violence continues.
Christmas play
We are preparing a Christmas play for the 25th with young people and children. Please pray for:
– practical aspects of putting on a play and peace to manage all the little unforeseen events
– that parents come to see the performance (the majority do not go to church)
– that the Christmas message touches many hearts
Still needing reconciliation
Pray that the main challenge that is dividing the two old men in our ministry location will be solved and that the body of Christ will unite and worship the Lord together.
Isolation
Pray for local brothers and sisters as they feel the isolation poignantly if they don’t have anyone to celebrate Christmas with.
Share the Story
In these days leading up to Christmas, many local friends are asking questions and expressing curiosity about our celebrations. Pray for all the opportunities to share the Story. Ask for open hearts to see the need for a Rescue. Ask for eyes to see the Light of the World.
Christmas carols
We are going to sing Christmas Carols on December 23rd to the patients at the Good News Hospital and share a simple gospel message and written story. Please pray that as the patients and their families hear this, that they would be overcome by God’s love, grace and mercy in sending His only Son to earth!
Following Christ
‘Helen’ stood up in church two weeks ago and announced that she wanted to leave Islam and follow Christ (NB, the church is entirely southerners with no MBBs). She is not a local lady but came from a Muslim family in the south. Her husband having been a church goer became a muslim and married her but now has become ‘nothing’. Helen lives in the same compound with her husband’s first wife. She noticed the women of the church visiting the other wife after she had twins and was attracted to the community. Visiting Helen I found she had understood little of Islam and now understands little of the gospel. So, we have started looking at the ‘God story’, a chronological bible storying film. Two other ladies from her language group plus the first wife have joined us. There is much need for basic teaching for many church goers. Pray that these ladies will grow in their faith and become witnesses amongst their Maba neighbours. Pray that their husband will also turn to Christ. Praise God for the stirring of the Spirit in Helen’s heart.
Dispute in the body of Christ
We have a large number of MBB’s in a prayer network group. There has been some dispute within the group relating to leadership and some are suspecting some leaders are in this group for personal financial gain. Please pray that God will soften the hearts of all the team members and especially the leaders and point them to Jesus. May God reveal His plans for each of them. May there be love, forgiveness and unity in the group.
Emmanuel
Many teas and Christmas parties happening these coming weeks. As people ooh and ahh over the decorations and sweet treats, ask for opportunities to share the story of Emmanuel.
Parenting class
Diaspora in England: Praise God that the Kids Matter parenting course finished so well and for the new relationships built. Pray for these mothers to seek God.
Pray for opportunities to share the Christmas story in English classes.
Still unwell
Bible translation is going well, we have a draft of the books of 1 & 2 Timothy.
I am still not feeling well, please pray for me.
Holiday Gathering
Pray for the large holiday gathering today bringing together believers and expats from around the island. Pray that it would be a unifying event that encourages everyone to share the joy and hope of the season with their friends and families. Pray for the kids that will attend and especially for the group that has prepared some songs and a drama. May we see families grow in their faiths together.
Heard the Gospel
Pray for S who heard a presentation of the gospel this week. Pray that she goes beyond thinking that it’s a “pretty story” and experiences that it is a transformational truth.
Courage
Please pray for one Alagwa believer currently considering baptism. May she have the courage to do this, knowing Jesus is worth any opposition she might face because of this step.
Real story of Noel
Joy, a local sister, has invited her neighbours for tea this afternoon and hopes to tell them the real story of “Noel” and how it is different from New Year (which they often assume is what we are celebrating). Please pray they come and she has the opportunity to share Truth with wisdom and winsomeness.
ESL party
Diaspora in Georgia: Pray for the Lord to work in the hearts of my ESL students during the Christmas season, and especially that they will understand the gospel so they can celebrate the birth of Jesus with His joy this year.
Pray that the ESL party tomorrow will be well-attended.
Camps
We’ve had a good start to camps and things are running smoothly so far.
-Thank God for the many youths who have turned up for our annual camp.
– Pray that many lives will be transformed, and that many will come to the knowledge of Christ.
– Pray that the facilitators will be intentional in walking life with the campers.
– Pray for good health for the campers and that it will go smoothly till the end.
Christmas party
Diaspora in Michigan: Please pray for our Christmas party Saturday the 16th. We are having an open house style party and highlighting the Biblical narrative from Luke 2. Pray for all those who come to listen well with open hearts.
Worst humanitarian nightmare in recent history
Early last month, more than 800 people were reportedly killed in Darfur as part of the ongoing conflict taking place in Sudan. More than 6 million people have been displaced from their homes since the conflict broke out in April. The situation has been called “one of the worst humanitarian nightmares in recent history” by Undersecretary-General, Martin Griffiths. Please pray for Christian aid organizations like the Darfur Christian Association who are offering relief and medical care, as well as sharing hope through the preaching of the Gospel. Pray for the Christians who have remained in Khartoum and Darfur in order to care for the believers and be a witness – may their lives have impact in such dark times! Please pray that God would supply abundantly more than we can imagine to a situation that is hopeless without His intervention.
International students and refugees
Diaspora in Finland: Pray for a new group who are developing into a outreach team to reach international students and refugees. Pray for successful development for a Christmas outreach on the Oulu University on the 16th of December. Pray also for the formation of three DBS groups with refugees.
Dialogue/debates
We thank God for the last debate with Muslims that was held on 9th December. Pray that the seed that was planted about Jesus will find fertile ground in the hearts of those who attended. We have been having debates every month on the 2nd Saturday.
Live nativity
Diaspora in Michigan: Pray that our Refugee Christmas party on December 16 goes well, that many will come and interact with the live nativity to learn what the True Christmas story is all about. Pray for wisdom for me and the others helping with this to know how to explain things well so God’s story is understood and sown on good soil.
Hungry for Truth and Love
We’re seeing people are hungry for Truth and Love. Seekers are finding us! Pray for one seeker in particular, Faith, that the Father would continue to draw her to Himself and that we could read the Word together.
Church-Mosque meeting
Diaspora in Florida: Pray that the meeting between a mosque and a church discussing “Who is Jesus” will happen in December. It’s been postponed 4 times.
Second time!
An older island man just finished studying through a set of stories on Jesus, and he has asked to study them all a second time! Pray that this study would open his heart to accepting Jesus as Lord.
Holiday season
Please pray for opportunities for spiritual conversations during the holiday season. May God open many hearts to receive Emmanuel, God with us.
396 villages!
Since 2017 we have been broadcasting the Jesus Film among the Bara. By the grace of God, we only have 4 more villages to go to reach 400 Bara villages with the Jesus Film.
At least 15 churches have been planted. Please pray that God will raise up faithful Bara followers of Jesus and they desire Christ with all their hearts.
Pray that all these places that have watched the Film will be awakened by God and that a revival occurs among the Bara.
