We have a young friend who became disillusioned with her faith and left Isl@m.  After leaving her religion, she became an agnostic. Eventually she was led to faith in Jesus through a relative who had also left Isl@m. It has been about a year now, and she faces many challenges and still struggles with past and current circumstances that result in anger, hurt, rejection, and fear. Because she does not live nearby, it has been difficult getting together with her to encourage her during this past year of covid. We are thrilled at her decision for Christ, but her faith is not yet strong.
Please pray God’s strength will sustain her, and that the Holy Spirit will bring His truth, love, and comfort to her situation and her wounded heart! Please pray she will cling to the Lord and His Word in the midst of her troubles.

Our court trial has been set- we will go to court on April17th 2021. Keep us in your prayers dear brothers and sisters in Christ. Ask God to turn the court decision as He turned the position from Mordecai to Haman in the Book of Esther.
I would say, be courageous and pray without ceasing, there is nothing that can separate us from Christ, whether it is persecution or trouble or loneliness, nothing can keep us from Christ our Lord and Savior.

Please pray for our Somali students and classes. Now that the government has issued a new directive that prohibits all in-person classes and meetings until further notice, we have had to turn to training our students on zoom.

Pray that although this is impersonal, and with no physical contact, that we will be able to convey our lessons with clarity and the students will be willing to join the digital/virtual classes. Pray for wisdom on the best way to communicate and when time permits, to get to meet each student on a one-on-one basis at our training centre.

Ask that the Root of Blessing falling here is recognized as He Who Has Come, and none other.
Bring before His Throne those who hear Truth yet remain in the old man’s thinking. Have mercy LORD.
Ask that the Glory of Wisdom miraculously overtakes all earthly nature of reasoning here in men and women’s lives.
Ask that breakthroughs come to listening and pondering hearts –
and they see the beauty and trustworthiness of Truth and follow.

Pray Deuteronomy 30.19-20
that many will “choose life… so that both they and their descendants may live;
that they may love the LORD God, obey His Voice, and cling to Him as life and the length of their days, and dwell in the land that the LORD has given…”

The weeks are passing and our dear ones are still detained. Please ask that they see His Goodness and Faithfulness and know liberty in their souls, as well as bodies.

At the end of today’s Som* language class, our teacher shared at length how he has been listening to Genesis on audio and how it compares to the Qur’an. He quoted their book which says that those in doubt should ask those who read the Taurat and Gospel (Injil) before them (that is Christians). He also said that a Muslim who does not believe in Jesus or the stories of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, is not a true Muslim!

Let us pray for him that God may open his inner eyes, ears and heart as he listens to the audio and reads the Scriptures, … and as we seek God’s help to share more with him regarding the Way, the Truth and the Life. He already has the Bible in Arabic and Som.*

A group of believers have been detained for 45 days. It looks like their trial is delayed at least another month. Please pray Psalm 9 over them:
The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.
Be gracious to me, O Lord! See my affliction from those who hate me, O you who lift me up from the gates of death, that I may recount all your praises.
Arise, O Lord! Let not man prevail; let the nations be judged before you! Let the nations know that they are but men!

My language helper Mo is a deeply religious Muslim. Several times God has given us the opportunity to discuss Islam and Christianity. I also have had a chance to share the good news with him during our lessons. Mo said if someone could show him where the Quran is wrong, then he will accept Jesus as his God.
Actually, he knows some but just his heart is hard like a stone! May Jesus Christ destroy the work of Satan in Mo and reveal Himself to him in a dream, so Mo will know who the true God is, Jesus Christ as his saviour.

We have had good visits and connections recently. We’ve had tea together and shared and watched the Jesus film. Pray for these seeds to sprout and grow.

We had stopped having Bible reading with our student Abdi (MBB) because of the coronavirus last year. However, we are going to resume the Bible reading this week with him face to face, praise the Lord! May the words of God continue to strengthen his faith and bless him!

5 local bel’s have been arrested- 4 adults and 1 new born. They have been charged with human trafficking. Pray for God’s intervention!

Please pray with me for our student and friend – Mun.
We have been discussing whether to take the Corona vaccine jab when it arrives in Kenya next month. He believes he should as there are many varieties available, but he is also aware there is a lot of conflicting news on the vaccines. I told him that if we pray, God will give us the answer as He is All-knowing, Sovereign and Healer. Mun. is eager to hear more on this. Pray that our interaction will lead Mun. to know the Great Physician who not only heals our diseases but our sins and souls.

Thank God that we are having good sharing times with our friends and building more solid friendship with our students who are in training. Ask God to grant them faith.
Please also remember those who are divorced by their husbands and raising their kids alone with not much income. Pray for God’s mercy.

Pray for the health of missionaries and their families. Plead for God’s protection against chronic illnesses and many other unexplained attacks against His people as they reach out to Somalis with the gospel. Psalm 91: Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. Pray for the Lord to keep His people under His wings.

There is this young Som* who has been learning the guitar with me using YouTube. We have something in common: we both talk a lot. As a result, we cover a wide range of topics.

One day as we talked, he said he would bring me a book as a gift. The title of the book is ”An analytical study of Christianity and Islam — Questions & Answers”. It is written by Muhammad from Saudi.

From a quick review of the book, I noticed that the questions and answers are ‘twisted’ and the writer has tried as much as possible to quote from the Bible.

We want to thank God that this is an opening for discussion and that the Holy Spirit will lead and guide us to the truth. His truth. Please pray with us.

We met Sam last year. He started attending some Bible study classes with us, but then we lost touch with him. We trusted he would contact us when he was ready. So we continued to pray. Then just a few days ago God answered our prayer! Sam reached out to us after several months of silence to say he missed us! We hope this will lead to our being able to meet up with him again, where we can continue to encourage Sam and share with him who Jesus is! This young man has the heart of a peacemaker, and if God gets ahold of him we can only imagine what he could do for the Kingdom! Please continue to pray for Sam’s salvation with us!

After going through a leadership class with some students, one of them came to the class when I was alone and asked whether we could learn to play the guitar together from YouTube. I gladly accepted. My prayer request is that God will speak to us as we learn the various chords and tunes together. May God speak through me as opportunities arise that would enable me to share His love for all who call on the Name of Jesus. This student is generally open and ready to discuss any challenging life question.

Praise God for giving me an opportunity to share the good news and discuss our beliefs with my language helper during the lesson. Mo is a strong believer in Islam. Many co-workers have shared the good news with him a long time ago however his heart is still very hard.
Today, I discussed The Holy Bible and Quran with him, who Jesus is, and who the true God is. Thank God that Mo has promised to open his mind and heart to pray to the true God. May Jesus speak to him directly through his dreams and show him the visions. May the Holy Spirit move his heart.

Praise God for our student A’ (MBB) who has strong faith in God, and is persevering even though he has suffered an ankle injury few weeks ago and financial difficulty. He still trusts in Jesus and has lifted up these things to God. Please pray for him. May God bless him and make him an ambassador for sharing the good news with his family.

Yesterday I sent a message to my good friend and class mate Mu* who was bereaved last week. I asked him how he would like us to pray for him. He said we should pray for his auntie (who recently died) and also pray for the whole family. My prayer request is that the family may know, believe and understand the true destiny of those who depart from us after putting their trust in Jesus. May the family be willing to hear more from us on the good news of those who have surrendered their lives to Jesus.

As we were going through a lesson, one student walked out and returned after a few minutes with a bottle of water for everyone in the class! As we opened our bottles to quench our thirst, I mentioned that I had said a prayer for the drink and the provider. Then one lady said that she can preach. I believe she said this because she is aware we are from different backgrounds. The water provider  said that he is referred to as a ‘Bishop’ by his colleagues because he spends too much time at this Centre, which is owned by a Church organization.

I see this as a move of God as it will open up doors for communication about spiritual things. Pray that God will soften students’ hearts to hear and be free to discuss the gospel and the Words will find fertile ground in their hearts.

We have had such a loving and exciting time together with the students that they are already talking of training their own when the courses are over. They want to continue using the same facilities and maintain our relationship.

Please pray that our team may find ways of sharing the gospel and our lives with our students as we teach and relate with them.
May the Holy Spirit speak in and through us and may His words through us find fertile ground in the hearts of the students.
May this cause our loving relationship to grow as they seek to want to know more.

Father, please call the Somali to Yourself. It is unrealistic and definitely impossible for us as humans, but because You are God, You can accomplish the unrealistic and the impossible. So, we come to You in Jesus Name and ask that, in Your mercy and grace, and for Your glory alone, please “bare Your holy arm” and show Your awesome power by bringing the Somali people from every corner of the world into Your kingdom. By December, 2020, would You call so many Somali people to Yourself, that the flood speaks for itself, that they are a “reached” UPG. Amen.

And we ask God that You work among local believers in powerful ways. Grant them wisdom, guidance, and freedom from fear.

We were concerned that our Somali language teacher was getting rather quiet and saying he was busy. We prayed for God to reconnect us and last night he sent a text to find out how we are doing! … and wants to resume the language classes. We praise God for answering our prayer and reconnecting us with our friend. Sometime back we presented this brother with a Somali Bible and we pray that God will give us opportunities to delve into His Word with him. We also thank God for the leadership, guitar, and computer classes which are going very well. They have really connected us with these Somali friends.

We have had opportunities to share concerning God – the One who Heals – and about prayer.
The LORD intervened with healing – answering our prayers for a critical covid patient!
Ask for many more miraculous encounters for these people with Jesus.
Ask that many will see His power at work, first-hand, in our community.
Ask that the encounters will bring them to a quest for truth and a significant spiritual crossroad in life.

Thess 2:8 “Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well”.
This verse has been on our hearts.
We have seen opportunities for sharing our lives among the people, who are open in unprecedented ways. He is doing a new thing!
Ask for light and truth to go forth through these open doors He is granting.
Ask for deepening friendships among these people.

‘Lord Jesus, please continue working in the heart of my good friend and student Mo.
As we studied ‘relationship’ in leadership, he got so excited and asked how we can keep our relationship going forever.
I pray that as we continue to study together with the other students, we will be able to share how this is possible by surrendering our lives to Jesus, and we will all live together forever with Him in heaven.’

Please pray for classes on leadership which started with 2 Somali college students who have a hunger for information/knowledge. They are close friends. Pray that God may direct the discussion in ways that allow us teachers to talk about God’s leadership and guidance in our own lives, and His saving grace and mercy.

Pray for young Somalis in their 20’s and 30’s to have a deep dissatisfaction with Islam and a deep hunger for Christ. Pray that Christians of all tribes and denominations who have Somali friends will not think it is useless to share the gospel with them, but will lovingly and earnestly try to persuade them to believe. Pray that the Holy Spirit will work mightily to raise up the next generation of Somalis to be faithful followers of Christ.

God always does amazing things even in a very difficult situation!
We are not allowed to go back to a normal classroom because of this coronavirus. However, God has opened another door for us to continue the English class. Using WhatsApp to call not only allows us to continue the one -on- one English class, but we have more opportunities to share the good news. Pray for Kha who has watched the Jesus film and asked a lot of questions about Jesus.
Also, please pray for Ay who is struggling with family issues. Recently she accepted to pray in the name of Jesus and to watch Jesus film.
Pray God opens these two ladies’ eyes, the Holy Spirit touches their hearts, and they know that Jesus is their saviour!

During this time when large gatherings are forbidden, Christian friends of Somalis are having more private conversations with them on the phone. This has revealed the hunger that Somalis have to know more about Jesus. Please pray for many of them to come to faith in Him during this time, and to share the gospel with others even if they are afraid.

The Somali people have suffered wars, famines, and now pestilence. More than at any other time, they are beginning to seek openly to find out about Jesus without fear of how others will react. Please pray that God will use this time of intense stress to bring them into the glorious freedom of the children of God through faith in Christ.

Pray for all the believers here during these uncertain days of Covid19. Pray for bold witness and peace. We are standing by this verse – Isaiah 41.9-10:

I brought you from the ends of the earth and called you from its farthest corners.
I said, you are my servant. I have chosen and not rejected you; do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am you God; I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Please pray for my language helper who I met 13 years ago in England!
Recently, I have made contact with her and she is studying her religion and she also invited me to study together! She wanted to compare the two Books – Quran and Bible to see what they say about Jesus! Please pray for her, may God open her mind and give her vision, so that she will know that Jesus is her Saviour!

Pray for two young Somali men who are in contact with Christians and enrolled in a program that includes Bible study several times a week. Pray that through the Scriptures and through the circumstances of their lives God will lead them to recognize that there is no salvation except through Jesus Christ. Pray that they will commit their lives to Him and become bold and faithful witnesses.

Praise for ongoing internet contacts from a young Somali believer who was baptized in Kenya last year and is now part of small house church in a city in eastern Ethiopia. Pray for his growth in grace and knowledge of the Gospel.

Pray for the Lord to work mightily among Somali believers (and also among those Christians who are trying to reach them with the gospel), breaking down all that hinders them from coming to Christ and being completely “united in Him.” Pray for strongholds of Satan to be broken down in the name of Jesus.

In the past 3 weeks alone approximately 20 persons have died in relation to attacks by the extremist group in North Eastern and part of coastal region in Kenya.
Kamuthe Resource Center was attacked and 3 non- local teachers were killed. Saretho primary school was attacked and four pupils or 3 pupils and one teacher were killed. Rumors have it that the group is threatening to attack more places here. Pray for God’s mercy and that the Lord would rebuke these terrorists and they would repent.
The extremist agenda is to get the non-local Christians out of the region.
Several schools have closed and teachers have fled because of insecurity.

We are inspired by the prison break story in Acts 12 where a bright light illuminated Peter’s prison cell as he was awakend by the angel. His chains fell off and he walked out past the guards, and through an iron gate that “opened by itself.”
Please pray with us for the light of the Gospel to shine brightly to awaken Somalis to the truth, that Jesus is the Messiah, and the Injeel or Evangel (Gospel) is a generous invitation to join His Kingdom. Lets pray they will be freed from the prison of deception, from the lie that Jesus did not really die on the cross, and freedom from fear of the threat of death against Muslims who choose to follow Jesus. https://arriveministries.org/jan-10-2020-awaken24-global-prayer-initiative-kick-off/

The camp was a great success! We read, discussed, dramatized and meditated on the scriptures. We managed to read through Luke and John. It was joy to sit and immerse ourselves in God’s Word read in our heart language for four full days. It was refreshing to see the hunger for His Word displayed in the zeal and excitement in the study times.

Some of the outcomes we hoped for from this camp are beginning to be realized. Some of the participants lamented that in most of their fellowship times they hardly spend time in the scriptures and they expressed a desire to change that. They suggested once a month, to have overnight meetings in each other’s homes to study and discuss a book from the scriptures. We were hoping for such initiatives to emerge and we are very excited to hear a desire for them expressed. Please pray for good follow through on these commitments.