Pray for a breakthrough amongst the Swahili Arabs. Islam has been a stronghold along the coast of Africa for a thousand years. Pray many would be delivered from the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of God’s dear Son.

Pray for spiritual breakthroughs and fruitful outreach by local believers and others in the community. Pray for people to read the scriptures and believe the message.

Pray for followers of Jesus here in Wonderland to be salt and light and to learn to communicate Truth meaningfully within the culture.

*Abraham and his wife *Salome both separately asked us for a Bible in the local language. We gave them one a year ago but neither one has followed through when invited to study it with us. However, last month *Abraham asked if we could get him another Bible because he had been sharing things he had read with a friend and his friend now wanted his own Bible. We have been able to get one in English and one in the local language. Pray that as we pass these on to *Abraham there might be the opportunity to study together. Pray God would use these Bibles to bring light into dark places.

Jeremiah 29:7 says, “But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile and pray to the Lord on its behalf for in its welfare you will find your welfare.” Thank you for joining us to pray for the “welfare “ of the cities of the Arab Swahili people. Pray for the followers of Jesus (exiles) in these cities as we seek to embody the presence of Jesus in our lives here.

Pray for *Hannah and her cohort of medical students who qualified as Doctors graduating from their University in Khartoum in March this year. Before they were issued with their degrees or able to leave the country the civil war broke out and they were abandoned in Khartoum. Thankfully they managed to evacuate safely but without any documentation to verify their degrees. Pray for them that they might may know God’s GRACE freely given to us through the son when he delivers us, and God the Father who promises to be present with us.

As the end of the fasting month approaches people here are now excited about the upcoming Eid celebration. Although it is a huge feasting celebration like other big annual holidays, it can be a hard time for families or individuals who are struggling financially or feeling rejected or excluded. Pray that in loneliness and rejection those who are struggling might find comfort from Emanuel, God with us. Pray that the words of Truth and Life and Love would reach those who are hurting today.

Pray for all those fasting in Wonderland that as they seek God’s favour and spend time contemplating their relationship with God and seeking forgiveness that they would have a revelation of their loving Father who provides a way of forgiveness and a relationship through Jesus. Pray for dreams and visions.

As Ramadan begins next week,  pray for the people of Wonderland, that we might have opportunities to bless our neighbours and friends, that God would bless their desire to seek good things from HIM, and that they might know the Truth and Grace of the Triune God.

*Zipporah (a trainee lawyer) has started following Jesus and we are meeting with her weekly to study Creation to Christ to help her understand God’s meta-narrative. Her family have put pressure on her to return to the city to pursue further training. Pray that she will continue to grow in the fullness of God and will find other believers from a Muslim background in her new context with whom she might have fellowship and continue to study God’s word.

Alan (who we have been praying for for over 12 years) is now a senior government official. He still identifies as a “cousin” but in the past, through a Muslim Background Believer (MBB) who he worked with, has encountered Jesus and knows about his saving grace. Pray that Alan chooses to follow Jesus unswervingly & grows stronger in the knowledge and love of God.

Zipporah has started following Jesus and we are meeting with her weekly to study Creation to Christ to help her understand God’s meta-narrative. Her hunger for God’s word is incredible and her understanding humbling. Her prayer request this week is about her relationship with God: that she would settle on daily practices and routines that facilitate her relationship with God. Her family situation is very sad and she often feels rejected and alone. She is asking that as her relationship with God grows she would feel fully content in being a child of God. Pray she will grow in the fullness of God and will find others who share her testimony.

Pray for people who were once seekers to seek again, those who once read the Word to read again, those who once met together to study to meet again. Ask the Lord to stir hearts to seek Him.

Faith is a girl from this people group who is studying medicine in Khartoum. She returned from Khartoum for a month recently because of the recent coup in Sudan and the closure of the medical school. She has now returned and begun her final module and should graduate and return to this area mid 2022. Pray her faith in God will grow as she encounters Jesus.

We have prayed for *Rivkah over the last 11 years. She is a secret believer in her 60’s and had a stroke about 2 months ago. She is unable to walk unaided and also has problems with her speech. She has moved to live with her daughter who lives in a satellite village at the other side of town. Pray for her in her recovery and for wisdom as she and her family make decisions. Pray that she might seek healing and strength through Jesus and learn to put her full trust in Him.

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

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.

We have only seen *Abraham and *Salome once since they asked for a Bible. They are both working as teachers and very busy but have a break from 23rd Dec to 4th Jan and they plan to see us then. Pray that an opportunity for us to study God’s word with them both together and that God’s word would speak to them as they explore the Bible they now have in their home.

Pray for all those who identify as followers of Jesus in town (many workers in government institutions and businesses). Pray that at this time of celebration we will see the opportunities which are available to remove obstacles and misunderstandings and proclaim good news through our lives and words. Pray God would be glorified.

Father, for a people seeking to serve and please God, yet are ‘ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’ we ask you by your Spirit and our witness to open their hearts and be transformed by the renewal of their minds into a people who worship you in spirt and in truth.

It is not uncommon for Muslim Background Believers to have messy lives (like the rest of us broken-but-being-transformed people) so lifestyle choices are often complex. Pray for *Euodia that she will know God’s leading and presence as she makes decisions. Pray that she might be brave and open to what God has for her.

Pray for the staff in the local government hospital where we are seeing many covid patients. There is a constant battle with fatalism, denial and misinformation even amongst the qualified staff. Pray that we can all be influencers and examples of an effective and compassionate response to the pandemic without burnout.

Pray for *Leah and *Bill. Several years ago Bill decided to follow Jesus but he is now sitting on the fence trying to blend what the Bible says with Islamic beliefs. He and his wife Leah have divorced and our hearts ache for their two children. Pray for the miracle of reconciliation and forgiveness between Bill & Leah and also between them and God their Father.

Yesterday our community commemorated “Ashura” by enacting the brutal murder of the prophet Mohammed’s grandsons. Pray that our friends and neighbours will discover a God who experienced sacrifice, pain and suffering. A God who will meet them in their pain so that they don’t need to stay in this place of historic pain and suffering, but rather that they can receive healing from one who understands sacrifice.

Please pray that the Swahili Arabs who are fasting this month will find they have no peace, that they will long for peace, and that the Prince of Peace will disclose Himself to them as their only hope.

Pray for *Mark, a kind, gentle, and smart young man. For 10 months he regularly turned up for DBS. He seemed genuinely to be seeking truth and had many deep insights as we studied creation to Christ and the first 10 chapters of John. Pray that God would cultivate and grow the many seeds that were sewn in what seemed like fertile soil and that God’s word would accomplish all that God purposed it and not return empty. Isaiah 55:11

Pray for *Euodia our dear sister in Lord! She converted to Islam years ago but was baptized in 2019 during DBS and for 18 months was discipled by our team members. We appreciate her boldness in sharing her own faith with Muslim friends. In the last few months with no team members on location she has struggled. Pray that her faith be strengthened and she will have courage to stand firm no matter what the circumstances. Phil 4:1

“Whatever things were gain to me, those I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ,” the apostle Paul said. The Swahili Arab are proud of their heritage and pedigree. They are very much like Paul who sought a righteousness through works and trusted in his ethnicity and status to give him spiritual credit. Pray that they will count everything loss for the sake of knowing Christ and being found in Him.

Pray for those Swahili Arabs who are especially proud of their heritage to come to the place of counting all things loss for the sake of gaining Christ, knowing Him, being found in Him. Pray for those who have invested much time in studying their religion to have courage to read and study the Bible with equal interest and openness. Pray that they will have a clear understanding of grace versus works, and receive grace as better.

Please pray for a young Arab Swahili man who keeps pursuing me (I believe he wants to convert me…which is great!) Pray that he would have a burning desire for the Truth and Jesus would reveal Himself. Pray that our conversations about the Kingdom of Light versus darkness would penetrate deep.

In a community center in the predominately Islamic part of the city, many young Somali, Swahili, and Arab girls come to spend time with the Christian staff. We’ve recently started a running club, and are dreaming of many other programs such as art and music classes to initiate relationships with families in this community. The goal in each of these programs, clubs, and classes is always to bring the name of Jesus into homes and to families. Please pray for us workers to be bold in making Jesus famous on the Swahili Coast! Pray specifically this week for the young 20-something girls S, L, and A! (Swahili, Arab, and Somali, respectively)— that they will be drawn to Jesus in the lives of the workers there and that intentional Gospel conversations would happen even this week!

Pray for those who are discovering the Bible through reading it with their Christian friends, that they  will put their faith in Christ and find Him faithful to make them His strong and courageous witnesses, even to the ends of the earth.

The Swahili Arabs need Jesus but cling to Islam. Recently a number have begun learning about God through discovery Bible studies. Others are also asking to learn. Some have believed and confessed Christ. Pray that this movement will accelerate and that Jesus will be honored and glorified through how He works in this people.

A week ago we had a dear friend who has been studying the Scriptures come to us distraught after discovering that her husband had taken a girlfriend, presumably to eventually marry her as a second wife. She shared with us and went home. That evening she had a dream of a man in all white, surrounded by very bright light, who came and told her that he was leaving her with his peace. When she asked who he was, he told her that soon she would know. Please pray with us that the “man in white” would continue to reveal His full identity to her and that she would truly receive His lasting, eternal, soul-securing peace.

This past week we had our normal Christmas celebrations in our neighborhoods where many of our Muslim friends gathered to eat, share, and enjoy the day with us. We also had a Christmas study group where those who have been studying the Word with us all came together to study the Christmas story and share a meal together. We are so excited about this more intentional and close look at what Christmas is all about. Please lift up all who gathered, that His presence would be so close to them. Pray that as we continue to declare the name of Emmanuel, our friends would feel His love near and their hearts would be changed.

As we head toward Christmas, we remember that last year our big community celebration was met with some opposition for the first time ever. Pray that the opposition last year would actually lead to even more people joining us this year. Pray that the story of Christmas would go out even more boldly and with greater impact than it ever has before. Pray that hearts would be softened to joyfully receive their King.

In March we asked the Lord for 3 different Discovery Bible Study groups to start, with each group having 4 local people studying by the end of the year. At that point we had no one. We asked for at least 3 people who would fearlessly “start the wheel” of pursuing Jesus in our community. While our numbers were not as neat and tidy as we had prayed for, what did miraculously happen was that we had 4 groups running consistently, and at least 10 people truly and intentionally encountered the Word of God with us. Some came in and out because they traveled. Others came and went for reasons unknown. But all of them left with a better understanding of the Scriptures and having been prayed for by us and with us. There are 3 people who have started the wheel, 1 having been baptized, and 2 not believing yet but continuing to move toward Jesus. We praise Him for this supernatural response to our prayers!

Last week we had an unexpected encounter with a fisherman who took us on a hunt for a specific shell we were looking for. During the adventure, we got to share with him that Jesus loved fishermen and hung out with them often. We told him there are a number of stories in the Bible where Jesus spent time on the water with His disciples. Our fisherman excitedly told us he would like to have a Bible to read during his “boring hours” on the fishing boat. We assured him we would bring him one and before we parted he reminded us, “Please bring me your book!” Since then we have not been able to find him again. Please pray for this man and the many other Swahili men who make their living on the ocean. Pray that Jesus would draw these men to Himself and make them fishers of men.

Last week just before our study time with our one baptized believer, a 16-year-old neighbor showed up at my house. She was just home from boarding school and came to greet me. When I explained to her what we were about to do, she begged to stay. I went to get permission from her mom who was sitting outside with two other neighbors. The three women discussed it and decided it would be okay. Please pray for this normally reserved girl who was highly engaged and excited during our study! Pray she would come back this week and that her heart would be captured by the love of the King.

For many months we have been praying and hoping for a well-respected couple who would join our Bible studies and be willing to open up their home to others who are searching for the Truth too. Recently, one couple we have known for years agreed to host a study in their home but they have not been consistent or committed to it. We know that they are people of peace and that God is working in their hearts. Please pray that He would ignite a passion in them to move forward in providing a safe place for many to come to study with them. And most of all, pray that He would bring them to saving faith as they do it.