Prayer Mobilization Line: The following are praise reports and prayer requests from Nazarene Missions International for Wednesday, 20 May 2015 "The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth."[Psalm 145:18, NIV]
PRAISES:
Squatter’s Community
"One church is in a squatter's community," shared a team leader from Uruguay. "The people there do not have many resources, and the church is small. Its influence, though, is quite noticeable. Recently, they were able to show the JESUS Film and several teenagers came to Christ." Praise the Lord!
PRAY FOR:
GLOBAL MINISTRY REQUESTS
Nazarene Broadcasters
Remember to pray for Nazarene broadcasters who daily speak God's word through radio, television, and Internet programs.
Church Prayers
Bless the people, pastors, and leaders of Nazarene churches as they seek to be the hands and feet of Jesus in their communities.
Give them renewed vision and vitality as they work to honor God through fervent worship and innovative ministry.
Unify us as we focus on our love of Christ, our passion for evangelism, and for making Christlike disciples in the nations.
May Missionary Prayer Focus
Join us in praying for Tim and Michelle Eby who are part of the May Missionary Prayer Focus. The Ebys serve in Senegal:
Continue to pray for our leaders in Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea with the Ebola situation. Though the world has moved on, these countries are still suffering.
Pray for the new initiatives in West Africa to reach the urban cities.
Pray for continued support for the compassionate ministry projects that are helping to bring wells to communities needing water, income-generating projects that are supporting leaders in difficult areas, and wisdom on how best to use resources.
Pray for a new revival touching the districts of Ghana North and Ghana Coastal. This past month we have seen great change in the leadership and a thirst for God's new touch on the church.
Pray for the ministry in Senegal. We have just come through a sad time in the church as after the sudden death of an 11-year-old boy (nephew of Rev. Dany Gomis) due to a heart condition. The church is hurting, the family is very broken over the event, and we are all searching for ways to minister to the other children in the church.
HEALTH-RELATED REQUESTS
Wayne Larson
Retired missionary Wayne Larson has been diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. Unless the Lord intervenes, Wayne's remaining time on earth is less than six months. Pray for Wayne and the family. He and his late wife, Joann, served in Papua New Guinea and Swaziland.
Paty Alvarez
Paty Alvarez has been diagnosed with stage 3 cancer. Pray that the cancer has not spread to the bones. Paty serves God and the church in a vital role at the North Andean Field Office in Quito, Ecuador.
GLOBAL CONCERNS
Nigerian Captives
Open Doors USA says that the Nigerian army has freed around 1,000 abducted women and children recently. However, none of those rescued are the Chibok girls. The Chibok girls were taken from their school in April 2014 and are now victims of the longest running terrorist mass abduction.
Weekly reports of abducted Nigerian women and children being restored to their waiting families has caused great joy in this country racked with so much pain and suffering. Each report raises the question, “Are any of them the Chibok girls?” The answer remains- “not yet.” But the tide has hopefully turned against Boko Haram, at least for now as several camps in the Sambisa forest, said to be the militants’ last stronghold in Nigeria, have been captured in raids by the Nigerian army in late April and early May.
The highly publicized story of the Chibok girls has captured our hearts, and we are stunned to learn that so many others have been abducted, as well. The Nigerian army has freed around 1,000 women and children in recent weeks, and we pray that the number of those rescued will continue to grow. We also pray for these women and children as they try to piece their lives back together after this trauma.
The fate of the Chibok schoolgirls remains a mystery. Emmanuel Ogebe, an international human rights lawyer specializing in African issues, told World Watch Monitor that as of late April, the Chibok students, “are now victims of the longest running terrorist mass abduction. The prior record, held by the ELN [a terrorist group in Colombia] which hijacked a plane and held passengers captive for 373 days, has now been superseded by the Chibok girls.”
The Paradigm, a Nigerian newspaper, reported that, “the wife of Nigeria’s President-elect [Muhammadu Buhari], Mrs. Aisha Buhari . . . revealed that the release of the Chibok schoolgirls and all the women seized by Boko Haram is one of the immediate priorities of her husband when he assumes office on May 29.” We pray that he will be more successful than his predecessor in efforts to rescue the girls.
Questioning of those rescued has produced little helpful or encouraging information regarding the schoolgirls. None of the women questioned had seen the girls. One rescued woman told Reuters that Boko Haram soldiers in the camps, "said the Chibok girls were married off this year. Some sold to slavery, then others (militants) each married two or four of the girls."
Through all the uncertainty, though, a few slivers of hope have emerged. On April 14, the BBC interviewed a woman who claimed to have seen at least 50 of the schoolgirls three weeks earlier in the northeastern Gwoza town before Boko Haram was forced out.
On April 14, the BBC also interviewed the Christian parents of two of the kidnapped girls. The father, Pastor Mark, described how his two daughters were taken, his futile chase to overtake the captors, and the continual rumors he and his wife have had to continually deal with since the kidnapping. According to one report, his oldest daughter was stoned to death for refusing to deny her faith. "Even if my daughter has been stoned to death, I am the happiest man as a man of God who has brought up my daughter with that kind of faith," the father proclaimed. He has since been told that this daughter is in fact alive. He continues to fast, pray and hope that he will see his children alive again.
Father, as our minds dart to the variety of fates that could have overtaken these schoolgirls from Chibok, we turn instead to Your unfailing goodness and purposes. We pray, therefore, for Your protection over them whatever their circumstances are, and that You will sustain their lives, protect their faith and restore them to their families. We pray for their parents who have been on an emotional rollercoaster as rumors flood around them. As they give their fears over to You, grant them Your peace that is beyond all understanding. We bring before You the authorities as they continue to rescue those who have been abducted; guide them and bring them success. And You know the circumstances of these girls from Chibok, so if it seems best to You, we pray for peace in that moment when You lovingly gather them into Your arms, having the sure knowledge that You will wipe away their earthly tears, and restore their joy. In the Name of Jesus, who deeply loves those who suffer for their faith in Him, Amen.
Thank you for praying.
For David, the size of the giant was irrelevant."[Dave Hunt (1926-2013), American Christian apologist, speaker, author]
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