WORD MINISTRIES FEBRUARY PRAYER COVERAGE FOR THE NATIONS
This is considered the month of love and expressing our love for special ones in our life. Isn’t it wonderful that God gave us the greatest valentine of all:
This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted (John 3:16-17 The Message)
Let us pray together this month for the love of the Lord to shine bright in the nations of the earth!
February
1-5 Europe:
Effective collaboration and partnership between immigrant and indigenous churches in Europe are essential and hold immense promise and power. These can give grounding, training and resources to the newer churches and offer energy, spiritual vitality and links to burgeoning
communities that the older churches need. Together, churches can offer a shining example of Christ’s reconciling power. Immigrant churches are undeniably vital to Europe’s future.
Pray for God to raise up men and women who will pioneer this bridging of different cultures and backgrounds into one unified body that will glorify Jesus and win Europe back to the gospel.
Immigration is a boon and a wake up call for the Church. The unevangelized are
being brought to its doorstep, but more importantly, Christian migrants are swelling the
ranks of the faithful. This is true for Catholic, Protestant and Independent Christian groups.
a) The influx of Christian migrants from Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean
provides a much-needed impetus to church life. Some claim that almost 50% of the EU’s
migrants are church members. The sheer numerical presence of Christians as a result of
immigration has shored up a flagging Church.
b) Christian immigrants’ spiritual vibrancy, evangelistic passion and confidence in the
gospel are making an impact on religious life in Europe. Many Christian migrants come from
nations where persecution is common and where other religions are the majority. Their bold
witness and unswerving faith is much needed in the West. Praise God for such faith;
Pray that it might yield fruit and rub off onto the indigenous Christians of Europe.
6.-8. Pacific:
Disciple-making is the key to the Pacific, a region that remains majority Christian.
It was critical to past failings and will be crucial to future challenges. The inability to move beyond Christianization, and into making mature believers, is a large part of the Church’s
decline in Australia and New Zealand and the reason for the vulnerability of the Church in the
Pacific Islands. Pray for a mentality in the Church that places priority and focus rightly on
shaping disciples.
The Church has thus far failed to meet the mission challenge on its own soil. The
mission opportunities afforded by immigration and a multicultural society – and the need
to train church and mission leaders in effective evangelism, church planting and discipleship
skills – remain largely unaddressed. Pray for an awakening in the Church and in training
infrastructures that can meet the growing challenge.
Completing the task of world evangelization in the Pacific ….. Pray for the following items:
a) There are very few unevangelized tribal peoples; some exist in New Guinea’s interior.
Many more are only superficially evangelized and need more thorough ministry.
b) The few evangelical believers in parts of New Caledonia, French Polynesia and on many of
the nominally Christian island groups. Some areas need to be re-evangelized.
c) The Indians of Fiji are the largest unreached people in the Pacific. Pray for effective
evangelization of these Muslims and Hindus.
d) The Chinese are increasing through immigration. In some islands, this is for trade or lowpaid
labour; in Australia and New Zealand, it is as professionals and students. Many remain
unevangelized, despite notable responsiveness to appropriate outreach.
e) International students are more concentrated in Australia and New Zealand than in just
about anywhere else in the world. They are often very open to the gospel. Churches need to
acquire a vision for this highly strategic group of future leaders in their homelands, which
are usually very restrictive in terms of access for Christian mission.
f) Other immigrant groups, especially to Australia and New Zealand. This includes Arabs,
Iranians, Malays and Indonesians, Europeans, Somalis as well as East and Southeast Asian
peoples. In most cases, they will have greater opportunity for exposure to the good news in
their new lands than in their countries of origin.
g) Translation of Scripture. There remain hundreds of languages without the Bible. Many of
them may need translators.
9-10. Afghanistan:
The present political situation – a foreign military working with a national
government that is trying to be both progressive and conservative – is far from ideal, but it is an improvement from the tyranny of the Taliban. The Taliban imposed a harsh brand of Islam on the nation and continue to be a threat to national stability and security. The power of the warlords and tribal leaders is greater than that of the government forces or the US military; currently, most of them side with the NATO/Loya Jirga entente.
Pray that the Afghan government might serve and govern with humility and wisdom.
Pray that the people ofAfghanistan may experience genuine freedom and an improved quality of life.
Pray also that attempts by insurgents and warlords to destabilize the country might be thwarted and that a settlement might be negotiated.
Christian involvement in aid and development. Since 1966, a number of Christian relief and
development agencies have ministered to the blind, maimed, sick, deprived, illiterate and needy,
in the name and Spirit of the Lord Jesus. Many Christians – most of them in humanitarian
capacities – work to serve the people of Afghanistan. Practical demonstrations of Christian care
and love impress many Afghans, breaking down prejudices and preparing hearts for the gospel.
In addition to the tragedies of lives lost, enforced reductions of personnel and even withdrawal
of entire organizations from the country caused a great loss of many effective workers.
Pray for both courage in the face of adversity and wisdom to know how best to demonstrate Christ’s love to the Afghan people.
11. Albania:
Albania has a long road ahead to recover completely from the devastation of atheistic Communism. Economically, morally and, in particular, spiritually, there remains much to be done to build a healthy and productive society. The anarchy, chaos and corruption of the 1990s and 2000s are out workings of the nation’s grim past, but there is praiseworthy progress of late.
Pray that Albania’s government and business cultures might be positively impacted by the
influence of believers. Biblical ethics in these contexts can be in short supply.
Evangelical mission agencies have a vital role to play, particularly by serving the
Albanian Church through training, resource development and holistic mission. The
Albania Encouragement Project networks over 60 agencies covering every type of ministry.
Pray for unity among the diverse groups,
Pray for a spirit of humility and partnership as they work with the national Church to see genuine transformation.
12.-13. Algeria:
Algeria has suffered deeply in the past. From French colonial exploitation to the war of liberation to the more recent brutal civil war that cost over 100,000 lives, its people are familiar with violence and loss.
Pray for the following issues:
a) The spiritual and psychological legacies of a land fraught with bloodshed. Fear of
murderous attacks by terror groups has lessened, but the violence has never ended. Many
people are war-weary and wish for the upheaval to end, but that seems a distant dream.
b) Democracy is enshrined in the constitution but struggles elsewhere to hang on. A single-party
state more or less remains, and the freedoms promised on paper rarely materialize.
c) Human rights abuses are widespread. Change to some laws opened the door for further
abuse. The Charter for Peace and National Reconciliation is more lenient to the perpetrators
of civil war crimes than to the victims; few will be brought to account for the terrible crimes
committed (by both terrorist groups and state security forces), and the media will be subject
to greater state control. Most vulnerable are non-Muslims.
Persecution of Christians is intensifying as a reaction to unprecedented church
growth; the future of the Church in Algeria hangs in the balance. Legislation passed has
made proselytism a criminal offence. A law forbidding the “practice of non-Muslim worship”
outside of pre-approved buildings was cleverly followed by a spate of church closings. Believers
face threats and intimidation by family, friends, employers, Muslim extremists and now the
government. The Algerian Church has grown due to bold witness and evangelism. Pray that
they will respond to these pressures with faith and perseverance.
Pray that God would raise up more workers to help strengthen the local church. Work is under way in many areas.
Pray for the active mission force. Especially pray for these:
a) Relief work remains very much an urgent priority, but one that requires sensitivity.
b) Christian music. Much is being written in Kabyle, less so in other languages.
Pray for increased production quality and wider dissemination of this valuable tool for witness and discipleship.
c) Work among the children of Christians. There is no ministry specifically geared for children.
Pray for strong discipleship of Christian children at home; at school they are bombarded with
Quranic teaching.
d) The leadership of the Algerian Church in Europe, and for missionary calls to their homeland.
There are over 3,000 Algerian Christians in Europe, many of whom fled the violence or
persecution back home.
Pray for many to be raised up as apostles to their own people.
14. American Samoa:
American Samoa enjoys a higher economic status than Samoa to its west, but suffers the concomitant materialism.
Pray that the indigenous people (and their relatives in diaspora) may find their destiny in wholehearted commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ.
Praise God for the evangelical ministries and churches making an impact for the Lord. Evangelical groups, especially Assemblies of God, have grown rapidly. There is also a YWAM base in the islands. Remarkable growth among cults (especially Mormons) exposes the nominalism, toolong entrenched, in the mainline churches.
Pray for awakening and renewal in these rapidly declining churches.
14. Andorra:
Materialism holds Andorra in a tight grip. Formerly a smugglers’ refuge, Andorra now attracts well-heeled tourists, financiers and those taking advantage of duty-free goods.
Pray that empty materialism would be seen as the ultimately unfulfilling falsehood that it is.
Biblical Christianity struggles to retain a foothold. Catholicism has lost much of its zeal, and the handful of other congregations where evangelicals worship grow very slowly.
Praise God for committed expatriate believers and for the few indigenous Andorran believers.
Pray that all faithful disciples of Christ might have the passion and discernment that will enable
them to effectively share their faith.
15.-16. Angola:
Forty years of almost constant war (1962-2002) have devastated Angola. Innocent civilians suffered the most – 90% of the casualties were civilians, millions were uprooted, their homes and churches destroyed and hunger was used as a bargaining chip in the power play for aid. One in 350 Angolans is a victim of landmines, 70-90% of the population live in poverty, and the length of roads destroyed or damaged amounts to nearly twice the circumference of the planet. Greater than the physical damage are the psychological, social and spiritual wounds, which will require years to overcome.
Pray for:
a) Those seeking to alleviate physical suffering by clearing landmines and rebuilding
infrastructure, homes, hospitals, schools and churches. The six million landmines are being
cleared – but over 80,000 people have already been crippled by them. Early signs of progress
are promising. Many agencies are involved, including WVI, Tear fund and several consortiums
of churches and agencies such as Church Action in Angola.
b) Healing of the invisible wounds. Reconciliation is a painstaking process, and the sheer
number of those hurting means that more counseling and training are long-term needs.
Young people and children. Their numbers dominate Angola’s population, despite the
huge odds stacked against them. In 2006, the mortality rate for children under age five was
26%, and 45% of that same group suffered chronic malnutrition. The legacy of Marxism and war
is a generation burdened with many scars and deprived of educational opportunity and physical
security. Most of Angola’s Christians are under age 25; ministry focused on them must occur for
the sake of the Church’s future.
Pray for:
a) Primary and secondary schools to be rebuilt, well staffed and full. This generation is the first
in a long time to know peace;
Pray that solid education might bring hope for the future.<
b) Ministry to students. Pray for the impact of Scripture Union, CEF, IFES and other such
groups in schools once hostile to Christianity.
c) Churches to increase their vision for evangelizing and discipling children and young people.
OM, YWAM, AIM and the Brethren are just a few of many working in this capacity.
Blessings,
Lane
Sources:
Mission Info Bank. Used by permission.
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