“What the church needs today is not more machinery or better, not new organizations or more novel methods, but people whom the Holy Ghost can use — people of prayer, people mighty in prayer.” — E.M. Bounds
Prayers for the week…
- As neighbors and citizens: Pray for our nation in the wake of the George Zimmerman trial and verdict in Florida. Be reflective and ask God for wisdom to do what you can in your own church and community to help heal racial division.
- Pray for pro-life ministry around the world. We seek to win both the hearts of our fellow citizens as well as legal battles protecting the right to life of all.
- Pray for the Reformed University Fellowship (RUF) ministry taking place at Northwestern University (Evanston, Illinois) — led by Luke Miedema:
Luke is originally from Columbia, Mo. He attended the University of Missouri, where he graduated with a degree in philosophy. After college he lived in
Kenya for a year, volunteering with various missions organizations. He then directed the student ministries at The Crossing in Columbia, Mo., for three years. He currently lives in Evanston, Ill., and is completing the final year of his Masters of Divinity at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. Luke met his wife, Janet, while guiding backpacking trips in Colorado. They were married in 2007, and have one son, Hudson.
- Using the new 2013 “watchlist” produced by
Open Doors, we pray for the persecuted Christians of a different country each week.
Teachers/parents, consider this a great way to introduce geography into the weekly lessons. Show students where the nation is, then pray for Christians in that place.
This week we pray for the Christians of United Arab Emirates, which ranks No. 25 on the watchlist.
Around 80 percent of the population here are expats. The constitution provides for some religious liberty, but the law denies Muslims the freedom to change religion. Muslim background believers may be pressured to return to Islam, hide their faith or leave the country. Non-Muslim groups can worship freely in dedicated buildings or privat
e homes, but the government restricts the development of worship facilities for foreign Christians. Open evangelism is prohibited, but Christians in the country have many opportunities for Muslim–Christian dialogue.
Pray:
There are very few local believers. Pray for opportunities to meet for fellowship.
That Christians will make the most of every opportunity to share the gospel.
For Open Doors partners providing support and training to expat Christians.
- P
rayer for the nation – focusing this week on the state of Mississippi.
- In 2013, we will pray together by name for Christians in 50 nations, Christians in all 50 states and all the presbyteries of the Presbyterian Church (USA), Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC), Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) and the emerging new Reformed body, ECO: A Covenant Order of Evangelical Presbyterians. You are encouraged to add specific pastors, lay leaders, congregations, missionaries, new church developments and other ministries to the list by posting a comment to the blog. (Please do not publicly post the names of missionaries serving in contexts where exposing their identity would cause them harm or bring harm to those they serve in Christ’s name.) Let us kneel before the Father and ask His will be done.
- Prayers for the PCUSA: Pray for the presbyteries of the Synod of Boriquen (Puerto Rico): San Juan, Noroeste and Suroeste.
- Prayers for Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC): Central South Presbytery (Ken Van Kampen, stated clerk).
- Prayers for the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA): the churches of the Western Carolina Presbytery.
- Prayers for ECO: A Covenant Order of Evangelical Presbyterians.
- Prayers for The Fellowship of Presbyterians.