Neighbor Prayer Update

God is the living God and He endures forever;
His kingdom will not be destroyed,
His dominion will never end.
He rescues and He saves;
He performs signs and wonders
in the heavens and on the earth.
(Daniel 6:26-27)

1.  Thank God for the way He continues to perform signs and wonders around the world, drawing people to Himself through dreams, visions and healing.   Read about the many former neighbors who are coming to hope and faith in Christ at http://www.muslimjourneytohope.com/watch.asp.  Pray for those who are having dreams and visions that they’ll find believers quickly who can lead them to understanding the truth of God through personal relationship with Isa al Masih.

2. Pray for college students on Summer ministry teams assigned to neighbor areas, that they will be anointed with power and love for their ministry tasks; develop significant redemptive relationships; find men/women of peace; be wise, sensitive yet bold in their witness; be used by God to plant seeds of the Gospel and help to bring in those ripe for harvest

3.  At Summer youth camps and mission workshops, pray that young people hear and answer the call to serve neighbors at home and abroad.   May their eyes be opened and their hearts burdened by the needs of the neighbor world, and may they be filled with God’s vision for the harvest.

4.  Pray that the church in Europe and the USA would awaken to the growing neighboring communities around them and realize the fact that God is bringing the nations to them.  May they reach out in practical, loving ways to meet the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of these immigrant communities

5.  Fresh violence in Iraq and Palestine this week from suicide bombers and rocket attacks have left dozens wounded and killed.   Pray for  true and lasting peace in the Middle East, found only in the Prince of Peace.

6. Adapted from this week’s Intercede Magazine.  Please pray…..

• …for continued strength for Shadia Nagui Ibrahim, an Egyptian sentenced to three years in prison for listing her religion as “Christian” on her marriage certificate. After an incredibly complicated case, she was released. Pray that the Lord would keep her from further harm.  May she be even more bold and effective in sharing her faith.
• …for Nigeria. Violence against Christians continues unabated. Reports of deaths and demolished churches abound.   May believers and churches respond with love and reconciliation.
• …for the few overt Christians in the Maldives. The government has passed an amendment declaring that all citizens must follow the neighbor faith.

As a saved soul, the real business of your life is intercessory prayer.
Whatever circumstances God may place you in, always pray immediately that His atonement may be recognized and as fully understood in the lives of others as it has been in yours.
Pray for your (neighbors) now, and pray for those with whom you come in contact now.
( Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest )

1. Ask God to give you opportunities to make new redemptive relationships with neighbors around you.
2. Pray that God will raise up “men & women of peace” in neighbor communities around the world, for belivers who are working amongst them.
3. Visit the “30-Days of Prayer” website to prepare you with great information and resources to pray more effectively during Ramadan. And while you’re at it, pray for this ministry as they continue to facilitate prayer for millions of believers on behalf of neighbors.
4. Pray for other “Ethne Prayer Tool Partner” organizations & their leadership and staff who take the lead in helping the Church intercede for unreached people.
5. Adapted from this week’s “Intercede Magazine” prayer requests:
   • … the Christian community in Iraq. Churches and clerics still remain under threat. As of this printing date, the Kirkuk Chaldean Archbishop was being held for ransom.   Pray that believers will remain strong in their faith, loving in their response to persecution, and bold in their witness.
   • …a MBB in New Zealand caught in a bureaucratic tangle. If Bahareh Moradi is denied refugee status and sent back to Iran, she will likely face severe danger as an apostate.  May she (and others like her) be filled with God’s love and peace in the midst of their challenging circumstances.
   • …neighbors in the Central Asian countries. Pray that the Gospel would reach the hearts of so many hungry people.

This is what the LORD Almighty says:
“Many peoples and the inhabitants of many cities will yet come, and the inhabitants of one city will go to another and say, ‘Let us go at once to entreat the LORD and seek the LORD Almighty….And many peoples and powerful nations will come….to seek the LORD Almighty and to entreat him….In those days ten men from all languages and nations will take firm hold of one (believer) by the hem of his robe and say,
‘Let us go with you, because we have heard that God is with you.”
(Zechariha 8:20-23)

1. God is doing a work around the world, as refugees and immigrants move into the cities for refuge, education, and employment. He is placing these people in close proximity to Christians and churches. The nations are gathering on the church’s doorstep all over the world. Let’s pray that Christ’s Church will awaken in cities and communities worldwide to recognize the vulnerable, needy neighbors in their midst and develop ministries to meet their needs (language study, job training, education, tutoring, health & family services, housing assistance, etc) in order to practically show them the love of Jesus.

** Do some research in your community to see if there are groups (or individuals) of neighbors moving in, and pray about how you and your church can minister to them.

2. Adapted from this week’s “Intercede Magazine”: Please pray:

• …for missionaries in Jordan. The government continues to exert pressure on Christian workers, expelling a series of individuals and families from several denominations. May local believers pick up the task of loving their neighbors into the Kingdom.
• …for the neihbors of Yemen, the poorest country in the Arabian peninsula. Pray that the Gospel of Jesus Christ would find open hearts in this beleaguered country. May His church rise up to practically meet the needs of “the least of these.”
• …for Southern Thailand. Violence continues through unrest. Pray for a permanent peace, and open doors for the Prince of Peace to reveal Himself (mostly through His peacemaking followers).

3. Pray for Lee, a college student working for Frontiers as a Summer volunteer in a neighbor area. He is just completing his second week on the field. May the Lord help him adjust well to the new culture and climate, and develop in him a life-long love for neighbors, and a confirmation of his call into cross-cultural ministry. Lee is one among many college students who are on Summer ministry trips (such as those with Youth in Mission). Lift up those that you know.

4. Some team members are currently on short furloughs (2-3 months) away from their areas of assignment, and away from the relationships that they have been developing with neighbors. Pray for their neighbor friends during these months of separation that the Holy Spirit will continue to draw them to Christ….as they recall the redemptive conversations, passages of scripture that were shared, and the Godly lifestyles of their Christian friends. May the relationships continued unhindered, stronger than ever, when the team members return to their areas of service.

1. Pray for Lee, a college student working for Frontiers as a Summer volunteer in a neighbor area.   He is just completing his first week on the field.   May the Lord help him adjust well to the new culture and climate, and develop in him a life-long love for neighbors, and a confirmation of his call into cross-cultural ministry.   Lee is one among many college students who are on Summer ministry trips (such as those with Youth in Mission).  Lift up those that you know.
2. Some team members are currently on short furloughs (2-3 months) away from their areas of assignment, and away from the relationships that they have been developing with neighbors.   Pray for their neighbor friends during these months of separation that the Holy Spirit will continue to draw  them to Christ….as they recall the redemptive conversations, passages of scripture that were shared, and the Godly lifestyles of their Christian friends.   May the relationships continued unhindered, stronger than ever, when the team members return to their areas of service.
3. Pray for local congregations in the US and around the world who are experiencing an influx of immigrants from neighbor countries.   Rather than fearing and mistrusting these new neighbors, may churches realize God’s strategy of drawing the nations to Himself, and may they reach out with the love and hospitality of Christ to serve them.
4. Pray for God’s wisdom to prevail amongst the world’s leaders as they continue to discuss sensitive issues (such as the possible development of nuclear weapons) related to nations like Iran.   May the pursuit of true peace overcome that of politics and pride.
5. Adapted from this week’s Intercede Magazine.   Please pray….

• …for the minority Christians in Indonesia. They make up approximately 10 percent of the populace and neighbors comprise nearly 89 percent. The total population of Indonesia is 230 million.  May the minority Christians — filled with the power of the Holy Spirit and the love of Christ — continue to develop redemptive relationships with their majority neighbors.
• …for neighbors in Canada where their faith is the fastest growing religion. Between 1991 and 2001, the number of neighbors has doubled to approximately 580,000.   May Christians and churches in Canada awaken to this reality that God has brought the nations to their doorstep.
• …for Christian workers in Nigeria. In the 1960s, approximately 10,000 expatriate missionaries worked in Nigeria. Today, estimates place the number of expatriate missionaries at 500. However, many Nigerian nationals have assumed the mantle, acting as missionaries within their own country. Please pray for their protection and empowerment as they serve in neighbor areas.