Displaying items by tag: Global

Pray for China, Italy, Spain, South Korea, and Iran, where thousands are suffering the loss of loved ones and millions suffer isolation from the outside world. Thank God for all the healthcare workers dedicated to care for the sick. May our political leaders not suffer the stress that can invade all those in decision-making positions over containing contamination. May they have Godly wisdom and a calm approach to all decisions. Many are suffering the fear of ‘going without’, causing items to disappear from shops’ shelves. Pray for this fear to be overridden with a spirit of sharing and concern for others. We are surrounded by negative news and social media. Without dismissing the seriousness of the coronavirus outbreak, let us remember to trust in the Lord with all our heart and not lean on our own understanding (Proverbs 3:5). For ten further prayer needs, click the ‘More’ button.

‘Jehovah Shalom, Lord of Peace, we remember those living in coronavirus hotspots and those currently in isolation. May they know Your presence, Your peace in their turmoil and your patience in their waiting. God of Comfort and Counsel, we pray for the grieving, reeling from the sudden loss of loved-ones; may they find Your fellowship in their suffering, Your comfort in their loss, and Your hope in their despair. Jehovah Rapha, God who heals, we pray for all medical professionals dealing daily with the intense pressures of this crisis. Grant them resilience in weariness, discernment in diagnosis, and compassion as they care. We thank you for the army of researchers working steadily and quietly towards a cure: give them clarity and unexpected breakthroughs. May You rise above this present darkness as the Sun of Righteousness with healing in your rays.’ For the full prayer, click the ‘More’ button.

Julia Gillard, former Australian prime minister, chairs the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), and is campaigning for the rights of girls to stay in education. Boris Johnson has called for every girl to be guaranteed twelve years of good quality education. In his party's election manifesto he repeated his support for girls' education globally. There are 130 million girls completely missing out on school. The UK government has been among the biggest backers, giving almost £1bn in 15 years. In Ethiopia there are projects to protect girls from sexual harassment as they go to school or college. Ms Gillard says that getting girls to stay in school is the ‘keystone’ for wider economic improvement. Many girls are married off at a young age or kept at home to work (freeing up an adult to go and earn an income for the family). Despite decades of world leaders’ promises, millions have never started school.

Local ethnic or folk religions have seen great losses to the larger religious movements. They were the dominant faith among 30% of the world in 1900, but only among 9% today. Yet traditional religion has not gone away. Many followers of world religions wear their faith lightly and remain, at heart, followers of folk religions: shamanists, idol worshippers, spiritists or ancestor worshippers. The worldwide fascination with spells, amulets, crystals and the occult highlights the power of the old ways. People who claim to connect with the spirit-world are still in demand around the world. Their presence is a kind of tax on fear. Yet people who have turned to Christ from folk religion testify to his power over spells, curses, fears, taboos, and superstitions - and also in the life-and-death issues like sin and forgiveness. Pray for Christ to shine ever brighter into the world of animism and for the Holy Spirit to bring repentance and new life. See

Dr Jason Hubbard writes, ‘Before Jesus ever performed a miracle, or preached a gospel, the Spirit of God drove Him into the wilderness to fast. He came out of that fast in the power of the Holy Spirit. Before there was an original Jesus movement, there was an original Jesus Fast. In 2020 Christians are being called to respond to Lou Engle’s call to a global 40-day-fast to see a world-wide manifestation of Jesus the Evangelist. The late Bill Bright (founder of Campus Crusade) believed that the power of fasting as it relates to prayer is the spiritual atomic bomb that our Lord has given us to destroy the strongholds of evil and usher in a great revival and spiritual harvest around the world’. See

A coalition of Christians across denominational lines has united to pray for an end to the coronavirus. Cindy Jacobs says, ‘We believe strongly that since this is a worldwide issue, it is going to take the whole Church to cry out together for the mercy and healing power of God to contain it.’ Church leaders stood united to fast and pray on 3 March to petition the Sovereign Lord for His mercy. Let us continue to knock on Heaven’s door, praying Psalm 91 over families and nations, binding fear, knowing that God has not given us a spirit of fear (2 Timothy 1:7). Pray for wisdom for our leaders and safety for emergency responders working to protect people and prevent the virus spreading. Pray for Christians to have a calm courage to share the Word effectively through this time of crisis. For the prayer petition click the ‘More’ button.

March is International Women's History month. Women are two thirds of the world’s poorest citizens. Nearly two-thirds of illiterate people are women. Globally women are paid less than men. A cultural preference for male babies has led to 30 million deaths of unborn or baby girls in India and China and fuels trafficking women as brides or sex slaves. God looks on the heart: what do we look at when choosing leaders? Pray for more women and men to be recognised, equipped, and released into service based on their giftedness and godliness. Pray for more humble, Christ-like models. Prideful ‘hierarchy’ and ‘angry feminism’ destroy the unity that God designed and desires. Pray that Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, atheist, and tribal people groups will see amazing unity in the Body of Christ between men and women that causes them to turn to Jesus.

Quotes from a working document on Islam from the Lausanne Global Consultation state - Every individual church fellowship and denomination throughout the world needs to find ways of enabling Christians to be awake to the challenges of Islam and for opportunities to witness to Muslims. Where Christians are held back by fear, they need to be encouraged to build genuine, natural relationships with their Muslim neighbours, by practising hospitality and taking bold initiatives. Where they are held back by ignorance, they need to learn more about Muslims and Islam and to explore prayerfully some of the new opportunities that have opened up in recent years for communicating the gospel. Where they are held back by prejudice, they need to be reminded of the ways in which Jesus enabled his disciples to overcome their racial and religious prejudices.

Please call on the Lord for his intervention in the swarms of locusts that are growing and devouring farms in Africa, now spreading to the Middle East and China. (See). Pray for the hundreds of thousands forced to evacuate their homes after unusual flooding has devastated Australia, Southern USA, Bolivia, Peru, Indonesia and parts of the UK. (See) Over the past two months seismic activity has been rising. Last week a 7.7 quake struck off the coast of Jamaica shaking people as far away as Miami and Mount Merapi in Indonesia erupted launching lava and ash 2,000 metres into the sky, forcing residents to flee to a 1.8 mile designated no-go zone. (See) Pray for peace of mind for those living near seismic activity. Coronavirus infections continue to rise but less media coverage has been given to the highly contagious H1N1 virus that claimed 13 lives in one week in Taiwan (See)

UK Christian politician Jeremy Hunt read Brother Andrew’s book ‘God’s Smuggler’ in his youth. This gave him a lifelong prayerful concern for the persecuted church. When he was appointed foreign minister, he looked into what the foreign service was doing to help persecuted Christians worldwide. What he discovered made him uncomfortable: there had been very high-profile interventions supporting Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar, Bahai in Yemen, and Yazidis in Iraq - but little UK and international diplomatic assistance for suffering Christians, even though NGOs and churches were advocating on their behalf. Mr Hunt identified possible blind spots for persecuted Christians by his staff: awkwardness about bringing God into politics, post-colonial guilt, and fearfulness of being seen to impose our faith on others. He called it ‘misguided political correctness’ in his independent review. Now Boris Johnson has appointed a special envoy on freedom of religion or belief to head up the process of dealing with Christian persecution. The UN and the EU have similar envoys.