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World: The International Christian movement Micah Challenge is calling upon millions of Christians to pray and take action against extreme poverty as part of its 10.10.10 campaign. Today (Thursday) marks the 100-day countdown to 10.10.10, when as many as 100 million Christians worldwide will remind their political leaders of the promises they made to halve extreme global poverty by 2015. Micah Challenge and its many partner organisations, including The Salvation Army, World Vision and Tearfund, warn that unless urgent action is taken now, many of the Millennium Development Goals agreed in 2000 will not be met. On October 10, Christians will join in saying a specially written 10.10.10 prayer asking for God’s intervention on behalf of those still suffering in poverty and confessing their own failure in ignoring God’s call for justice. They will also make a promise to remember the poor and remind their political leaders of the need to keep their commitments to the poor. Pray: And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. (Mic.6:8) More:http://www.christiantoday.com/article/micah.challenge.calls.christians.to.pray.and.act.for.worlds.poor/26201.htm
Latin American Indian Ministries report, ‘While we want to be positive about the year ahead we must voice a concern for tribal believers in southern Mexico. In the last few months Pastor Armando Lopes was killed travelling home from a doctor’s appointment, three other pastors were killed in the same area recently. Four families of believers were expelled from a village and a church destroyed with believers put on notice. This month six homes were destroyed and the families expelled from the community. Elsewhere a church and many homes were destroyed and fifty families expelled from the village, a further 86 families were expelled later. At the end of 2010 four hundred and ninety eight Indian believers were homeless, living as street people in San Cristobal where they seek protection. This persecution results from new believers boycotting drunken fiestas to saints in the untended Catholic church, celebrations which have really come to represent worshipping ancient pagan gods. Pray: for these ‘suffering saints’ - including many very new believers. Some will establish new villages and build a new church. But the days ahead are challenging. (Ps.24:5-6)
In Mexico's historically violent border region faith leaders from both sides of the US-Mexico border are launching a joint prayer and fasting initiative this month seeking divine intervention to resolve drug cartel trafficking and violence plaguing the region. The Cinco de Mayo Initiative is spearheaded by Mark Gonzalez, founder of the Hispanic Prayer Network. Beginning April 15th participants will be convening for 21 days in Dallas, Texas, and Mexico City and at the border for prayer. The initiative comes in response to a prophetic directive given by Cindy Jacobs, president and co-founder of Generals International, a missionary organisation devoted to training in prayer and spiritual warfare. Pray: that united prayer, fasting and intercession will cause a Holy Spirit fire to grow and spread across the region long after the initial 21 days of warfare. (Jn.17:23) More: ttp://www.christiantoday.com/article/seeking.divine.intervention.in.mexicos.violent.border.region/27779.htm
A married couple who had served for 28 years as Baptist missionaries in Mexico were murdered on Tuesday Jan 31, John and Wanda Casias were strangled with electrical cords when intruders broke into their house and stole a safe, televisions and ministry vehicles, along with other items. The area has suffered heavily from attacks by drug cartels in recent weeks, including the murder of the mayor of El Cercado, leading to the tentative conclusion that the crime was committed by people serving narcotics traffickers. Drug traffickers in Mexico oppose the message of Christ because it turns people away from their business, and thus Christians have been among the targets of the criminals. The killers left Wanda Casias dead inside
the house and the body of her husband was reportedly found in a storage room of a small building elsewhere on the property.
Pray: that the Church would be strengthened to become a powerful witness to counteract the drug cartels. (Zec.10:12)
More: http://www.compassdirect.org/english/country/mexico/article_1386234.html
Mexico is a hot spot for trafficking. 85% of victims are girls exploited for unpaid labour or prostitution where they earn 160-180 pesos (£8-10) per sexual encounter with 20-40 men a day. The girls are kidnapped, or sold by parents as forced wives or servants, or lured away from home by false promises of jobs, or seduced by pimps posing as boyfriends and future husbands. Child sex tourism is also growing in Mexico, especially in tourist areas. Trafficking is linked to Mexico’s infamous drug cartels which the government is fighting, though human traffic makes far fewer headlines than the ‘war on drugs’. Human trafficking is one of the most profitable means of illegal income around the world. Mexico also has serious corruptionproblems involving police, judges and politicians. Campaigners say the country has inadequate laws to tackle human trafficking.
Pray: for Congress to pass powerful trafficking legislations and for the influential people fighting these legislations to be silenced. (Ex.23:1)
The Triqui region of Mexico is mainly populated by indigenous people and is one of the poorest and most troubled in the country. For more than 30 years it has suffered inter-community conflicts in which scores of people have been killed. State and federal authorities have rarely taken action to hold those responsible to account. Human rights organisations called for the Mexican federal authorities to thoroughly investigate an ambush on a Caravan of thirty Human Rights Observers which left two officials dead and several injured on Tuesday 27 April 2010. Jyri Antero Jaakola, a Finnish observer and indigenous human rights defender Alberta Cariño were killed in the attack and a journalist and an activist were injured. The group was on its way to document long-running human rights abuses and to provide humanitarian assistance.
Pray: for NGO’s and those authorized to establish law, order and aid in Mexico to succeed against corruption and conflict. (Ps.68:1)
Traditionalist Catholics abducted, jailed and beat a group of Evangelical Christians with rods and stones in Oaxaca, Mexico last week on orders from the head of a municipality for declining to participate in and help pay for Traditionalist Catholic festivals and for protesting their previous mistreatments. The mob attacked the Christian’s unfinished church structure with sledgehammers and pick-axes and four of the Evangelical Christians were jailed for four days. Three brothers who escaped the mob sent to kill the Christians said officials led townsfolk to hate those who are not Traditionalist Catholics. Traditionalist Catholics in remote areas practice a blend of Catholic and indigenous rites involving drunkenness, revelry and idol worship. Christians declining to participate in the Traditionalist Catholic festivals have been threatened, attacked and economically deprived in the states of Oaxaca, Chiapas, Guerrero, Hidalgo and Puebla. The Mexican government’s aversion to involving itself in religious issues has allowed such situations to escalate.
Pray: for the independent Pentecostal Churches to receive state help and protection. Pray for these ‘suffering saints’ - including many very new believers. (Ps.24:5-6)
More: http://morningstarnews.org/2013/11/head-of-town-in-mexico-sends-mob-to-beat-abduct-christians/
At least 70 evangelical Christians in Mexico's east-central region were homeless on Saturday, September 17th after being expelled by local authorities from their village where traditional Catholics reportedly threatened to ‘crucify or lynch’ them. The government of Puebla state ‘bowed’ to pressure from the traditional Catholics in San Rafael Tlanalapan village, 60 miles from Mexico City. Initially 50 Protestant families were ordered to leave the village by September 12th but some were allowed to stay on condition that they would worship outside the area. Additionally they are not allowed to get involved with traditional Catholics, who practice a mixture of indigenous and Catholic rituals. Regional government officials said, ‘there is an agreement that evangelicals not originating from the area have to go as the state government can not guarantee their safety.’
Pray: for an end to decades of small town persecution of Evangelical Christians by local authorities, and for the Holy Spirit's presence to be established across Mexico. (Is.65:1)
More: http://www.worthynews.com/10963-mexico-evangelicals-leave-village-amid-crucifixion-threats
Most headlines involving Mexico over the past few years have revolved around some sort of drug cartel shootings, kidnappings, or most recently, arson. Of the 40,000 deaths that have occurred since 2006 connected to Mexican drug cartels, most have been men actually caught up in some way with the cartels. But the violence has spread easily and quickly outside those circles to include many civilians, paralyzing many who live along the border with fear. ‘People have a feeling that today could be the day that they die,’ says Todd Szalkowski with E3 Partners. ‘They literally approach every day, because of the violence there, as if it could be their last day on earth. People are afraid to gather in large groups, and that affects church-going people’. He added, ‘They're seeing their pastors abducted out of the pulpit and held for ransom. Gripped by fear, even believers are too nervous to attend church’. (See also Prayer Alert 33-2011)
Pray: to the Lord while He may be found and pray that God would anoint our prayers and heal the Land. (2Chr.7:14)
Decapitation, rape, murder, mass corruption and national chaos is the fruit in Mexico of America’s illicit drug use. A Mexican offensive against drug cartels has raged since President Felipe Calderon took power in 2006 making a crackdown on drug cartels the hallmark of his six-year term, which expires later this year. However in a wide perception that the crackdown has not worked his party is losing hope for re-election. Mexico has a high percentage of Christian believers in the population and over past years hundreds of prayer vigils, walks and demonstrations have been held regarding the corruption, terror and drug wars in the land. On Sunday soldiers arrested the perpetrator of the decapitation and dismembering of 49 people dumped on a highway last week. Graffiti sprayed at the scene of the corpses showed the mark of the Zetas, who are fighting for control of the region. Their empire consists of hired killers, smugglers, kidnapers, extortionists and of people involved in then the crude oil industry.
Pray: for prayers against corruption to be answered and for God’s chosen president to lead the country out of immorality and corruption.(Is.1:23-26)