Prayer is requested concerning the Iranian government's campaign of intimidation against Christians and Churches.
We regret to report that one church has been forced to close. On Tuesday 5th June the Assemblies of God church in Tehran's Janat-Abad suburb was told to cease all activities, and threatened with the confiscation of its building.
Recall that in early May leaders of another Assemblies of God church in Tehran were ordered by the Ministry of Intelligence to submit the names and ID numbers of all members. Church leaders provided a list of names and ID numbers of church members who had given their consent, some of whom have subsequently been pressurised by the authorities.
Recall also that, since early February, two other legally recognised churches in Tehran have been ordered to stop holding Farsi-language services on Fridays, and that several members of Anglican, Presbyterian and Assemblies of God Churches have been arrested. Two of these are among at least 20 believers (most from Muslim backgrounds) who are known still to be detained.
Iranian Christians supporting these believers thank us for our prayers. They request our continued intercession asking that:
a. The closure order will be reversed and other restrictions on churches lifted.
b. All Christians in Iran will know the protection of the Father, comfort of the Son and the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
c. They will be able to meet for worship, prayer, Bible study and fellowship with like-minded believers.
d. Those believers currently detained will know the presence and peace of Jesus and be released soon.
e. Church and fellowship group leaders will know the Spirit’s discernment and wisdom
f. All officials involved will love mercy, act justly, learn about Jesus and choose to follow Him.
Dear Intercessors,
Greetings from Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Few churches have come together to form the Global Partnership for Church Unity to pray and work together as One Body, Various Congregations.
Every second Saturday of the month, we intercede for the nation, region and nations going through difficulties.
At the beginning of 2013, we’re arranging the:
1st UAE National Prayer Summit 2013 of the Global Partnership for Church Unity
ONE BODY, DIVERSE CONGREGATIONS INTERCEDING TOGETHER
Abu Dhabi
Saturday, 26 January, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
@ Evangelical Community Church, Main Chapel
We would like to invite anyone in the region to join us either by sending a representative or encouraging their groups to pray together with us on January 26, 2013. Would it be possible for you to publish this through your network and partnerships?
Blessings and prayers.
About 400 Turkish, Korean and other ministry and prayer people took part in this prayer/mission event that turned out to be quite powerful, and I think consequential, for the nation. Without mentioning the unwelcome word “genocide”, I taught on transformational prayer breakthroughs and remitting bloodguilt on the land. Afterwards, a Turkish pastor and I facilitated a time of reconciliation and repentance between the Turks and representatives from other peoples. Many came up afterwards expressing their deep appreciation and saying it was just what Turkey needs. People have not wanted to deal with the terrible past of mass killings of the Armenians and other ethnic minorities. Pray they will take the session's teaching and the reconciliation to heart and take it back to their own cities and regions and begin to practice these things.
There needs to be a breakthrough here - only 4600 known believers among 74 million people. They complain of a pervasive spirit of fear, lying, division and oppression upon the small churches that do not yet pray together very often. Please pray with us that this kind of reconciliation and repentance will spread across Turkey, that these spiritual forces will be bound, and that a new day of liberation for the nation and church will begin.
The Borderland Prayer Initiative of June 16-17 brought together about thirty local participants – Czech and Slovak leaders from four “houses of prayer” in the Czech Republic and Slovakia and their family members – along with Brian Mills (Interprayer and IPC), Sam Hofmann (YWAM and Hernnhut) and myself in the border town of MIkulov on the Czech border with Austria. It was held in a Methodist church that is pastored by a Jewish believer who was from the original Jewish population that was uprooted and destroyed during the Holocaust.
We focused some strong prayer especially on the issue of “redigging the wells of revival”. It was from that same region of Moravia that the Moravians of the 18th century under the influence of brave reformer Jan Hus developed a vital movement for Christ involving prayer and Bible study that brought a time of deep revival and renewal and later resulted in the 100-year prayer chain in Hernnhut, Germany, from which hundreds of the first Protestant missionaries went out to far reaches of the world. The Moravians also deeply inspired and impacted both England and the USA through the lives and ministries of John and Charles Wesley and George Whitfield, who were mightily used of the Lord in the mighty revival that was know as the Great Awakening and led to the birth of the Methodist Church.
The local prayer leaders also took us over the border into Austria where we prayed at the battlefield where centuries before the Hapsburg emperor defeated the Bohemian ruler and stained the ground with the blood of many thousands of the ancestors of the Czechs and Slovaks. To this day, there remains a sense of spiritual and psychological hindrance affecting the relationship of nations in the region that either ruled or were under the thumb of the Austro-Hungarian empire’s hegemony. It was an encouraging, and I think potent, time of reconciliation and repentance praying, entering into His heart for these nations together. May the Lord use it to affect them positively!
Please continue to pray with us for any attitudinal barrier between these national groups to be broken and that Hungarians, Austrians, and other nationalities in the region will be drawn together for future initiatives. Pray that the fire of the Holy Spirit falls upon His Church and that we will see His healing and transformation in this region where the wounds of history can still permeate the atmosphere.
The 70-day cascade of prayer and praise will come to an end with the prayer relay finish in East London on the evening of the 26th July, and the Praise Bus will complete its journey on the 27th July.
We want to invite everyone everywhere to prayer 8:12 a.m. on 27th July - please forward this invitation on.
At 8:12 a.m. on 27th July 2012, the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games are calling for bells to be rung across our nations: any bell, anyone, anywhere. www.allthebells.com
We feel this is a very significant moment and want to invite everyone to pray wherever they are on that day! We long to see a spiritual turning in our nation.
It is 70 years ago to the day when Winston Churchill called for the bells to be rung after the first battle of El Alamein ended on 27th July 1942 with a stalemate. The bells marked a turning point. After the second battle of El Alamein which ended on 3rd November 1942, there was victory. He recalled ‘before El Alamein, we never had a victory; after El Alamein, we never had a defeat’.
Bells were rung on 3 June at the Jubilee Pageant carried on the bell barge and were answered by church bells along the Thames. Bells will ring on 27th July 2012 at 8:12 a.m. A 27-ton bell will ring at 9:00 p.m. on 27 July. It is twice the size of Big Ben and the largest tuned bell in Europe and will ring in the Olympic Stadium to start London 2012. It will carry the quote from The Tempest, ‘Do not be afeared; the isle is full of noises’. A number of people have been carrying words about the significance of bells:
1. Jonathan Bellamy http://www.crossrhythms.co.uk/articles/life/The_Bells_Of_Change/47694/p1
2. Benicar Johnson of Bethel Church had a recent word about the bells ringing in England http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=it3acc9XwAk&feature=em-share_video_user
3. Kathie Walters (http://www.kathiewaltersministry.com) who has mobilized thousands around the world to pray during the Jubilee and for the start of the games.
World Prayer Centre has put together some scriptures and prayers for you to use; but feel free to pray how the Lord leads on that morning. Download the Call to Prayer 27th July sheet (http://www.worldprayer.org.uk/files/2012/07/Call-to-Prayer-27-July-8.12am-WPC-27_07_12.pdf)
Please invite all you know!
“What an amazing time to be alive! There have been so many prayer and mission events taking place across our nations including 2 stadiums (Leyton Orient and Ashton Gate) and many other prayer weeks, nights of prayer, prayer vigils and prayer walks. It is completely impossible to keep up with how the Holy Spirit is mobilising His church at this time. Apologies for the fact that the Prayer Forum website is not yet functioning. We pray that it soon will be!
World Prayer Assembly. Stories from those who were part of the approximately 50 people delegation from the UK at the World Prayer Assembly in Jakarta have to be heard to be believed. ‘It was truly tri-generational (Abrahams, Isaacs and Jacobs), multi-ethnic and global. Between 9,000 and 10,000 participants from 86 nations attended the Assembly. On 17th May they joined with 100,000 Indonesians at their national stadium for five hours of prayer, praise and worship. Watch for the new wave of prayer and mission that is erupting globally. See Ian Cole’s report on World Prayer Centre website http://www.worldprayer.org.uk/files/2012/06/WPA-2012-Report.pdf or head over to International Prayer Connect for June Newsletter http://ipcprayer.org/
The 70 day Cascade of Praise and Prayer got off to a great start at Lands End with the commissioning of the prayer relay batons and the start of the prayer relay, praying for the Praise Bus and 7:14 prayer events taking place across the west country.
The impact of the Praise Bus as it simply declares the praise of Jesus is mighty as it goes ahead of the Olympic torch route. One church said, “I can't say how much our day on the bus has meant to us, it has impacted on our every day worship. Thank you for this opportunity”. Full details about the vision is on www.thejourneyfromescalls.co.uk.
The 70 day Prayer Relay has taken place in a variety of locations, including churches, on a ship in Cardiff Bay, outside Liverpool Cathedral and on the most northerly point in N Ireland. The town crier welcomed the pray-ers and prayer baton from Bangor into Chester. ‘Thank you for giving us the opportunity to share in this fabulous and momentous event. We had an extraordinary time in Belfast as we sat under the prayers of blessing written in Newry for Belfast’. Follow the Prayer Relay on the World Prayer Centre & More than Gold facebook pages. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=841449172 & http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=841449172#!/pages/More-Than-Gold-UK/117009724976998
7:14 prayer events continue to be organised in many of the locations of the over night torch relay stops - the night before. For reports and further information see http://www.facebook.com/pages/714/233575236702971
And so this historic, unprecedented season of praise, prayer and mission continues through June as it travels through Scotland and through most of the NE and NW of England and then coming as far south as Birmingham by 30th June. It is wonderful to see the body of Christ responding to the Father’s heart to come and give him the praise and worship at this critical time. To find out where the Olympic torch is going (and so find out re Praise Bus, 7:14 and prayer relay) head over to www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-17358291.
More news will follow as we move into July. Please mark 8 am 27th July in your diaries as More than Gold, World Prayer Centre and many others plan to issue a call to prayer across every part of the British Isles as those church bells peal!
And of course don’t forget to plan to join us on 29th September at Wembley Stadium for the national day of praise and thanksgiving for all that God has done and will do! www.ndopwembley.com Tickets are now available.
Mexico’s most wanted man, Joaquin "El Chapo" (Shorty) Guzmán, the notorious leader of the Sinaloa drug cartel that has been blamed for thousands of homicides, was indicted April 2012 in El Paso along with 23 others on federal charges.
Guzman is the boss of the Sinaloa Federation, the 5 foot 6 inch son of a poor rural family. Despite having virtually no formal education, Forbes estimates Guzman is worth more than $1 billion. He has been declared the most influential trafficker in the world.
Guzman is infamous for the smuggling of cocaine from Columbia, and heroin from Southeast Asia. His organization also produces their own brand of heroin. U.S. law enforcement have identified Sinaloa Cartel distribution centers in Arizona, California, Texas, New York, and Chicago, where street gangs such as MS-13 and the Mexican Mafia distribute the drugs.
Guzman has eluded capture for more than a decade, is known for coming up with original ways to smuggle, like putting cocaine in fire extinguishers, and is suspected of helping Mexicans and Colombians launder as much as $20 billion in drug profits. Guzman is the heart of the drug war, perpetuating the image of the bulletproof bad guy.
Guzman's influence is reportedly deeply imbedded in the political structure of Mexico, even spilling over to the United States. Guzman's typical plan is to recruit a low-level official and continue to pay that person as he rises through the ranks. Once an official or politician is on a cartel payroll, he is subject to blackmail should he stop cooperating. And it goes beyond cash; it can also involve murder. Whatever the relationship entails, once a cartel gets its hooks into a person, it tends not to let go -- and the person thus entangled has little choice but to continue cooperating, since he can be subject to arrest and political or financial ruin or even assassination if he is caught.
U.S. law enforcement officials say that no other cartel has the international cocaine distribution networks of Guzman's Sinaloa Federation, which is also making a major push into methamphetamines in Mexico and Central America. He has a $7 million bounty on his head in Mexico and the U.S., and teams of law enforcement agents from both countries are devoted to his capture.
PRAY:
1. We call upon You, Almighty God, for the capture of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman (Sinaloa) (Hebrews 4:13 & Job 12:22).
2. That all communication fail within Guzman's ranks that keeps him one step ahead of capture.
3. That the Lord will shine His light on the whereabouts of Guzman, and on all those in the cartel's leadership.
4. For supernatural wisdom, breakthrough and protection for all law enforcement that are working to take down Guzman.
5. That the Lord would send His mighty heavenly army to arrest Guzman, bringing law enforcement to the right place at the right time for Guzman's capture.
PRAISES!
Seven members of Mexico's Zetas cartel were arrested Tuesday after a U.S. indictment accused a total of 14 cartel members of laundering drug money through the breeding and racing of American quarter horses in the United States, authorities said. Los Zetas leader Miguel Angel Trevino Morales, 38, and his two brothers were named in the federal indictment, and brother Jose Trevino Morales, 45, and his wife, 38-year-old Zulema Trevino, were among the seven arrested, federal authorities said. The 14 defendants were charged with a conspiracy using horse racing and breeding to launder the cartel's drug money, authorities said.
A member of Mexico's Los Zetas drug cartel suspected of running piracy operations for the criminal organization was arrested earlier this week, the Defense Secretariat said Thursday. Gregorio Villanueva Salas, known as "The Czar of Piracy," also faces charges in connection with several grenade attacks. Villanueva was arrested by army troops on Monday in Monterrey, the capital of the northern state of Nuevo Leon, along with three other members of the gang. Villanueva was "one of the principal operators" of Los Zetas, a drug cartel notorious for dismembering its victims, Defense Secretariat spokesman Col. Ricardo Trevilla said.
Do you ever feel weary or burdened after hearing yet another report about the continual onslaught of sexualized messages in our children’s schools? And finding out how well-funded all the sexual advocacy groups targeting our classrooms with their messages are certainly doesn’t make things any easier. Well, I have some good news for you: This week we’ve got a refreshing story to share with you that will encourage your heart.
These brave parents and local school board members in Erie, Illinois – a town of only 1,600 people – are resisting pressure from national activist groups and liberal media.
They made their voices heard after discovering plans to introduce materials from GLSEN – the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network – into their elementary school, which serves children between the ages of 4 and 9.
The good news is, the school board listened to the parents’ concerns and voted 5-2 to reject the GLSEN material. But as a result, the gay-activist groups have launched a national campaign to pressure the board into reversing its vote.
However, the school board says it’s not changing its vote, no matter what GLSEN does. Parents and citizens in this community are standing firm for their kids, their schools and their community values. Those actions are having a ripple effet that will empower other parents nationwide.
If you have concerns about whether this type of curriculum is headed to your local schools and how you can respond, you’ll want to check out www.truetolerance.org. This online resource provides examples of homosexual-themed classroom materials to be aware of, as well as tips on how to respond to efforts to introduce them in your children’s classrooms in a loving, fact-based way.
For faith and the family,