China: prayer for Buddhists - Chinese New Year
05 Jan 2023
The Chinese New Year in 2023 is celebrated on 22 January. Prayer Alert intercessors are invited to join thousands of believers from many churches and Christian ministries across the world who will be uniting online for a 24-hour prayer meeting. Your prayers will be covering key cities and regions of the Buddhist world. The time is ripe for asking the Lord of the Harvest to send forth labourers to every unreached people group in these cities and nations. It is an opportunity to unite and intercede as one, exalting Jesus Christ as King throughout the Buddhist world. Chinese New Year is a special time for families to gather together, and you are invited to pray for an hour (or more) during this 24-hour period for all the Gospel movements throughout the Buddhist world and China. See also
Thailand: Chinese congregation refugees
05 Jan 2023
62 members of China's Mayflower Church fled to South Korea seeking political asylum after China’s government imposed revised regulations. Pastor Pan said, ‘Government authorities ordered my landlord to force us to leave. Police were posted right outside our residence and I was being followed.’ He said that police persecution was becoming more serious, and the space where they could live was becoming smaller. ‘Our only hope is that our family can live in a place where we can worship God and teach this to our children. For them to freely worship God their whole lives.’ After two and a half years South Korea’s government denied the Mayflower families' request for asylum, so they fled to Thailand, where they are seeking refugee status in order to apply for political asylum in the USA. They still face many challenges, including being sent back to China by Thai immigration police.
Israel: new government
05 Jan 2023
Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt are worried that Israel’s new government will spark escalations in the West Bank and Gaza that spill over into their territory. Jordan’s King Abdullah warned Israel, ‘We have red lines, and if people push those red lines, we'll deal with that.’ They already crossed one red line when the coalition guidelines said, ‘Jewish people have exclusive and unassailable rights to the entire Land of Israel. The government will promote and develop settlement in all parts of the land - Galilee, Negev, Golan, Judea and Samaria (West Bank).’ May God bless Israel with effective, stable governance, and may Netanyahu's heart turn to the paths that please God. May God arise, conquer egos, and bring about a desire to do what is best for the nation and not what is best for one's personal political career. Pray for God to arrange the priorities of this coalition to line up with God’s priorities.
Iran: prayer request for pastor and wife
05 Jan 2023
On 26 December intelligence agents raided Pastor Matthias house church during Christmas celebrations. Matthias and two other converts were arrested and transferred to Lakan Prison in Rasht. On 3 January Matthias’ wife Anna was summoned to intelligence offices, arrested, and also transferred to Rasht. Matthias was jailed in January 2022 for a six-year sentence on national security charges, saying that he was an enemy of the state. Although detained in prison, he was allowed regular leave, and continued to minister in the local house church. Friends are concerned about Anna’s health in detention as she has back problems. They request prayer that God will strengthen and encourage them, and that their teenage daughter will be adequately cared for while her parents are in prison. Criminal charges will not be brought against Matthias and Anna or the two other converts arrested at the Christmas gathering.
Forgotten Missionaries International (FMI) recently visited Saudi Arabia to explore potential for future ministry. Saudi Arabia has recently issued tourist visas to be open to the West. FMI expected to see more opulent wealth from Saudi petroleum dollars. But a third of the cars they saw had significant damage, indicating one of the reasons for opening up to the West is to develop tourism and business opportunities. The oil industry is drying up. FMI freely interacted with friendly Saudis. There were few women out and about , all wearing black veils. There are underground churches for foreign workers, each with 15 - 30 members as venues are small hotel apartments. The government forbids citizens to leave Islam. FMI hopes to visit more congregations on future trips and identify the key leaders of Saudi Christians.
Australia Christian prayer leaders invite their brothers and sisters in Christ, prayer groups, prayer networks and churches to join with them all over the world to pray at sunrise on New Year's Day 2023 at a public location such as a hill, lookout or landmark in your city or town. This year our focus is to pray for Revival & Transformation in the nations. Over the last seven years we have had registrations from 70 different countries.
Warwick Marsh, from the Canberra Declaration said, “David said in Psalm 108:2, “I will wake the dawn with my song.” During this time of prayer, we want to focus on giving great praise to God. We also want to pray for revival and transformation in our respective nations and the nations of the world: 2 Chronicles 7:14. Let us all pray for a great harvest of souls for the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Marsh continued, “We also want to encourage you to contend in prayer for souls to be saved in your nation, pray for our unsaved friends and family to know Jesus in 2023. 2 Pet 3:9 is clear that God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. Psalms 113:3 says, “From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised.” Use the prayer resources on the website and social media and register your location at: https://www.sunriseprayerrelay.com Our prayer is that with your help, this worldwide Prayer and Praise Relay will go viral.”
Pat Steele, a prayer & evangelist leader in Wollongong Australia, said, “We encourage you to pray the Lord's Prayer together aloud as the sun rises and make a declaration that Jesus Christ is Lord of your life, your family, your region, and your nation. At your location we encourage you to include praise and worship, prayers, and scripture readings. We suggest 30 minutes, but you can pray for longer. You could even take communion, shine a torch, or light a candle. What you do for your sunrise celebration is up to you.”
Share photos & videos from your location on social media. Use the hashtag: #sunriseprayerrelay
Website: https://www.sunriseprayerrelay.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/sunriseprayerrelay
Instagram: www.instagram.com/sunriseprayerrelay
Contact: Warwick Marsh 61 418 225212
Pat Steele by email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Daily Declaration (Ian Cole - WPC)
23 Dec 2022
Ian Cole, Senior Advisor to IPC and founder of the World Prayer Centre, Birmingham, UK has put together a daily declaration that we can declare every day for God to release faith, hope and trust over our lives.
A DAILY DECLARATION OF FAITH, HOPE AND TRUST
I DECLARE TODAY: YOU ARE OMNIPOTENT, OMNISCIENT, AND OMNIPRESENT TRIUNE GOD, FATHER, SON AND HOLY SPIRIT.
Father,
Your beauty is my worship
Your Face my delight
Your Son Christ Jesus is my Saviour
Your Spirit is my comfort and guide
Your cross Jesus, is my redemption
Your life Jesus is my life
Your body my food
Your blood is my cleansing
Your word Father, is a lamp to my feet
Your Grace is my cover
Your mercy my freedom
Your righteousness my clothing
Your Joy is my strength.
Your protection my fortress
Your peace is my rest
Your presence my security
Your name my healing
Father, I thank you, that in declaring these truths,
I believe for me today
Your love is unfailing, your goodness never ends, your kindness overwhelms and your faithfulness is everlasting. AMEN
A DAILY DECLARATION OF FAITH, HOPE AND TRUST 2022 © World Prayer Centre. The declaration can be copied and distributed freely acknowledging World Prayer Centre www.worldprayer.org.uk
Ian has also written “A Gift of Hope”. The new e-book contains the Trilogy of Hope articles written by Ian Cole and the Daily Declaration.
May the Gift of Hope bring you joy at Christmas! If you would like to purchase the Gift of Hope e-book, you can purchase and download here.
We hope that you can join us in praying this daily declaration compiled by Ian Cole. Let us declare faith, hope, and truth for us and our families. Download a PDF of the declaration
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Is 9:6)
We are pleased to bring you this Christmas and New Year edition of IPC Connections!
As we reflect on 2022, we have SO much to be thankful for!
We have seen astounding growth in the prayer and missions movements this last year!
This spring, 300 Children Houses of Prayer came together to cover the families and children of China in 100,000 hours of prayer over a period of 31 days!
We launched prayer walking teams who prayed onsite with insight across 90 of the 110 most unreached cities in the world this last year, asking for Jesus to be exalted as King over the peoples of these cities!
18 of the most unreached cities in India were prayer-walked by hundreds of churches in October of 2022 - they are now continuing in 24/7 prayer every month! As teams prayer-walked these cities in partnership with some of the largest house church movements in the world, 570,000 house churches were planted since January 2022, including over 8 million new Jesus followers!
Read more about our vision in our opening article entitled ‘Prayer is Rising’ along with a personal invitation from Dr Jason Hubbard to partner with IPC by sowing in with a donation. Also, do save and read Jason’s inspiring and challenging companion Editorial article entitled ‘Decade of Harvest’.
Launch of 110 Cities – 2023: 4 Global Days
On Dec 5-6th, we gathered with key leaders at the International House of Prayer in Kansas City to make covenant together with 110 million people of prayer around the world, committing to pray on 4 global Days of Prayer in 2023! Watch the event!
It is truly a catalytic moment in the history of the Church, as multitudes of believers are commiting to pray on these 4 Global Days of Prayer this next year.
We invite you and your networks! - to join us as we pray for the exaltation of Jesus Christ in the nations, Psalm 110 and for a burgeoning of Gospel movements in these 110 most unreached cities in the world. Matthew 28:18-20, Matthew 9:37-38. We will pray globally on Pentecost Sunday for the Salvation of all Israel, Isaiah 62:1-7 Romans 9-11. Read more about the 4 Global Prayer Days
21 Days of Prayer for the Buddhist World - January 2-22 2023
We are calling Christians and churches worldwide - to take 21 days, January 2- 22, to learn about and pray for our world’s Buddhist friends. With this guide we invite you to pray specifically that Jesus Christ will become known to the one billion people across the globe who are at least nominally Buddhist. We are encouraging believers to ask the Father to give his Son these Buddhist nations as his inheritance (Psalm 2:8). Let’s ask the Lord of the Harvest to send forth laborers (Matt 9:38) to key Buddhist cities as messengers of Hope, drenched with the Spirit of God, in the power of God for the mission of God! The Prayer Guide is in 20 languages.
More Info, Resources and Sign up for 110 Cities HERE.
Will you Partner with IPC?! - IPC Connections is brought to 5,000+ networks, groups, churches and personal partners free of charge. As an organization, we are dependent on personal donations, legacies and occasional grant support for our income. This Christmas, end of year season, we would welcome your support no matter how small!
If you would like to sow into the IPC Vision, please click here. Thank you for your support!
Thank you for continuing to partner with us in mobilising and informing united prayer across nations, denominations, movements, and generations for the fulfilment of the Great Commission.
May we express grateful thanks to Andy Page and the IPC Editorial Team who put this email together each month.
‘Hope and a Future!’
What better way for us to close our Christmas IPC Connections email, than sharing a Christmas song video from 'Celebrate Christmas'. It was produced by our friends at Children in Prayer, Singapore! and conveys the seasonal message of 'Hope and a Future!' found in Jesus.
As we joyfully celebrate the birth of our Saviour, we wish you and your families a blessed and peaceful Christmas and New Year.
Jason Hubbard - Director
International Prayer Connect
Please use this link if you would like to sow into IPC’s ministry with a donation.
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