Syriac Christian community
07 Nov 2019
In the northeast of Syria, in a number of cities and their surrounding villages, a renaissance is under way in the area’s beleaguered Syriac Christian community, which is attempting to revive the Syriac language and culture after decades of neglect and oppression. The Christian community as a whole has suffered immensely during the ongoing eight-year conflict, and this minority is no exception. The conflict has, however, also brought about social changes that previously would have been thought impossible, particularly in areas under the control of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). Escalating its threat to invade the area despite the presence of American, British, and French troops, Turkey could reverse these changes and even jeopardise the continued existence of the Christian community there. These Christians have preserved their unique languages and cultures in the face of decades of Arabisation. Syriac Christians will teach their children their ancestral language, derived from Aramaic, the native tongue of Jerusalem, where the church was born.
Horn of Africa: flood devastation
07 Nov 2019
Increased temperatures in the Indian Ocean have caused heavy rainfall and widespread flooding and destruction in different countries. In Kenya 29 people were killed in flash floods, nearly 12,000 have been displaced, and agriculture is hard hit, with 10,000+ livestock animals drowning. Caritas has appealed for food, first aid, and funds to distribute to the needy. In South Sudan, Bishop Majwok has requested the government to declare a state of national disaster as 283,000 square kilometres of his diocese are under water. Rains have devastated the country since July. Wet weather has worsened the humanitarian situation in 32 counties, where over three million people already needed assistance. In Somalia over 182,000 people are homeless due to flooding; most are from the central town of Beledweyne, where the UN reports people drowning. East Africa's rainy season, which runs from October to December, is likely to be unusually wet this year due to a process known as Indian Ocean Dipole (similar to the Pacific El Nino) by which atmospheric humidity is dumped inland as rainfall.
Chile: inequality triggers protests
07 Nov 2019
For decades political leaders have promised that free markets would lead to prosperity, which would take care of other problems. The promises came to nothing, and thousands of protesters are chanting, ‘Chile, wake up’. The middle class struggles with high prices, low wages, a privatised retirement system, and the elderly in bitter poverty. A series of corruption and tax-evasion scandals eroded faith in the political and corporate elite. While protests began peacefully over three weeks ago, now there are images of metro stations destroyed, supermarkets looted, and flaming street barricades. There are accusations of torture and abuse by the 200,000 security forces, who have used tear gas and water cannon to disperse demonstrators. Social media is reporting many deaths. The UN is investigating human rights abuses. Two centuries after independence from Spain, the Catholic Christian faith of the conquistadors remains the largest in Chile today. Pray for the Church’s voice of peace and justice to be heard.
North Korea / USA / Iran: nuclear programmes
07 Nov 2019
South Korea’s national intelligence service told a closed-door parliamentary audit session that it expected working-level denuclearisation talks between Kim and Trump to resume by early December. As recently as 31 October Kim test-fired two short-range missiles that traveled 350 to 400 kilometres. The tests were believed to be the nuclear-armed country’s 19th and 20th launches since May. Japan’s prime minister condemned the launches as an act threatening the peace and safety of his country as North Korea was refining weapons capable of reaching it. Meanwhile, Iran announced launching a new batch of advanced centrifuges to accelerate uranium enrichment on the 40th anniversary of the start of its Islamic Revolution. However, Tehran has left room for diplomacy by saying that talks are possible if Washington lifts all the sanctions and returns to the nuclear deal. See
The ‘Fanning the Flames’ report published on 31 October said that corporations with global reach in the tech, finance, and media sectors have resourced anti-Muslim individuals and groups both domestically and internationally to create the infrastructure for biased messages and bigotry to spread and thrive. It added that Google, Amazon and Fidelity will promote white supremacy and anti-Muslim bigotry as long as they can make money out of it. Researchers found tech platforms have provided a space for unsafe actors, and their search and recommendation algorithms enabled white supremacist and bigoted propaganda to spread further. The report said, ‘It is concerning that these tech platforms have not created strategies to eliminate anti-Muslim bigotry from their sites.’ Also, Wall Street businesses have provided financial infrastructure and political cover to organisations promoting anti-Muslim prejudice, and financial institutions are investing hundreds of millions in gun manufacturers.
DR ALISTAIR PETRIE IS AN INTERNATIONAL MINISTER AND TEACHER ON THE PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICES OF TRANSFORMING REVIVAL. ALISTAIR PETRIE SHARES SOME INSIGHTS FOR THOSE WHO ARE PRAYING FOR REVIVAL IN THEIR NATIONS.
He suggests that though there is a place for persevering prayer and heartfelt repentance, Scripture suggests seven different heart characteristics that God is looking for when determining where and when to pour out His Spirit. As we pray individually and corporately for our nations, these attributes of righteousness are keys to unlocking our breakthrough.
Petrie challenges us to consider these seven qualifiers if we want to “attract” God’s heart and prepare a holy place for Him to dwell. It always starts with us individually assessing our own heart condition. Then, as each individual gets aligned with God’s heart and purpose, the corporate testimony will be impacted and our joint intercession will have power and authority.
Here are the seven characteristics in order of progression, starting personally, then overflowing to the corporate:
1.HUMILITY – Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you. (James 4:10)
This is the starting place for all prayer. We must surrender our own agenda to His and submit to His methods and timing, taking a posture of serving and not striving.
2.HOLINESS – Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. (Hebrews 12:14)
We must walk in the fear of the Lord and esteem holiness and righteousness as the foundation of His throne, not allowing any compromise or double-standard to weaken our authority.
3.RELATIONAL UNITY – I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought. (1 Corinthians 1:10)
Our unity is based on the work of the cross and our corporate commission to declare the Kingdom of God in our midst.
4.INTEGRITY – The integrity of the upright guides them, but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity. (Proverbs 11:3)
We must become trustworthy stewards who are shown to be people of His Word, able to guard, keep, and occupy what He wants to give us.
5.TRANSPARENCY – For we are taking pains to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord but also in the eyes of man. (2 Corinthians 8:21)
We must admit when we are wrong and be authentic in our journey of sanctification.
6.BEING VERTICALLY INFORMED AND HORIZONTALLY ACCOUNTABLE – Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. (James 5:16)
We are stronger together than we are apart. Our mutual accountability has great impact as each part does its work.
7.GIVEN TO CORPORATE PRAYER (leading to tangible results) – All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer…When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. (Acts 1:14, 2:1-2)
If we want to see a corporate shift, it requires corporate agreement. Heaven listens for the unified voice of the Church and will respond to our corporate cry for His presence.
Prayerfully consider these seven qualifiers and share them with those you pray with. Assess your heart condition, both personally and corporately. Are you seeing these characteristics displayed in your corporate testimony? If not, address the adjustments needed and ask the Holy Spirit to empower you in preparing a place for Him to come and pour out a greater measure of His Spirit and His glory.
How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity! It is like precious oil poured on the head, running down on the beard, running down on Aaron’s beard, down on the collar of his robe. It is as if the dew of Hermon were falling on Mount Zion. For there the Lord bestows his blessing, even life forevermore. (Psalms 133:1-3)
Rev. Dr. Alistair P. Petrie
Executive Director
www.partnershipministries.org
“When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people, if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:13-14
God is calling us, the Body of Christ, to come together, fall on our knees and confess the sin of our nation, repenting corporately, with ONE VOICE before Him. Once that is done, God says He will hear us, forgive us and heal our land! In order to do that, we must be convicted of our sin, and be willing to repent, not just give lip service.
“These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me.” Matthew 15:8
God is asking us if we are willing to receive the burden of “conviction of the sin of this nation” in our hearts. As we agree, we will be empowered to pray effectively in repentance for our nation!
We are engaged in a spiritual battle...a warfare of love! Many in the Body of Christ are deeply concerned about the extreme danger being posed by the anti-Christ spirit, which is operating against not only our President but the United States of America at this very hour, trying to undermine and destroy our very foundations. Americans are distracted by a never-ending stream of “urgent” matters, while the media floods the airwaves 24/7 with “fake news” in an attempt to control our minds and instill fear in our hearts! What is taking place is a battle, against not only our Government but against individuals, families, churches and communities. It is an all-out war against the American way of life...and it has already been launched! “We, The People” are under attack!
Unless the Body of Christ repents and then rises up in prayer, the United States will have no future.
“Even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning. Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and compassionate. Joel 2:12-13
Nothing is too far out of reach that God cannot revive it. Repentance does not happen spontaneously. It first takes place in individual hearts, is nurtured by prayer and fasting, and is then birthed into the larger arena, often through solemn assemblies. In Scripture, these solemn assemblies were often called by priests, prophets or kings, for the entire nation. Prior to every national awakening in the United States, there was an emphasis on repentance, with fasting and prayer. Throughout our history, 788 solemn assemblies for national repentance took place!
The blessing of national repentance is not only that God heals and blesses the nation, but also that a passion for His Presence is stirred up in the Body of Christ.
During the Civil War, as President Abraham Lincoln struggled to mend a divided and war-torn nation and re-center Americans around God and prayer, he issued a proclamation on March 30, 1863, calling for a “Day of National Humiliation, Fasting, and Prayer.” The text of Lincoln’s proclamation has pointed lessons for today, as our nation is once again deeply divided. It repeatedly references God, calls on Americans to turn back to prayer and acknowledges the importance that God plays in human affairs. It was indeed a “call to repent before God” which is appropriate for us today. (CLICK HERE for the full text)
Today, October 3, 2019, we, the undersigned, call the Body of Christ to a DAY OF CORPORATE REPENTANCE for the United States of America, to take place on Sunday, November 3, 2019, as a step toward a NATIONAL DAY OF REPENTANCE!
More info on the Facebook Event Page: https://www.facebook.com/events/395409681133569/
John Robb, Founder, National Prayer Assembly (USA),
Chairman, International Prayer Council,
International Coordinator, World Prayer Assembly (2012)
(Co-signed by 121 others
Pray for Syria, Turkey and the Kurds
Turkey views the Kurds as terrorists. A couple of weeks ago, they pushed into Syria to displace the Kurds from the border area, to create a 'safe-zone'.
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, the United States’ main ally in the fight against ISIS, has been in talks with both Russia and the US to protect the Kurdish people against the Turkish assault. The Turkish incursion has killed scores of people on both sides of the border and nearly 180,000 people inside Syria have been displaced.
The commander of the SDF is now holding discussions with the US government on keeping US forces in the region, as well as regaining control over territory they have lost since the Turkish military invasion began. Pray for the hostile actors in this volatile situation- the Turkish government and military, the Kurdish leaders and their militia, as well as the Syrian, Russian and US governments that a good and peaceful diplomatic solution can be worked out.
Pray for the tens of thousands of civilians whose lives have been uprooted and for effective and well- coordinated humanitarian relief to pour in to meet their critical needs.
Pray that the military operation by Turkey and all fighting would stop immediately.
Pray that God would intervene in a special way to resolve the current conflicts in His peaceful way.
We pray, Your Kingdom come on Turkey, Syria, and all Middle East regions!
Northeast Syria is home to a range of diverse ethnic and religious communities. The principal Kurdish region of Syria, it also hosts sizeable Syriac and Assyrian Christians communities. There are also Christian converts, especially among the Kurdish communities.
The stated objectives of Turkey’s military action in Syria are, firstly, to create a ‘safe-zone’ along the border by combatting Kurdish-led forces, and, secondly, to facilitate the repatriation of Syrian refugees from Turkey. The campaign does not seem to be motivated by a specific religious agenda, and there is little evidence to suggest that Christians are being specifically targeted. But Christians are deeply affected, along with other communities in the region. Shelling has led to multiple casualties, more than twenty villages have so far been seized and tens of thousands have fled the region.
Although not specifically a campaign against Christians, there are concerns Christian communities face particular vulnerabilities. Christian leaders are concerned that elements within Turkey’s forces and their Syrian opposition allies are pursuing Islamist agendas that are hostile not just to Kurds but also to any communities that are not Sunni Muslim. This fear would be compounded if the security of prisons holding extremists is compromised. They also fear that Turkey’s refugee repatriation plans, whereby Syrians who fled from other areas would be resettled in northeast Syria, constitute an intentional programme of ‘demographic engineering’ in the region, intended to boost the Arab Sunni presence to the detriment of Kurds and other communities such as Christians.
Syrian Christians request prayer that:
Political and military leaders, of parties involved and in the wider international community, will act with restraint and hope peace will be restored, human dignity respected and pluralism preserved and strengthened, in northeast Syria and the rest of the country, for the benefit of all ethnic and religious communities. Pray that Christian communities will not be intimidated but will find opportunity to be agents of reconciliation, wisdom and compassion for those bereaved or injured, together with all who have fled. Pray those suffering will find comfort, healing, peace and hope all and that all who are intent on violence will know the Spirit’s conviction of sin and respond to the Father’s offer of new life through the Son.
More at: http://meconcern.org/2019/10/11/syria-christians-request-prayer-for-northeast-syria/