Sudan: prayers answered in Blue Nile region
05 Mar 2020
We recently prayed that the preliminary Sudan peace deal with the rebel Sudan PLM would stand and end nine years of fighting and poverty in the Blue Nile and South Kordofan areas. Now the EU is allocating €30 million life-saving assistance to address various humanitarian needs in these areas that have been cut off from international assistance for years. Over nine million people are in need of humanitarian assistance; nearly two million are uprooted from their homes, while the country hosts one million refugees relying on aid for their survival. The EU complements its funding with development assistance that helps communities build resilience to increase people's access to social protection in the long-term.
More slaves freed
05 Mar 2020
Last week Prayer Alert intercessors praised God for 115 people rescued from bonded-labour slavery in India. This week we can celebrate the release of 204 people, including 41 children, from two large Indian brick kilns in one of their largest ever joint rescue operations. Click the ‘More’ button for the heart-warming story of recovery.
Coronavirus
05 Mar 2020
We must continue to look to God and pray that people would not become unduly fearful. Pray that the coronavirus will not have any negative effects on the preparations for, and progress of, many Christian and secular Easter celebrations across the country. When times are at their worst, Christians should be at their best. We saw glimpses of this in China. Christians facing state-sponsored persecution are out in the streets giving out masks and sharing the love of Christ with their non-believing neighbours. That behaviour comes from knowing that this world belongs to God, and that He is able to wipe away every tear from our eyes. The government is advising hospitals to carry video-based patient consultations, and is moving towards the ‘delay - second stage’ to slow the spread of the virus. Pray that their precautions are successful, and that no further action ‘stages’ will be needed.
NHS clinic and gender transition
05 Mar 2020
A 23-year-old woman taking legal action against an NHS gender clinic says she should have been challenged more by medical staff over her decision to transition to a male as a 16-year-old teenager. At the hearing, lawyers will argue that children cannot give informed consent to treatment delaying puberty or helping them to transition. The clinic runs the UK's only gender-identity development service. Pray for the two claimants, Keira Bell and Mum A - the mother of a 15-year-old girl with autism who is awaiting treatment at the clinic. Pray for stricter control of the puberty blockers that pause the development of breasts, periods, facial hair and voice-breaking. They are meant to give children more time to weigh up their options before going through the physical changes of puberty. Their impact on brain development and psychological health is not fully known.
Seeds of Prayer: Lent and signs
05 Mar 2020
We live in turbulent and troubled times. The floods and other troubles facing rural Britain are just the tip of an iceberg: across the world, nature, society and church are being thoroughly shaken. These are the times of ‘signs’ that, variously, warn of God’s judgment, call us to repentance and herald Jesus’s return. Pray that God’s people will understand the times and know what to do, always being ready to give an account for the hope that is in us, and work to bring in His harvest. The season of Lent is traditionally marked by fasting and abstinence. It is a time to consider our ways. Many churches will set aside special times to meet, pray and study the Bible. Pray for Christians, both rural and urban, to understand how what we eat and how we live affects God’s creation, the land and those who farm it.
Flybe collapse repercussions
05 Mar 2020
Flybe Airline has gone into liquidation, so that passengers needing to fly from the Isle of Man to hospital appointments in England cannot do so. Pray for the island’s government to resolve the challenge to their patient transfer contract, so that the health of patients is not put at risk. Apart from Flybe staff, pray for the hundreds of people in the aviation industry suffering in the knock-on effect, for example the ground handling companies who were used to transfer freight across the nation. Flybe is the fourth UK airline to go out of business in two years; pray that next week’s budget will be an opportunity for Chancellor Rishi Sunak to explore help for airlines. Meanwhile let us praise God for Great Western Railway who are helping Flybe customers and staff with free travel until 12 March.
Buy one, give one foodbank
05 Mar 2020
Giving Stream have launched 'Farming Food Bank' where church members buy a retail hamper from their church for £30 and another hamper is donated to local families in need. The hampers include 15 balanced meals. Giving Stream's Colin Kaye said, ‘We have the farm, butchers, chefs, equipment, and expertise to produce food. Churches have congregations and a local feeding programme or plans to launch one. This project links us all together, working as one, in the name of Jesus.’ Giving Stream will install a walk-in freezer on church premises at the company's cost; they will stock it with two different products - a retail hamper, which can be bought, and a free food hamper, used for donations only. Every time a retail hamper is sold a free meal hamper is donated to the church, who then feed people who are hungry.
Pray for justice
05 Mar 2020
IJM is preparing to launch a Global Survivor Network. It is an opportunity for survivors of slavery to lead and influence policy on human trafficking. On 1 April two survivors, Pachaiyammal and Victoria, will be speaking in Oxford to share their experiences of trafficking and violence against women. Please pray for God to give them peace as they share their stories of freedom from slavery. Please also pray for the logistics of this event, for opportunities to connect with media, and for a global audience so that these survivors' stories are amplified far and wide, bringing change and influencing programming around the world. Also, on Ash Wednesday, IJM launched its #SlaveFreeLent campaign, hoping and praying that this movement would reach further and have more impact than all they could ask or imagine. Praise God, they had 1800+ signups in just a few days, twice as many as in 2019. See also Praise item 3 and