Canada: Christians mobilising for elections
25 Jul 2019
In September 2018, some evangelical leaders in British Columbia unveiled a statement on sexuality and gender identity after 21 days of fasting and prayer. ‘We believe this to be a historic moment both here in BC and Canada,’ said a pastor, in a video of the event. Supporters included Laura-Lynn Tyler Thompson, a People’s Party of Canada candidate who has been outspoken against sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) education in schools. The statement says, ‘We are hereby revealing, for the first time, the West Coast Christian accord, which in 14 articles provides a Biblical statement on the supremacy of Christ, the authority of scripture, salvation, marriage, sexual orientation, and gender identity.’ That document now forms the basis of the growing One Accord movement, which seeks to encourage Christians across Canada to vote in the upcoming election (on 21 October) for candidates who they think will protect their Christian beliefs.
Saudi Arabia: US troops return after 16 years
25 Jul 2019
In 2003 the Americans left Saudi Arabia, but now hundreds of American troops will deploy to an airbase outside Riyadh as tensions spike between Iran and its allies and the Trump administration and crown prince Mohammad bin Salman. The deployment of American troops in the kingdom was never popular with Saudis, and comes as their Arab allies desert the crown prince’s war in Yemen. Bringing the Americans back now underscores the king’s deep concern about the regional situation. The American violation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action last year, a move Riyadh encouraged, has set Washington and Tehran on a collision course. Iran cannot allow its oil exports to be curbed by sanctions. The government-controlled Saudi press has openly called for American military action in response to Iranian attacks on oil tankers.
Muslim Fulani herdsmen are attacking churches in north-central Nigeria and crippling productive activities. Attacks have heightened, with one village or another attacked nearly every day. The most recent attack reported in the media was in Jos where a pregnant mother of two and three other Christians were killed by Fulanis. They also attacked other Christian communities, burning down 75 houses with food stores and two church buildings. The herdsmen beheaded a church elder after killing him. ‘We have been experiencing daily attacks by these Fulani herdsmen in our communities, most especially on Sundays during worship hours or Thursdays when church activities are held,’ said a pastor. The herdsmen also destroyed farm produce worth millions of naira, and a lot of domestic animals were killed in the attacks. Christians make up 51.3% of Nigeria’s population; Muslims account for 45%.
USA: three million may lose food stamps
25 Jul 2019
Donald Trump’s administration has proposed a rule to tighten food stamp restrictions that would cut about 3.1 million people from the programme. Currently 43 US states allow residents automatically to become eligible for food stamps through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) if they receive benefits from another programme, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families - TANF. The proposal, which would save the government $2.5bn a year, requires people receiving TANF to pass an income and assets review to determine eligibility for SNAP. Trump said many Americans now using SNAP do not need it, given the strong economy and low unemployment, and should be removed to save taxpayers $15bn. At present SNAP provides free food to 40 million, 12% of the total population. Last year a Trump-backed effort to pass restrictions through a farm bill was blocked by Congress, following a month-long, partisan debate.
South Korea: jets fire at Russian aircraft
25 Jul 2019
South Korean F-15 fighter jets, sent to intercept a Russian surveillance plane, fired 360 machine-gun rounds to prevent it from entering the airspace over the disputed Dokdo/Takeshima islands, occupied by South Korea but claimed by Japan. Russia denied violating the airspace, saying two of its bombers carried out a planned drill with China over ‘neutral waters’, and denied any warning shots were fired by South Korean jets. Russian and Chinese bombers and reconnaissance planes have occasionally entered the zone in recent years, but now Japan has confirmed that its military has also deployed fighter jets in response to the Russian incursion. Because it claims sovereignty over the islands, Japan's government said that Russia had violated its airspace. It also said that South Korea's response was extremely regrettable.
Global: Use your authority
19 Jul 2019
Jeremiah felt inadequate as God called him to a ministry of prophetic prayer for Israel and other nations. We often feel the same, as if our prayers will make little difference, but they can have the awesome power of the Almighty to change a nation’s history. The Lord told Jeremiah that He had put His words in the young prophet’s mouth; He was appointing him ‘over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant’ (Jer. 1:9-10). For those of us who follow Christ, the King of Kings, and are members of His eternal family, should we expect anything less when we pray for the nations? If anything, we ought to expect far more! According to the Apostle Paul, we have been raised in Christ to sit with Him in the heavenly places (Eph. 2:6). See also Intercessor Focus in UK section.
Dominican Republic: Sex Trafficking
19 Jul 2019
Give thanks for Clayton and Ellen Kershaw, from the Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Team, who partnered with the International Justice Mission (IJM), and visited the Dominican Republic to help bring a major reduction in the scale of sex trafficking of children. They met with local government officials, local partners and survivors. They then used their American platforms in sports and media to shine a light on this issue and released a clip on the internet about their visit. Please pray for many people to watch the video clip about sex trafficking and then go on to join the fight for justice.
Africa: Corruption
19 Jul 2019
A survey asked over 47,000 citizens from 35 African countries about their experiences and perceptions of corruption. More than half of the survey respondents think corruption in their country is getting worse, and that their governments are not doing enough to tackle this scourge. Citizens have every reason to call for stronger anti-corruption measures: from education to health care to policing, rackets affect millions of people each-and-every day. More than a quarter of citizens paid bribes to access public services over the past year - that is equivalent to around 130 million people across the countries surveyed. Of all public institutions, police forces were identified as the most corrupt; but many other areas of government are also seen by citizens as corrupt. The good news is that the majority of people are optimistic that they can make a difference in the fight against corruption.