Send forth Your light and Your truth!
How often have we proclaimed this word of the Lord over our land – and that God has answered! At the German Prayer Conference in Berlin, from September 1 to 3 , weexperienced the revelation of God’s light and truth in aspecial way! This helped us to recognise the influence of thespirit of the age on our thinking and to be released from it.
True repentance begins with a change in our thoughts(“metanoia” in Greek). The word of God is our guide andhelp: “We demolish arguments and every pretension thatsets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we takecaptive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”(2 Corinthians 10:5).
Pray: Let us continue to pray in faith for our land: “Send forth your light and your truth, let them guideme, let them bring me to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell.” (Psalm 43:3). -RS
Universities and centres of further education
In the coming months after the prayer conference we wantto concentrate on how we can make a change in our way ofthinking in our society. The Holy Spirit wants to bring abouttransformation in our society and culture. God wants topermeate our education system to break the power ofungodly ideologies and thought structures. Our thinking isalways subject to the influence of the “spirit of the age”.
Knowledge is never neutral and unbiased, but formedaccording to prevailing and generally accepted beliefs.Nowhere are the thoughts and actions within eachgeneration so strongly moulded and influenced as withinour universities and other centres of further education.
Many of the 2.8 million students today will one day be ourleaders and will in many ways influence all areas of sociallife: justice, business, philosophy, education, theology,literature and politics. For too long the thinking of the ’68movement has been influencing all of these areas. The Spiritof God wants to permeate the centres of thoughtformationin our land once again. In past centuries God has inspiredmany in our universities to take his kingdom into the world.
God is the source of ideas and solutions to all questions inlife. He has all the help and answers that our land sourgently needs. But we also need creative thinkers with aservant’s heart who together with the Holy Spirit candevelop innovative ideas and influence thought withinGermany for the good of our land. God is the one who givespeople the gifts, talents and grace to be a blessing to theworld. Germany has often been known as the “land of poetsand thinkers” and is very open to new ways and ideas.
May the Holy Spirit come into our universities and centresof education to renew our way of thinking and bring forthnew life in our land.
Pray:For a transformation in the ways of thinking in oursociety in a move to draw us closer to God.(2 Corinthians 10:4-5)
Pray: For a movement of the Holy Spirit in our universitiesand other centres of thought formation. (Acts 4:29-31)
Pray: That creative thinkers will be inspired by the Holy Spiritto find answers and solutions for the needs of our land.(Daniel 1:7,20; Proverbs 3:5-6)-AS
Formation of a new federal government
The German Federal Parliament was elected four years agoon September 22 , 2013, but the election of the federalchancellor did not take place until December 19 , 2013.There is no deadline for this election in the Germanconstitution. Protracted considerations as to which partiesshould form a coalition and the difficulties in thenegotiations towards a coalition agreement delayed theformation of a new government. This can definitely happenagain if one believes the opinion polls. As this prayer letterwas being written, the result of the new elections onSeptember 24 was not yet known. Angela Merkel recentlystated regarding the election: “Until Sunday evening I canstill do something, then I am constrained to remain passive
Afterwards we just have to wait and see. It is like waiting for your school report card.” But what happens next? Many questions must be answered in Berlin: which parties areable to form a coalition? What positions (ministers, state secretaries...) does each party get? Who are standing for these positions, which political wings within the parties will be involved, which federal state interests must be considered? How many women should be included? Who will be vice-chancellor? All these decisions will determinethe direction of our country for the next four years.
Pray:That God lifts up and brings down people during theprocess of forming a coalition and the new Germanfederal government. (Luke 1:51-52)
Pray: That trustworthy, visionary and God-fearingparliamentarians will fill the important positions ingovernment (in the foreign ministry, for example).(Proverbs 8:15-17)
Pray: For the coalition agreement; that the needs of ourpeople and the role of our country with regard toEurope, Israel and the world will be Spirit-led andguide us into the future to the praise of God’s Name.(Romans 15:8-12) -JB
Family-related policies
Family-related policies in Germany have been subject tofundamental changes for some years as the meaning and role of marriage, family and parenthood have beenredefined without regard to traditional Biblical values.
Marriage has lost its exclusive status as a covenant betweena man and a woman by the introduction of “marriage forall”. The term “family” has already for a long time not beenregarded as exclusively reserved for “a father, a mother andtheir child(ren)” in accordance with God’s order in creation.
Parenthood was also redefined by the decision of theconstitutional court (2013) to the effect that legalparenthood and fatherhood can also exist without abiological or traditional family relationship to the child. Atthe same time the state took over more and more duties toeducate and raise children disregarding traditional familyresponsibilities.
Under new buzz-words and catch phrases such as “marriageand career compatibility”, “partnership-life” (replacing“family-life”), “well-being and equal-opportunities forchildren”, etc., the number of children under 3 years of agein some form of state care country-wide rose from 14% in2006 to 33% in 2015, and the number of mothers of 2 to 3year olds in a gainful occupation rose from 42% to 58% inthe same period. The place of the family in the traditionalBiblical sense as the very original core element of oursociety has in the past years been eroded step by step anddeprived of any significance. Let us pray that we will see amajor change in family-oriented policies as the next federalgovernment in Germany is built, with completely newappointments in the ministry for families, women, seniorsand young people!
Pray:For God-fearing personnel to be appointed in the newministry for families. (Psalm 111:10)
Pray: For a complete turn-around in the family-related policies in our land. (2 Chronicles 7:14)
Pray: That for the sake of their children mothers will not want to work and will receive support from the state. (Psalm 127:3)-TF
Anew reformation
The ten year programme of events within the Lutheran Church which started in September 2008 (“Luther-Dekade”in German) and the final year of commemoration of theReformation come to an end on October 31 , 2017.
Countless events, exhibitions and writings will have beendedicated to this anniversary, half of the city of Wittenbergrenovated, and Luther will have been disputed, pulledapart, held in somewhat high esteem and celebrated. Bythe end the numbers of visitors at church conferences andworld exhibitions will remain well under expectations andthe positive outcome that was anxiously awaited will feelmore like a depressive hangover. What will remain from theanniversary of the Reformation?
As the official activity in the past years comes to an end, thefaith for a new reformation has grown. Under the title “NewReformation” thousands of young Christians met in June inPrague and prayed in expectation for a reformation thatdoes not divide us but rather unites us in Jesus Christ andbrings millions back to Him. We believe that we stand onthe threshold of a new reformation that will once againbind the church to the Word of God, as first happened 500years ago, and from there bring a change in our society andthroughout Europe. And that the cloud of witnesses fromthe reformers and generations before us will stand with usbefore the throne of God and pray that the spiritualinheritance of the church in Germany will now be restored.
Pray: That on this 500 anniversary the doors will be openedfor a new reformation in Germany. (Psalm 24)
Pray: Lord, take back the lordship over your church of the Reformation! (Matthew 16:16-19)
Pray: For visible unity between the churches, for healing and reconciliation. (John 17:20-23) -KH
The German-Israeli Parliamentary Group
The basic function of parliamentary groups in the GermanFederal Parliament is to maintain mutual contacts withother national parliaments in the world. In the newlegislature period, the German-Israeli Parliamentary Group,as all the groups, will be rebuilt from the newly electedmembers of parliament. In the last legislature period therewere about 50 members in the group, representing allparties within the parliament. Membership is voluntary andthe parliamentarians are united by their interest in Israel.
They deal with general aspects of German-Israeli relations,work to provide clarification on Israeli issues to parliamentand the media, and are important contacts for the Jewishcommunity in Germany. As a counterpart in the IsraeliKnesset there is an Israeli-German Friendship Group ofIsraeli parliamentarians.
The work of the German-Israeli Parliamentary Group hasparticularly caught the attention of the general public, notleast because of the dedication of the chairman Volker Beckof the Greens Party, who will no longer sit in the newGerman parliament. Let us now pray for a Spirit-ledcomposition of parliamentarians in the next German-IsraeliParliamentary Group.
Pray:Thanks for the friendly connections between theGerman and Israeli parliaments. (Psalm 133:1)
Pray: That the Spirit of God will call dedicated people intothis German-Israeli Parliamentary Group and that theywill be a true voice for German-Israeli friendship.
Pray: For the new chairman to be influential and dedicated. (Psalm 119:30) -RS
Keep praying: Relationship between Germany and Turkey
The relationship between Germany and Turkey gets worse day by day. Increasingly German citizens are findingthemselves under interrogation, arrest and detention. Thearbitrary arrests have led to travel warnings. The Germangovernment now takes the position in the European Union that it would be right and proper to break off membershipnegotiations with Turkey. This however must be a majoritydecision. At this time there is no majority. The negativeinfluence of the Turkish Islamic Institute for Religion whichis controlled from Turkey comes more and more into thepicture. See also: “The Turkish Islamic Institute for Religion (Ditib)” in the prayer letter from November 2016.
Pray:For the re-evaluation of the relationship betweenGermany and Turkey in accordance with God’s plans and purposes. (Proverbs 2:6) -RS
Dates for your diary
01.10 International Day of Prayer for the Peace ofJerusalem (Robert Stearns - Eagles Wings).
31.10 Reformation Day in Germany.
God’s blessings from Rosemarie Stresemann and Team
"Who is like You, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like You, majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, doing wonders?" Exodus 15:11
We often hear of the encouraging revivals of the past, when God did amazing things way back then, in the Great Awakenings in USA, the Welsh revival, the Korean revival, etc.
However, God is still at work today as well doing great and mighty things around the globe, and it is encouraging and inspiring to hear about what He is doing here and now.
The following is a PrayTV Studio production in which Gregg Healey, a prayer leader in Connecticut, interviews Pastor Khaled Ghobrial of the Arabic Baptist Church in Boston. Pastor Ghobrial shares how God has used and is still using the united prayers of the church in Egypt to change the course of that nation since 2011. The link below is a playlist with five segments that constitute the entire interview:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLoJ7NaibJ99D3PhnRnmvZYGGg9wDVmzoF
Background:
* Egypt is a country of 90 million people with 85% Muslim and only 15% Christian. Christianity came to Egypt in 42 A.D. through the Apostle Mark who wrote the Gospel by that name. The original inhabitants of Egypt are the Coptic people (equivalent to the Native Americans in USA, or the Maori people in New Zealand).
* The Arabs invaded Egypt in 639 AD and brought Islam. Since then, the church in Egypt has been under various degrees of persecution throughout history. This drove the Church to its knees in prayer. As you know, biblically and historically, pressure and persecution causes the Church to thrive, while prosperity and times of ease often cause the Church to slumber; thus the pressure on the church in Egypt fuelled her prayers.
In this video:
* In the 1980's a prayer movement started and had five stages of growth. The stages included:
- The Church in Egypt learning from the prayer movement in Korea.
- The charismatic movement influence and a new understanding of the the centrality of prayer and intercession in revival.
- A crisis that fuelled the prayer movement.
- Learning from the prayer movement in Uganda.
- Growing in unity across denominations and generations on a national level, and having a united vision for revival and a great harvest in Egypt. The church cried fervently, "Lord, make your name known in our land!".
* The Church in Egypt continued to suffer persecution under former President Mubarak.
* The Church continued to pray fervently, in unity, that the Lord would expose and displace the darkness and shine the light of Christ.
* In 2011, Egypt had a revolution that toppled President Mubarak. In its essence, it was like the French Revolution where the masses revolted against a corrupt regime. God had answered the prayers of the Church and exposed darkness!
* The Church continued to pray fervently and on 11/11/11, a united, multi-Church prayer meeting took place in Cairo with 75,000 in attendance. It was a 12 hour prayer meeting for Christ to be known and magnified in that land!
* In 2012, the revolution was hijacked by the Muslim Brotherhood, and a Muslim Brotherhood President named Morsi, came to power. The Muslim Brotherhood vowed to remain in power for decades if not centuries.
* The Church was disappointed and confused as to why after all these years of prayer for revival, God allowed the Muslim Brotherhood to take power.
* Despite the disappointment, the Church in Egypt continued to pray in unity, fervently crying out, "Lord, expose darkness, come with a mighty move of your Spirit in our land!"
* Only one year later, 33 million mostly Muslim Egyptians took to the streets demanding the ousting of President Morsi. Some world newspapers, including the Huffington Post, called it, "The largest demonstration in the history of mankind." For 33 million Muslims in a strongly Islamic country to reject Islamic rule is historical and unprecedented. The US equivalent of that would be millions of Americans rejecting secular humanism, and realizing that it does not make sense.
* The Lord has once again heard the united prayers of His Church in Egypt and exposed the darkness in the land!
* In addition to the millions of Muslims coming to Christ, other amazing changes are happening in Egypt.
* The Egyptian constitution was re-written to provide Christians more rights and protection.
* Muslims recognized and expressed that the toppling of the Muslim Brotherhood government was the result of the prayers of the Church. They even asked the Church to continue to pray!
* In October 2015, the Egyptian Ministry of Education banned the teaching of Islam in Egyptian public schools, and substituted it with a subject called Virtue and Ethics. The US equivalent of that is for the US Department of Education to ban the teaching of evolution and stop promoting secular humanism!
* On January 6, 2016, the current president of Egypt was the first Muslim president in the history of the country to visit the Coptic Church Headquarters. He apologized to Christians publicly on live television for their persecution, bombed and burnt church buildings, and he vowed to advocate for them and protect them. He is the best president Egypt has had since its independence in 1952. All this happened in direct response to the united prayers of the Church there!
* Lessons from the prayer movement in Egypt:
- It takes time and persistence in prayer.
- It takes individuals taking ownership and responding to united prayer. It is not someone else's problem.
- Kingdom mentality, relational unity, and united prayer is key: focusing on what unites us, not what divides us.
This is what happens when Church leaders respond to God and walk in unity, consecration, and prayer!
What would happen if we all walked in unity and together mobilized the body of Christ in our region towards a united prayer movement, with a vision to see the glory of God in our midst and the subsequent outbreak of revival, where thousands of people reject secular humanism and embrace Christ?
As you know, the Scriptures contrasts for us people and generations who understood their times and responded to what God wanted them to do, and those who did not. It describes the "Sons of Issachar" in 1 Chron 12:32 as having "Understood their times, and knew what Israel ought to do." In contrast, Jesus wept over Jerusalem, because "They did not understand the times of their visitation" Luke 19:42.
We want to be people who understand our times and what God is inviting us to, which is nothing short of changing the spiritual atmosphere in our region in the same way that the Church in Egypt (and elsewhere) changed the spiritual atmosphere in their own country.
By PrayTV Studio
Pray for the Egyptian Christians to go from strength to strength and for similar movements of prayer to arise in other challenging areas of the world and especially in the Muslim-majority nations.
"Rescue those being led away to death"*
We are bringing you this article which was originally to highlight North Korean Refugees Day, which has past, but it brings some informative information to guide our ongoing prayers for this troubled nation…
We cannot allow the latest provocations of the Kim Jong Un regime to divert us from the root cause of this problem: the atrocious violations of human rights being committed by this Kim regime and abetted by Xi Jinping.
Eighty percent of North Korean escapees carry poison so they can kill themselves if they are arrested in China. They would rather die than be repatriated to North Korea. China’s “repatriation policy is a death sentence for North Koreans”.**
Why Should We Care? The situation for North Korean refugees is worse than ever before. There is nothing that Kim Jong Un fears more than the PEOPLE of North Korea who are the ones who have educated us about the horrible suffering in the DPRK. Kim will do everything in his power to prevent their escape and China’s communist government will comply with his wishes despite China’s international treaty obligations. Just recently, a family of five committed suicide rather than face repatriation to North Korea In this case, a senior member of the North Korea’s Worker’s Party with his wife, son and two daughters begged the Chinese security forces not to force them back to North Korea. The World Tribune reported: the Chinese police instead followed an order from Beijing to escort them with heavily armed security guards thousands of miles away to the northeastern province of Liaoning which borders North Korea. Fearing certain torture and imprisonment and possible execution, the family committed suicide by taking poison.
The defectors have repeatedly told us about the close cooperation between the Chinese and the North Korea security forces.
What the Chinese authorities are doing is inhumane, barbaric and illegal. It is a violation of international law as China is a signatory to the refugee convention which it signed in September of 1982 (The People’s Republic of China signed the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol on September 24, 1982.)
Consider that the Chinese government refuses to allow the UN High Commissioner for Refugees any access to these refugees but gives free reign to the DPRK’s Ministry of State Security agents to hunt down refugees and to murder those who try to help them. Even Chinese citizens have been jailed and murdered for helping North Korean refugees.
Will you take a stand for these men, women and children whose only crime was to try to live? We will provide you anything you need to take part: a sample letter of petition, posters, videos, prayer points, so you can take part. If action is already planned in your city, we will connect you with your city coordinator.
Here’s how you can participate – two possible ways.
Be a City Coordinator: If you live in a city with a Chinese consulate, the role of the city coordinator is very simple: deliver a letter of petition on Friday, September 22nd to the Chinese embassy or consulate calling on the PRC to stop repatriating North Korean refugees. You can plan any additional activity you wish. For example, here in Washington, D.C. the North Korea Freedom Coalition will also hold a demonstration and a candlelight vigil, while in Seoul, South Korea, the Lawyers for Human Rights and unification of Korea are planning a protest, while in Pretoria, South Africa, Ata Gallous is hosting a conference to raise awareness in South Africa about North Korea’s suffering.
Be a Solidarity City Coordinator: Solidarity city coordinators are in cities with no Chinese consulate but who wish to take action for North Korean refugees. You could host a film screening, a prayer vigil, collect signatures, host any event to raise awareness and raise funds for organizations that rescue North Korean refugees. For example, in Ithaca, New York, debuNK is hosting an event to educate students at Cornell about the plight of North Korean refugees, while in Traverse City, Michigan, Sally Jo Messersmith is gathering with friends to pray for North Korea at the Korean War memorial there.
Last year 24 cities worldwide took part in Save North Korean Refugees Day from Pretoria, South Africa to San Francisco, California, from Seoul, South Korea, to Paris, France. For inspiration, you can see the full report of last year’s Save North Korea Refugees Day on our website at www.nkfreedom.org. If you are interested in being a part of Save North Korean Refugees Day, please reply to this email. If you would like to support these efforts websites are listed below.
We need your voice to be heard!
ACTA NON VERBA,
*Proverbs 24: 11
**testimony of North Korean defectors during North Korea Freedom Week 2017
Suzanne Scholte - Seoul Peace Prize Laureate
President, Defense Forum Foundation
Chair, North Korea Freedom Coalition
www.defenseforumfoundation.org |www.nkfreedom.org
Please be in prayer for the plight of the North Korean people who have suffered so much under the brutal dictatorship of the Kim family for many decades. Pray for China to change its attitude to North Korean defectors so that they can be welcomed and helped across the border in China rather than be sent back to almost certain death.
The Pavilion, Jerusalem, Israel
The Holy Convocation in Jerusalem to Welcome the King of Glory!
Shalom from Jerusalem, the City of the Great King!
Two thousand years ago our Lord and Messiah, Yeshua, commanded his disciples to take the Gospel from Jerusalem to Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8; Matthew 28:18-20). Six hundred years before this, the prophet Isaiah saw that the glory of God would reach even to the islands from the rising of the sun (east), and also to the “ends of the earth” (Isaiah 24:15, 41:5, 42:10).
In our generation, these prophecies of the Great Commission are being fulfilled. The Gospel has reached to the distant islands of the Pacific, exactly on the other side of globe from Jerusalem. And now, peoples from every tribe, tongue and nation, are desiring to bring the Good News and the Glory back to Jerusalem - all in preparation for His glorious return!
We are a group of Israeli, Messianic leaders who have come together to “Welcome the King of Glory.” King David was the first to welcome the King of Glory when he brought the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem. He did this both as an individual worshiper, but also on behalf of his people, Israel.
For many reasons, we believe that this year of 2017 is prophetically significant. Together with a remnant of believers from many tribes, tongues and nations, we desire to welcome the King of Glory into Jerusalem once more. We believe we are on the cusp of a new season of His glory residing in His Body worldwide - according to Isaiah 60. We also believe that this will mark a new season of God’s presence among His people in Israel, and the beginning of a season of the fulfilment of many End Times’ events. (We are not necessarily declaring this season as the time of His Second Coming!)
We want to invite you, your family, your tribes and nations, to come up to Jerusalem for this special gathering during Sukkot 2017. The Lord is about to arise over Jerusalem to mark the beginning of the Day of the Lord and the End Times.
Arise and shine for your light has come and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you! For behold the darkness shall cover the earth and great darkness shall cover the peoples. But the LORD will arise with His glory upon you, the Gentiles and their kings shall come to your light (Isaiah 60:1-3).
Let us gather in Jerusalem, to welcome the King of Glory, who is strong and mighty! Lift up your heads, O you gates…and the King of Glory shall come in! (Psalm 24)
The “Welcome the King of Glory” (WTKOG) gathering will take place at the Pavilion from October 9-13. You can find details at www.wtkog.com
We look forward to seeing you in Jerusalem, in the Name of our Messiah Yeshua!
Avi Mizrachi Israel Coordinator
Pray that this not be just another conference. Instead, like the original Day of Pentecost, may the King of Glory visit Jerusalem in a unique and mighty way and may those Messianic Jews and Gentiles taking part in this event be endued with power from on high for the mission He has for them at this time in history.
Breaking News: The sister we asked IPC Connections readers to pray for that was kidnapped on May, 20th 2017 was released!
Praise be to God and thank you for your prayers.
The original report is here: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-41265834
A Finnish aid worker kidnapped in Afghanistan in May has been freed, Finland's foreign ministry says.
The unnamed woman was working for a Swedish group, Operation Mercy, in the capital Kabul, when gunmen attacked the guesthouse she was staying in.
A German colleague and an Afghan guard were killed in the attack.
Finland's foreign ministry said the woman was "safe" but gave no further details of her release, asking people to respect her privacy.
"The well-being of our colleague is being assessed at this time," it said in a brief statement.
No group has said it carried out the guesthouse attack.
Kidnappings, sometimes for ransom, are a serious problem in conflict-hit Afghanistan and aid workers are often targeted.
100 babies will be murdered in the time it takes us to read this article.
We're just hours from a major U.N. deadline to defend unborn babies.
It's estimated that now more than 28 million defenseless babies have been needlessly slaughtered worldwide by abortion - over a million by Planned Parenthood alone.
It's horrendous. It's sickening. If we don't act, more babies will die.
Even worse, the U.N. is poised to rewrite the international legal definition of the "right to life" to become the right to abortion.
For decades we've been defending life worldwide. We're aggressively engaged in two major pro-life cases at the U.S. Supreme Court - one could save lives; the other could devastate Big Abortion.
Today, we have a critical opportunity to defend babies globally. In just moments, we are making an urgent oral intervention at the U.N. defending the defenseless. And in just weeks, we're making a massive U.N. legal filing…
Following the horrific violations of human rights that occurred during World War II, much of the world recognized the importance of establishing laws to protect the inherent right to life of all persons. As such, Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) states, “Every human being has the inherent the right to life. This right shall be protected by law.” Yet the U.N. Human Rights Committee is rewriting the definition of the “right to life” to mean the right to an abortion: the right to kill innocent children.
The ICCPR is a treaty that was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1966 and went into force in 1976. The ICCPR is part of the International Bill of Human Rights and enumerates the right to life, freedom of religion, and freedom of speech. It has been ratified by 169 States.
The U.N. Human Rights Committee is attempting revise its General Comment on Article 6 to now include support for abortions and even assisted suicide. The draft forbids States from introducing “burdensome requirements on women seeking to undergo abortion,” and provides that States “must provide safe access to abortion.”
Babies are being slaughtered worldwide at a horrific pace, and it is estimated that 27 million babies have been aborted across the world already this year. This revision by the U.N. Humans Rights Committee will only further advance the slaughter of innocent babies across the world.
It is not only the unborn that are at risk, but also the elderly and sick. In the draft, they also include protections for assisted suicide: “State parties [may allow] [should not prevent] medical professionals to provide medical treatment of the medical means in order to facilitate the termination of life of [catastrophically] afflicted adults, such as the mortally wounded or terminally ill, who experience severe physical or mental pain and suffering and wish to die with dignity.”
This is just the latest move in the attack against the sanctity of life. Recently, we have witnessed Iceland embrace the practice of eugenics in order to “cure” Down Syndrome through abortion. In England, doctors decided to take Baby Charlie off of life support and leave him to die even when there were other options.
Every life is precious. Every baby deserves to live. Now we have an opportunity – and a responsibility – to act.
The ACLJ, along with our international affiliates, have been asked to submit critical legal filings at the U.N. to defend the lives of unborn babies. This is the most critical U.N. filing for life we’ve ever made.
American Center for Law and Justice website www.aclj.org
Jay Sekulow - ACLJ Chief Counsel
Pray for the ACLJ and other pro-life organizations to be effective and united in theiradvocacy with those in political power to overturn rampant abortion around the world. These are God’s beloved kids that the “liar and murderer from the beginning” wants to destroy so they do not fulfil their God-given destiny.
“May your deeds be shown to your servants, your splendour to their children. May the favour of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us — yes, establish the work of our hands.” — Psalm 90:16–17.
Bethany Children's Trust's training resource, entitled “the Heart of the Matter”, for pastors and community leaders, has now been piloted in Lomé, Togo. In total 23 attended the workshop, none of whom had engaged openly with this issue before. All have been encouraged and challenged by the training.
Testimony
“It was a wonderful day. The participants are very proactive in the group work and sketches; they are asking questions and humble.” — local trainer.
“Alleluia, thank you for your quality training, your life and your fire that we have received.” — local community leader.
Thank God
Praise God for Gad and Liz Numadi of MECI, Togo, that champions the cause of these children who are accused and abused. Thank God for their vision, passion, and initiative to bring people together to tackle this issue.
Thank God for all who attended this workshop in Lomé, including some civic leaders as well as pastors from the churches.
Please Pray
Ask God to stir all these local pastors and leaders to be change–makers in their community, using their influence to persuade and empower others, and never to become weary or fearful of tackling the issue of witchcraft related child abuse.
Pray that the increased awareness of the harm that these accusations cause will change perceptions in Togolese society, and provoke an active response to protect the most vulnerable.
May the favour of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us. — Psalm 90:17
Susie Howe - Director
The Bethany Children's Trust
http://www.bethanychildrenstrust.org.uk
We are based out of Atlanta, and have a mission to equip families to pray together in the home. Most of our ministry to date has been in Latin America and the Middle East. We are beginning to make stronger connections in the USA, and are hoping to forge relationships with others to see the Lord raise up children who believe it's normal to have an ongoing conversation with the Lord through prayer each and every day.
Our next large initiative is a partnership with the India Gospel League in 2018. We will be training 250 leaders within their network who oversee 400,000 children. We would certainly like prayer coverage for these children, leaders, and all the families represented!
Here is a video that explains a little more about SureFire Prayer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=3&v=FDatx_K3ha0
Paige M. Kolb - President, SureFire Prayer International
www.SureFirePrayer.org | "Healthy Families Make for Healthy Churches"