Gaza: ceasefire extended
30 Nov 2023
On 30 November Israel and Hamas struck a last-minute agreement to extend their ceasefire for a seventh day. Both sides agreed to extend the truce, with Hamas releasing more hostages and Israel receiving a list of those to be freed. So far, 97 hostages have been released by Hamas and 180 prisoners by Israel: however, there are reports that israel has been arresting more Palestinians. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/11/28/arrests Washington hoped the truce could be extended further to free more hostages and let more aid reach Gaza. The ceasefire has allowed 220 lorries a day to bring in humanitarian aid to the strip, but two-thirds of its residents are homeless and more than 15,000 have been killed during the Israeli campaign. The USA has urged Israel to specify safe zones for Palestinian civilians if and when its offensive resumes. Meanwhile, soon after the agreement three people have been killed and six injured by Hamas gunmen in Jerusalem: see
COP28: Pope unable to attend
30 Nov 2023
Pope Francis has announced that due to health concerns he will be unable to attend the COP28 climate conference in Dubai, which will run from 30 November to 12 December. The Pope has been an advocate for environmental protection and climate action, and his absence from the conference is seen as a setback to efforts to address climate change on a global scale. The Vatican is investigating whether there is any way he could contribute to COP28 remotely. Representatives of 197 nations will be attending the conference, and among notable participants will be King Charles III, Rishi Sunak, and Indian prime minister Narendra Modi.
President Sultan al-Jaber has denied allegations that the UAE plans to use the COP28 climate summit to negotiate oil and gas deals with other nations, as reported by the BBC on 27 November. Leaked briefing documents indicated the UAE's intention to discuss fossil fuel agreements with fifteen countries during the summit. The documents revealed proposed talking points for various countries, including China, Colombia, Germany, and Egypt, regarding fossil fuel collaboration. Mr Jaber, who is also the CEO of UAE's state oil company, Adnoc, and renewables business, Masdar, dismissed the allegations, calling them false and inaccurate. The controversy raises concerns about the intersection of climate goals and fossil fuel interests. The hope is that COP28 will help limit the long-term global temperature rise to 1.5C, which the UN's climate science body says is crucial to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. But that will require drastic cuts in greenhouse gas emissions - a 43% reduction by 2030 from 2019 levels.
Tajikistan: challenges facing the Church
30 Nov 2023
Tajikistan is a beautiful mountainous country; the Tajik language is related to Iranian. After gaining independence in the early 1990s, the country endured a tribal-based civil war that resulted in significant loss of life. Despite having untapped mineral and hydro-electric potential, the economy has never fully recovered from the conflict, poverty is widespread, and it is Central Asia’s poorest nation. Islamic influence has grown, with the construction of impressive mosques and changes in clothing styles. The Church experienced growth in the 1990s but has since stalled, and Christians represent only 0.1% of the population. Local leadership is emerging, and church leaders collaborate to address cultural issues and establish guidelines. Sadly, many church members and even some leaders have emigrated for work or in hopes of a better life. Nevertheless, we praise God for each Tajik believer. Previously dominated by Russian culture and language, the church is now taking steps towards establishing its own identity.
Sierra Leone: weekend coup attempt foiled
30 Nov 2023
The information minister has declared that attacks on several locations in the capital, Freetown, were in fact a failed coup attempt led mainly by bodyguards of the previous president, Ernest Koroma. On 26 November they attacked a military barracks and a prison, freeing over 200 prisoners, but by the next day calm had been restored by the security forces, with most of the attackers killed or captured. President Bio remains unharmed. Sierra Leone, which is still recovering from a 1991-2002 civil war in which more than 50,000 were killed, has been tense since Bio was re-elected in June. The result was rejected by the main opposition candidate and questioned by international partners including the USA and the EU.
Australia: apology to thalidomide victims
30 Nov 2023
Prime minister Anthony Albanese has issued a national apology to survivors of the thalidomide scandal and their families, marking the government's first acknowledgment of its role in the tragedy. Thalidomide, initially a sedative but widely used as a morning sickness drug in the 1950s, led to severe birth defects in at least 10,000 babies globally. A report in 2019 revealed that 20% of cases could have been prevented with earlier action. Survivors have long sought acknowledgment and compensation, pointing to the examples set by Canada (in 1991) and the UK (in 2010). 140 survivors have registered for a financial support programme which gives a one-off payment of £260,000 each, with subsequent annual payments of between £2,600 and £30,000. Mr Albanese has now reopened the application process for those who might have missed it previously.
Ecuador: new president sworn in
30 Nov 2023
In October we prayed for the presidential election in Ecuador. Now millionaire Daniel Noboa has been sworn in as president, marking a significant shift in the country's political landscape. A businessman with no prior political experience, he surprisingly won the snap election which former president Guillermo Lasso called to avoid possible impeachment. He will serve only 18 months, the remainder of Lasso’s term. Once considered one of the safest countries in the region, Ecuador has seen violence explode in recent years; there was an unprecedented increase in bloodshed, and drug violence has led to some 3,600 murders so far this year. Noboa has said he will target the violence by tackling unemployment, but also implement a state of emergency, suspend some citizen rights such as freedom of movement, and deploy the military to the streets. There is a considerable sense of uncertainty and anticipation surrounding his presidency.
Pray the Word
26 Nov 2023
Introducing - Praying God’s Word
Years ago, I was taught how to pray the Word of God - and it has revolutionized my prayer life. It is the ultimate prayer manual written by God Himself. Scripture is the language of God’s heart! The Bible always makes His will clear to us through the written Word. Anything the Holy Spirit makes known to us will always agree with God’s revealed Word.
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As 2 Timothy 3:16-17 writes, God has always been looking for those to whom he can speak, those who will hear and live. The Word of God isn’t casual, and it isn’t an option; our very lives depend on it! As Jesus declared in the wilderness, “Man does not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds out of his mouth” (Matthew 4:4).
One of the ways that we learn to listen and talk to God is through Praying His Word!
It is about the rediscovery of hearing, delighting in, trembling before, and obeying the Word of God. The Word is meant to abide in us and transform us from the inside out! God’s Word feeds us (Matt. 4:4), washes us (Eph. 5:26-27), sanctifies us (John 17:17), disciplines us (Heb.4:12-13), imparts faith to us (Rom. 10:17), and equips us (2 Tim. 3:16-17).
May we get into the Word until the Word gets into us, both the written Word and the Living Word, the Lord Jesus!
At its core, prayer is the conversational part of the most essential love relationship in our lives! Prayer is intimacy with God, knowing God, and being known by God that leads to the fulfilment of his purposes. His power accomplishes it, which is all for His Glory and our Joy!
One of the practical ways that God invites us to ‘keep company with him’ is through praying Scripture. Hebrews 4:12 states that the Word of God is alive and powerful, or living and active! Along with reading God’s Word and studying God’s Word, we want to meditate on God’s Word – as Psalm 1 says,
“But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers” (Psalm 1:2-3).
Meditation on God’s Word and His Ways, or simply put, Praying God’s Word, is how the Spirit of God writes the Word of God on the hearts of the people of God. Something about meditation allows God’s truth to trickle from our heads to our hearts and through our hearts to our lives!
This booklet is simply a tool to help you spend time with God in his Word! I encourage you to pray the Scriptures out loud, turning truth into personal dialogue with the Lord. My hope is that you will experience more and more of his life, his love, and his power!
For the Supremacy of Christ in all things,
Dr. Jason Hubbard - Director
International Prayer Connect