Hot spots to PRAY for:

Pray for MUSLIMS

Ramadan: 22 August 2009 – 20 September 2009

Muslim Populations: Total 1.48 billion

Asia 800 million, Africa 400 million, Middle East 250 million, Indonesia 207 million, Pakistan 160 million, India 145 million, Egypt 70 million, Turkey 70 million, Europe 25+ million, Americas 5+ million

Prayer Pointers:

• Pray that whole families will come to faith in the Messiah and establish new communities of believers.
• Pray that God will open doors for Christian businessmen in Muslim countries and give them boldness to share the Gospel.
• Ask God to raise up qualified linguists to translate the Bible into the many languages that are still without the Scriptures.
• Pray for the millions who do not know the living God. Even if they have heard much about the God of Abraham through Islamic traditions and the Qur’an, most of them still know very little of the true God by personal experience. They are far from receiving forgiveness and new life through the Messiah.
• Pray for radio production teams and their listeners in Muslim countries. Pray that men and women will hear the radio programs and open their hearts to the message of freedom.
• Pray for the Muslims in South Africa to come to faith in Christ. Pray for Christians to love Muslims and reach out to them in love and compassion.

Hot spots to PRAY for:

BELGIUM

Religion:

Roman Catholic 75%, Protestant or other 25% including Evangelical 1.1%

Answers to prayers:

The slow, but steady growth of the small evangelical witness, and a growing mutual respect between historical Protestants and evangelical networks

Prayer pointers:

Goals for achievement by the year 2015 that need prayer:

• Increase Francophone churches (Project Gabriel) from 415 to 1,417.
• Increase Flemish churches from 253 to 590. Church planting in Belgium is a long and slow process — there is freedom, but it is hard to gain a hearing.
• Belgium Evangelical Mission’s ongoing vision for distributing gospel packets with a personal explanation to everyone in Belgium. By 1999 over 45% had been reached. The successful Project East Flanders in 1996, Liège 1998 and West Flanders in 1999 will be repeated in other provinces.

Specific outreach challenges:

• Belgium, as a nation, is spiritually one of the neediest countries in Europe.
• The provinces with the greatest need — Flemish Brabant and East Flanders, also the Francophone Liège, Namur and Luxembourg.
• Brussels is a strategic city.
• Antwerp has only 40 or so evangelical congregations.
• North Africans (predominantly Moroccan) have increased through legal and illegal immigration

Hot spots to PRAY for:

PAKISTAN

Challenges for Prayer

• Peshawar: in the heart of Taliban area. They attack girls’ schools, music shops, government & police offices. Many wounded and killed. Pray for safety for the local people. Pray for the Taliban – may these cruel men come to faith in Jesus.
• Swat valley: 180 km north or Peshawar. Pakistan’s military stepped up an offensive against the Taliban. 1,5 million people fled the valley, and now stay in tents in refugee camps. Pray that many in these camps.will find new hope in Jesus.
• Pray for the traumatised and displaced to come to faith and find comfort in Christ.

Hot spots to PRAY for:

THE STATE OF BAHRAIN

Challenges for Prayer

• Bahrain is a political & spiritual key for the whole Gulf area. Islam impacts life less comprehensively than in surrounding states. Pray that democratic & religious freedoms might be fully implemented.
• Bahrain has provided a good base for Christian ministry for over a century. Pray that this may continued that there may be fruitful witness from the tactful witness of believers.
• The largest Arab Christian community is here and there are several informal networks among these believers. Pray for them & their witness.
• Amongst the large expatriate community, predominantly from South & East Asia and also the west, are considerable number of active Christians meeting formally & informally. Pray that individuals may have courage & wisdom to share their faith outside their own cultural group.
• Media Ministries:
  • Christian Radio: FEBA Radio broadcasts 14 hours per week from the Seychelles and is developing a simple English service. TWR also broadcasts from Cyprus.
  • Christian Literature: The Christian bookstore in Manama is well visited and has a Gul-wide distribution.