Anguilla, Caribbean:
Anguilla is a remnant of a bygone era as a little colonial outpost. Pray that this small island and its churches may not be bypassed by the Holy Spirit. Pray that religious traditions might be infused with real spiritual life. For more information visit www.operationworld.org.
Angola, Africa: The Church, despite great growth, has not emerged unscathed from decades of conflict. Much prayer is needed, specifically for: a) Forgiveness and love in action. The Church must be at the forefront of activities aimed to overcome the longstanding tribal loyalties and partisan politics. Such forgiveness must include many who perpetrated crimes against Christians and Christians who compromised under pressure. b) The right relationship between Church and state. Religious freedom is a blessing, but Angola has a reputation for having dangerous syncretistic cults that mix elements of Christianity with animistic tribal religions. The government attempts to encourage the work of established and reputable denominations, while limiting the effects of the cults. c) Christ-like, holy living by followers of the Lord Jesus that commends the gospel to unbelievers and passionately reaches out to their disillusioned, apathetic neighbours – non-practising Christians number in the millions. For more information visit www.operationworld.org.
Andorra, Europe: Materialism holds Andorra in a tight grip. Formerly a smugglers’ refuge, Andorra now attracts well-heeled tourists, financiers and those taking advantage of duty-free goods. Pray that empty materialism would be seen as the ultimately unfulfilling falsehood that it is.For more information visit www.operationworld.org.
American Samoa, Pacific: American Samoa enjoys a higher economic status than Samoa to its west, but suffers the concomitant materialism. Pray that the indigenous people (and their relatives in diaspora) may find their destiny in wholehearted commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ. For more information visit www.operationworld.org.
Algeria, Africa: Algerians in Europe exceed four million; many are there illegally. They are more accessible to the gospel in Europe, but also to Islamic preaching. Pray for the network of agencies and churches seeking to reach them (AWM, WEC, Avant and others). Pray for discipling of individuals and planting of Arabic- and Berber-speaking congregations that can then be channels for the gospel to their homeland. Bible translation and distribution are fraught with obstacles and restrictions. Translation work is proceeding in a few Berber languages and in Algerian Arabic, a language spoken by up to 25 million people; most do not understand Standard Arabic. Pray for rapid completion of these projects and for the transfer of these resources into safer and less conspicuous media. The government ban on importing Bibles is a major obstacle to the discipleship and maturation of the Church; pray that the rapidly growing community of believers might have adequate access to Scripture. For more information visit www.operationworld.org.
Albania, Europe: Evangelism and church planting. There are still many towns and villages without an evangelical presence, and where there is one, signs of second-generation spiritual lapses are already apparent. Pray for the good news to continue to spread. The Albanian Church Planters Mission was formed to prepare evangelists for this express purpose. Pray also that resulting churches and Christians might reflect the Lord Jesus Christ in an Albanian context. For more information visit www.operationworld.org.
Afghanistan, Asia: The upheaval of the last 30 years reduced the country to ruin and destitution. The Soviets (1979-89), the Mujahedeen (1992-96) and the Taliban (1996-2001) all perpetuated different problems and failed to build up the nation. Over one million died and an estimated four million children were orphaned. Though the country still suffers from conflict, progress has been made in those areas where there is peace. The suffering takes many forms; Afghans perceive poverty and lack of security to be the greatest problems. Pray for practical, timely and sustainable solutions to each of these:
Challenges for PrayerYoung people have watched idealistic visions fade to empty slogans and oppressive misrule. They constitute a huge swathe of the population, but have little reason to hope for improvement to their difficult lot. Pray for the ministries of:
a) Fellowship of Christian Unions – FOCUS(IFES) has 50 groups with 5,000 students served by five full-time and one part-time staff. In the midst of societal dysfunction the students continue to declare the gospel and help where they can to serve the practical needs of the people.
b) Scripture Union has had a decisive impact on the educated via its work in secondary schools. They impart life skills to younger students, work with orphans and children at risk and provide HIV/AIDS education. Camp ministry has been especially fruitful. Pray for more Christian teachers to nurture this work in their spare time.
c) African Enterprise impacts about 50,000 people and hundreds of churches per year with its youth-oriented Foxfire ministries. This ministry, going since 1980, has spiritually shaped many of the nation’s top Christian leaders.
Pray for the less-evangelized. Zimbabwe has been extensively evangelized, but areas of need remain:
a) The rural areas, often neglected for church planting and for sending qualified workers. Pray more will be called to this humble but vital task. Pray also for evangelistic outreaches and suitable literature distribution specifically to these areas.
b) The burgeoning cities, swollen with hundreds of thousands of rural migrants looking for non-existant jobs. Squatter settlements are multiplying and crime is on the increase. Outreach to the unemployed is a major challenge.
c) Less-reached peoples. There are some congregations in every indigenous people, but relatively few among the Tonga, Nambya and Dombe of the Hwange-Kariba area in the northwest (where the AoG have made a significant impact), the Kunda in the northeast and the Tswa in the southeast.
d) Muslims. They are a small minority but wield disproportionate influence on the country through foreign aid “with strings”, mosque-building and scholarships in Muslim universities. Most are Yao from Malawi, some are South Asian immigrants and a few are indigenous Shona-speakers. Little Christian outreach has been made to win them and churches are ill-equipped to do so.
Challenges for PrayerZambia is a major destination and thoroughfare for people. Instability in nations surrounding Zambia has sent hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing into Zambia, especially from Zimbabwe of late. Also, Zambia is vulnerable to traffickers of both child labourers and sex workers. Thank God for a recently passed law specifically criminalizing human trafficking; pray for its effective implementation. Pray that Zambia might be the location where many uprooted people find succour and discover the Living God.
The AIDS crisis overwhelms the health services, the economy (as many trained professionals succumb to the disease), the pastoral work of churches (over 100,000 AIDS-related deaths per year) and family life. Pray specifically for:
a) Those working to reduce AIDS. All major denominations have adopted pragmatic policies to combat the spread of the disease and to assist those infected. Many have specific ministries devoted solely to AIDS issues such as Jesus Cares Ministries, Advocates for Change and SU’s Aid for AIDS programmes.
b) Attitudes toward AIDS have changed. A lot of the stigma, superstition and bad information are now replaced with compassion in action. Infection rates have reduced from 20% to 15% in 10 years, with much greater reductions in specific segments of the population.
c) The military, police and copper mine workers have some of the highest rates of infection. These groups tend to frequent sex workers through whom AIDS is passed and who most likely have the highest infection rate of all.
d) Children. Zambia has 710,000 orphans, mostly due to AIDS; nearly 20% of all children are suffering the loss of their parents. Over 90,000 live on the streets. Almost 75% of Zambian households care for a relative orphaned by AIDS.
Yemen, Asia: Yemen has suffered almost unending conflict over the last four decades – three civil wars, conflict with neighboring states, the effects of the Gulf War, Somalia’s collapse into anarchy, the Ethiopian/Eritrean war and tribal skirmishes. Tensions between Shi’a and Sunni Muslims make Yemen ripe for sectarian violence, to the point of insurgencies or even outright civil war. The treasured right of Yemenis to bear arms fuels tribal rivalries, while kidnapping, crime and sabotage are common forms of protest and fundraising. There are between three and four firearms for each person in the country. Pray for a fair and just government that will bring about national unity and peace. For more information visit www.operationworld.org.