In October, you were asked to pray that the believers in a local church in Istanbul from former Soviet countries would choose to return to their home countries rather than live illegally in the city. Despite other church members advising them to return home, they have not done so, and now two more believers in the local church have been arrested and are being held in detention centers throughout the country. Sadly, the local church is not seeing these believers want to live rightly even after being arrested. Having no way to get the documents necessary to reside legally in Turkey, once arrested, many believers will seek inordinate means to be released from prison so they can continue to live illegally rather than choosing to honor their word and the government's laws and return to their home countries. Pray for the former Soviet believers in prison in Turkey to repent of their sins and choose to live rightly before God and man.

"We celebrated the obedience of seven young people from our house church as they submitted to baptism recently. Many are the only believers in their families. Some believers keep their baptism secret for months, fearing what their family might say. One young woman, Beverly excitedly told her family. Now they are persecuting her. Praise God that she is remaining strong in her commitment to Christ. Pray for Him to give her endurance and encouragement."

The local body of believers in one small community is seeking to put the Word of God in action. Please pray for them as they establish small, evangelistic groups that are designed to be sent out from the church building during normal worship service times in order to proclaim Jesus near the riverbank of the city. There are high concentrations of lostness in that area, so please pray that the church will be bold, kind, clear, and faithful to the Lord and His message of salvation in Jesus. And pray for people to be awakened to life in Christ!

An Islands Team member writes: "I dusted off my 20-year-old juicer to make juice. It had been on the shelf unused and untouched for at least a year. Despite the lack of use, it was still a juicer, so when I wanted juice, it was available. The old juicer strained and hesitated every time I loaded fruit, and a few times, I had to turn it off and then back on to create the process. In the end, I had beautiful juice, and for some reason, I began to identify with the juicer . . . old, slow, and struggling at times, but still useful to the Father. Join me in giving thanks to my loving God who still sees that I am who He created me to be and useful for His service--not too old, too tired, or too broken to teach, train, and tell lost Ugandans about Him. What about you?"

(BUHN-duhl-kand) - Pray according to Luke 10:2 that the Lord will raise up laborers to be sent to the harvest fields of the Bundelkhand region. Pray that those from around the world, as well as local believers in the region, will be burdened for the lostness of the Bundelkhand region and respond obediently to the Lord's calling to go.

Praise God for a recent connection with an SBC pastor who is very interested in collaborating with missionaries in the Southeast region of Korea. There are many young people in this pastor's church who would like to do short-term mission work to assist the missionaries and their local partners' churches with their ministries and projects. Last month the SBC pastor and his wife made a vision trip to the area, met with the missionaries, and discussed the possible ways collaboration could happen. Please pray for God's direction, wisdom, and for a strong partnership so that many unbelievers will hear and believe the gospel in this area as a result.

Binyamin, a true sojourner, comes from a people group that resides in a land that is not their own. He now lives in Europe and is no stranger to living in and acclimating to another culture. Though from an Islamic background, he no longer considers himself to be Muslim. Each week, he attends church and a Bible study with others of a similar background. He enjoys the study and is faithful to read the passages and participate in discussions. They read through the Book of Matthew each week, and Binyamin often understands well who Jesus is and what the gospel means. Please pray for him to continue to grow in understanding and, ultimately, to take the step of faith in following Jesus. The cost of choosing to follow is great for those of his background. Please pray for protection over the work that God is doing in Binyamin's life. Pray for the church members to continue to love him well and invest in him. Praise God for how He is moving!

Those participating in a Deaf college church in a Southeast Asian country are continuing to meet and learn the Word regularly. They hunger for the Word and desire to share it with others. They recently attended a soccer tournament with the sole purpose of sharing the good news with attendees and players. They were able to partner with mature believers from the Northern Church, and together, they shared the good news almost 200 times. A semester student serving among the Deaf walked alongside the college church members, encouraging them to continue growing in spiritual disciplines. He has now returned to the United States but is praying about returning to the field in the future. Ask God to show this student how to proceed, and pray that the student will be obedient. Pray for the college church members to continue hungering for the Word. Lift them up as they attend a retreat to study what the Bible says about love and relationships. Pray for the Northern Church leaders who are pouring into the college students, and ask that the students will deepen their walk with the Lord.

(chi-KUN-duh) - Most of the people in the Luangwa district of Zambia live close to a river that is their source of water. The river is loaded with crocodiles and hippos. The people wear charms to ward off the crocodiles. Every year, there are several people who are taken by the crocodiles as they are getting their daily water. Please pray for safety, and ask that they will rely on God and not on witchcraft for that safety.

A new gym that the affluent frequent has recently opened up in a city. Pray that a local believer, seeing this as part of the harvest field, will intentionally engage the members and guests there with the good news of Jesus. Ask for connections to be readily made, for God to open hearts to hear and receive the message, and for new believers and groups to be established and multiply in the gym, among their families and communities, and beyond.