Every day, 157,690 people enter eternity without the hope of Jesus. Please join us for the Week of Prayer for International Missions, December 4–11, 2022, where Southern Baptists pray for IMB missionaries, their ministries and the unreached people and places they serve.
The Kerarish are one segment of the Baggara peoples of Sudan. Numbering approximately 57,000, the Kerarish are primarily herdsman who live a nomadic lifestyle in order to find pasture for their animals. Both men and women work hard to provide for their families by selling milk, milk products, and animals, as well as cultivating and selling seasonal crops. They predominately follow the beliefs of Sunni Islam. The Kerarish speak the Baggari dialect of Arabic, which can be understood by people who speak Sudanese Arabic. Due to their strong beliefs and their nomadic lifestyle, few of the Kerarish have heard the good news and come to faith. Pray for them to hunger to know God and to seek Him. Pray for them to be led to Sudanese Arabic-language broadcasts and Scripture. Pray for Arabic-speaking believers to meet Kerarish individuals and build friendships, enabling them to have the opportunity and respect to share the good news with the Kerarish of Sudan.
In the City of Broken Colors and other cities across Europe, North Africans often live as outsiders, experiencing discrimination and living within pockets of their own people. Europeans typically are suspicious of these immigrants and go about their daily lives without interacting with those from other cultures beyond business transactions or interactions on public transportation. As a result, European believers often do not realize the amazing opportunity for the spread of the gospel that exists within their cities. Give thanks to God for two local congregations in one city in Europe where a North African believer was able to inspire attendees at a conference and share practical tips for engaging immigrants around them. Pray that local believers will develop a heart for the lost, particularly for North Africans, and that they will be faithful to share hope with those they encounter.
Pray for Brazilian workers who are going to serve in Central Asia. They have left Brazil to study English in the United Kingdom for approximately six months before heading on to Central Asia. Pray for their ability to learn English, as they plan on being a part of a multicultural team in the future.
(kwah-luh LUM-pur) - Some believers are hosting a Bible study through the Book of Mark. Ten non-believers from different nations go to the study. Pray that they will consider Christ and come to know Him through this study. Pray for the leaders as they guide the attendees through the material.
Praise the Lord with an IMB couple in Hungary for how God is working in a village near their city! Back in May you prayed for Ruth, a seeker they had met through their partnership work with a Great Commission Christian media group. As Ruth searched online for truth, she responded to a social media ad and asked for a Bible. Over the next few months, she welcomed IMB representatives into her home for weekly Bible study. She also invited several neighbors to join the small group. In September Ruth prayed to give her life to Christ and is now in pre-baptism discussion and Bible study. One of her young daughters is now expressing strong interest in making a commitment to the Lord. Keep lifting up Ruth, her family, and community. Pray that the impact of God's Word will go both deep and wide. May He be glorified in this difficult place as He transforms lives and shines His light of love and hope.
Ruth, a Global Missionary Partner (GMP) serving in West Africa writes: "Our Father is faithful to answer our prayers! He is a promise keeper. Many have been interceding for open doors to reach the unreached people groups (UPGs) here. Now, here we are, prayerwalking in the location where most UPGs from this area live. Thanks for your prayers! Please continue to pray for lost people in this place, and for us as we share the gospel with them!" "Dear Father, thank you for the doors you have opened in this difficult land. Please give the GMPs clarity of mind and message. Help them to understand the culture around them, and help them build connections while they learn the local language. Build the team and help them share a vision and purpose with local believers. May all the nations learn to praise your name! Amen."
Recently, worker Maya Janson, who's learning local sign language, began to pray for confidence when meeting Deaf in West Africa. She shares: "I recognize the need to be engaging more people, yet I still get nervous about signing with new people (especially when languages are intermingled here, and I never know if I'm signing in French). My friend Able had mentioned that he would introduce me to a Deaf woman named May, so I asked him when we could meet. That week, five of us gathered at May's home, and it was such a sweet experience. May and her husband were so warm, welcoming, and patient with me in communicating. We had a great time eating and chatting, and the couple even invited me to spend the weekend at the beach with them. We ended up going the following Saturday, and it was a beneficial time of communicating only in sign and having so much time to practice the language. I talked briefly with May about her beliefs but didn't have a chance to share. Thank God for the opportunity to meet new Deaf friends and spend time together! Please pray for this friendship to continue and to go deeper."
Please lift up two new believers in Christ. Give thanks to God that two Muslim women have decided to follow Jesus! Pray for them to get connected to a local church where they can be discipled, and pray for them to remain faithful.
Pray for couples in the City of Soldiers with brokenness in their marriages to look outside of themselves for help through a relationship with Jesus Christ. Also pray for Christians with brokenness in their marriages. For some Christians in this city, there is a dichotomy between serving Jesus and maintaining a healthy marriage and family. Pray for these Christians to see that attending to their marriage and their children is part of serving Jesus. Ask the Lord to shed light on these areas and that marriages will be healed to the glory of God.
"Pray that our team's effort to reach a new segment of the diaspora population through English clubs and various other activities will bear much fruit. Ask that those who come to the English clubs will have hearts that are ready to hear and respond to the good news."
(KAYP town) - In a city of 5 million people, orphans exist. In Cape Town, South Africa, orphanages help children, but overcrowding and prejudice exist. Refugees hope for help but often don't receive it. Refugee orphans have no voice and are almost nonexistent to the public. Give thanks to God that Southern Baptists are contributing to a Lottie Moon project for orphan care. Through this project, orphans can receive help with food, school supplies, uniforms, tuition, medicine, and other things. The amount allotted for each child is $200 per year. For the last four months of this year, contributors to this project have and will feed eight refugee orphans and give them necessary school supplies. These children now have hope. They are healthier and have energy so they can focus at school and in their homes. By helping the orphans, the families caring for them also experience God's love. Thank you for caring in a tangible way with the love God has put in your heart. Thank you for praying for these orphans and heeding God's prompting by giving to this project.
(bohj-POOR-ee) - Praise the Lord that two families among the Bing, a previously unengaged, unreached people, have repented and believed--the very first known believers among this people group! In June of this year, some believing college students trained believers who live in the Bing area. They share the following report: "Some have said that the Bing are difficult to reach because they are closed off and very superstitious. But praise the Lord with us that there are now two churches; they are pastored by Prakesh and Ankit. Also praise God with us that Pramod, Raman, and Anita are engaging three villages with the good news, and some are believing. Pramod was met with hostility in one of the villages at first, but through new relationships there, he can now share freely. Please pray for the Lord to bless the work of pastors Prakesh and Ankit and sent-ones Pramod, Raman, and Anita. Please also pray that God's kingdom will come in villages that they've entered, and lift up the Bing people!"