(muh-NOWS) - A believer will be attending a mapping training early in November to learn better how to map areas of their city and region of the world. Accurate mapping of the area can help believers in decision making as they plan strategies for church-planting efforts and even placement of believers for outreach. Please pray for this training and for the mapping projects that will come as a result of this training.
As the temperatures start to drop where South Mongolic peoples live in East Asia, it can be easy to become isolated. Gathering as believers is not easy and requires braving difficult circumstances and conditions. Pray that the Father will continue to draw His children to Himself and equip them to encourage one another.
eastasiaprayer@pobox.com(SHE-uh) - Ryan grew up as a Shia Muslim in Iraq. In high school, he and his family left Iraq to start life elsewhere. In that new place, Ryan met Christians who shared the gospel with him. Within a year, Ryan had left Islam and accepted Jesus as his Savior! It was the love that believers had for each other and the way that they lived out the message of the Word that opened his heart. Ryan got incredibly involved in his church and could not imagine life without that deep faith community. However, Ryan's life was turned upside down when he and his family were unable to renew their residential visas and were forced to go back to Iraq. It has been a struggle to fit into the place he once called home. Pray for Ryan to feel God's comfort when he feels alone and isolated. Pray for him to grow in his faith and knowledge of the Lord, as he is so far away from his original faith family. May God use Ryan to lead his entire family to faith in Jesus. Ask the Father to give him a burden to share the good news with Iraqis around him.
(OO-tar pra-DESH) - Please pray for local believers as they enter a season of spiritual darkness. This week and in the coming days, many major religious festivals will take place all around them. Pray that they will not be discouraged, but instead seek out opportunities to share the good news in the midst of heightened idol worship.
(car-NAH-tuh-kuh) - During a two-month training that a partnering organization is hosting, local harvest workers in the Lower Plains have been given one week to teach the students how to make connections and share the gospel, and this includes afternoon practicum times. Please intercede for these harvest workers as they prepare the schedule and the practicums for this time. Pray for the students' hearts to be ready to learn and for their ears to be attentive. Ask that the students will be bold in their practicum time as they go out and share what they have learned in the class. Pray for the hearts of the people in the community whom they encounter, asking that they will be open to hearing the gospel and have a desire to know more about Jesus. "And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also" (2 Timothy 2:2 ESV).
Thank you for praying last month for people in the Middle East. God has answered your prayers. The ongoing conflict has provided many opportunities to share the good news with hurting people. One conversation occurred with a young man who said he had never heard the gospel before. A believer shared Scripture passages about the Messiah and His great love for people. The young man listened and said, "If what you say is true, it would be wonderful news." The young man promised he would read the passages of Scripture given to him and consider for himself what he had been told. Pray these gospel seeds will be watered and someday harvested.
Anissa, a Muslim living in France, was on a new path of seeking fulfillment by pleasing God. Knowing that hospitality is highly valued, she invited a group of Westerners she'd met to her home in connection with the birthday of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad. She prepared an extraordinary meal, and everyone enjoyed lively conversation. She wore conservative Muslim clothing and a "hijab" (head covering), but she shared pictures of her former self with her flowing hair, big sunglasses, and Western clothing. She told how she'd moved from her North African country to Europe to pursue a career and live like a Westerner. After a broken relationship, she felt empty and alone, and realized that she was getting older and wasn't satisfied with her life. Thinking, "Maybe I will find fulfillment with a good relationship with God," she decided to change her life, her dress, and her behavior. One of the Westerners, a believer, shared the Bible's perspective about a reconciled relationship with God through Jesus. Anissa was shaken. Please pray that the Lord will give Anissa a personal revelation of who Jesus is and what He has done so she can know His joy and peace now and live with Him in eternal security.
(EE-sahn) - Isaan people who choose to follow Christ coming from a Buddhist background must be discipled regularly. Basic knowledge of the Bible and a Christian worldview cannot be taken for granted. Shifting their mindset from a works-based religion to a faith-based relationship is crucial. Please pray for new believers in the Isaan area to hunger for the Word and for IMB representatives to be consistent in their commitment to disciple them.
the.ebeyers@gmail.com(ma-COW) - Each week, a group of students gather to study the Book of Romans. Among this group there are some who follow Christ and some who are still on the way to true faith in Jesus. Pray that the Christians will grow in a deeper walk with God, desiring to obey Him. Ask the Lord to work in the hearts of those who are still apart from Christ to be drawn to salvation.
eastasiaprayer@pobox.com(dar es sah-LAHM) - "Pray for our Dar Urban Team members as well as local Baptists as we all seek the Lord for wisdom in working together to share the gospel and plant churches. Please join us in praying for local Baptists who are suffering from persecution. These pastors have been arrested and threatened to be beaten if they meet for worship. Pray for perseverance, wisdom, and strength as they continue to move ahead in kingdom building. Join our team in interceding for their persecutors, asking that they will truly know and receive the light of the gospel."
http://www.imb.org/sub-saharan-africa/ mwera4jesus@yahoo.com(KON-ah-kree) - Schools in Guinea are slowly getting started with the new semester, and universities are usually the last to begin. Workers are excited as they anticipate getting back on campus in November to connect with students through English conversation times. They write: "Pray for us as we begin being back on campus the week of November 4-8. Pray that the doors to the universities will remain open for us as we connect with students there. Pray that we will be sensitive to those seeking to know more about our faith, and ask that we will have opportunities to connect off campus with these seekers. Pray that our Bible discovery classes will be full and that the Lord will change many hearts for His glory."
http://www.imb.org/sub-saharan-africa/