Prayer Calendar June 2008

"Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost" Isaiah 55:1

BRAZIL - Lynne McLeavy, “I am really looking forward to going back to Brazil.  We will be running a camp for 150 children in July, before then there are lots of preparations that need to be done.”   

Maureen Sharratt, “Our consultant, Múcio Morais is returning to the project in June. Please pray for his time with us. There are still difficult decisions to be made and we need to review the financial situation regarding new Brasilian money. It is encouraging that we are beginning to receive regular amounts each month and we are sure that God will open more opportunities for us through Múcio. Will you please also pray for me as Kelly returns to Canada for 6 months. We have become very good friends and I am going to miss her a lot.”

PAPUA NEW GUINEA - Chris and Emma McIlroy, “On 3rd June we will return home to Northern Ireland which finishes our two year term in Papua. Please pray for us as we travel home and settle back into things in Northern Ireland. Also pray for the staffing needs at Hillcrest International School next year - they currently need two more teachers, a computer network co-ordinator and a financial administrator. Thank you for your prayers during our time here.”

PERU - David and Bertha Barnes, "Please pray for Esteban as he adjusts to living in the UK without his parents and that his spiritual life will continue to deepen despite not being able to attend his home church and with no Christian family members to support his faith. Please pray for Bertha as she misses Esteban and for strength for David as he keeps up a busy schedule at IBBI"         

PAPUA NEW GUINEA - Rosie Crowter, June 6th and 7th will be a ‘Fear of the spirits’ retreat for the second year students at CWH. If they are set free, then they have the potential to impact many other’s lives as they deal with sick people and their fear of sorcery day by day. Praise God that one of the final year students was set free from fear through the teaching of these retreats. She has really blossomed in her faith since then, which is a joy to see. May this happen for many more this time!

UK COUNCIL - The Council meet today and tomorrow at Hebron Hall for their annual Council Conference. We pray for safe travel and also that the Council would be conscious of God’s presence and the leading of his Spirit in all the discussions.

PAPUA NEW GUINEA - Paul and Rachel Donovan, “Paul's first year at WEST is officially complete but he hopes to use the summer break for further reading and involvement in church and mission.  Please pray for the Lord's leading into the right opportunities that we will be better equipped to serve well.  Thank you.”

PORTUGAL - Viriato and Janet Dos Santos Martins, “With both of us now in the UK (and our children) we would ask your prayers for our continued adjustment.  Also for our present and future situation, that the Lord will guide us in all things and direct us re: His Will for our future.  Please continue to pray for the groups in Vila Real and Vila Grande and the new leaders.”

DR CONGO/UK - Maizie Smyth, “a) The planned General Assembly for May has now been postponed until July.  This is to enable the delegates to ask their church communities to look for the extra finance needed for the increased travel costs. Please continue to pray that it will be possible to have this assembly as many difficult and delicate matters need to be settled.  b) Pray for students in our Bible and Secondary schools facing final exams during the next months.”

UK - Kevin and Susan, “The three church outreaches we helped in went very well. One highlight was an excellent conversation with a Libyan man who began to ask genuine questions as time went on. Pray that he would make contact in order to discuss things further. A  Somali woman, originally from a Muslim background had taken a tract and  then returned the following day and said that it made sense and she needed to talk things through. She appears to have deep problems.  Pray for the follow up.  A man also shared that he had lost his faith but after a conversation, he said that he felt that the Lord was speaking to him and that he needed to come back.  We prayed together, and he is going to contact the pastor.  A Pakistani man, who comes to our studies, has succeeded in obtaining a visa to bring his wife and son to the UK.  We are hoping that she will now come with him.  Pray that her arrival would not change his positive attitude to the Gospel, but rather lead to her and their son's salvation.”

BRAZIL - Andrew and Jenny Love, "Please could you pray for the inauguration services of the new church building in Sao Pedro 28th & 29th June, God-willing. Praise the Lord with us for the completion of the first phase of the project. Pray for the next phase which is the building of a church manse within the church grounds. There is a real need to have some-one living on site as the area is notorious for drugs and robbery (we already find youngsters taking drugs on our premises). Pray too for the Lily of the Valley church who are providing workers for the project. Pray that God would strengthen His people for this new venture, and encourage each member. Pray for our Alvaro who is completing seminary, and for Josue who has just started. Thank you."

HUNGARY - Tamás and Berta Burján, "Please, pray for Berta's final exam on the 9th with which she finishes four years of training.  We are thankful for the interest shown in the English Summer Camp and would value your prayers for three particular things: (1) for the numbers, so that people would continue to sign up for the English week, (2) for a license to be issued soon that grants us permission to use the school premises and especially because the lady in charge at the office (local health and safety board) which issues this license can sometimes be difficult, (3) for the Team that is preparing to come over in July.  At the end of the month Berta and I would like to get away for a weekend break at a nice resort in Hungary.  There will be a major Year of the Bible event: a theological symposium between the 23rd and 26th. I will also be preaching at a special service on the 15th.  God bless you all!"

SPAIN -  Jonathan and Susan Sanlon, "We praise the Lord for the way in which Abbie has settled so well into school in the UK and how she is catching up on the rest of the class, thank you too for your prayers. Pray for much needed refreshment during our Home Assignment and that the Lord will guide us very clearly as to where we should serve him next.”

IVORY COAST/UK - William and Rosalind Brown, “William will be in Ivory Coast from 10th - 25th June to receive another container from Every Home Crusade containing French Bibles, Gospels of John, books from PTI (Pastor Training International) and Children's Bible Lessons from Immanuel Studios in DVD format   Please pray that this 'ammunition' will get released from customs quickly and for all the logistics of having it distributed.  Remember Rosalind also completing a TEFL course in preparation for the Hungary Summer Team, 5th - 12th July and for 3 days of children's outreach in our local primary school, 23rd - 25th June.”

UK - Peter and Carolyn, "Many thanks for all the thoughts and prayers following the death of Carolyn's mum. Her dad is living with us for some of the time but we are unsure how long he will be with us in the long term. Please pray about this and please pray for him. We are getting back into normal work and Carolyn would appreciate prayer for school which is very busy at the moment. Peter has a lot of contacts - please pray for A1, A2 and C especially. Please pray too for wisdom as we think about the future shape of the mission here."

[The MICEB conference starts today (and runs until June 13th) in Belém, Brazil and we pray for the whole conference and especially all the UFM missionaries that are attending and will meet as a team. Peter and John Mark will also be at the conference.]

IRELAND - James and Julia McMaster, "Things are starting to heat up concerning the possibility of a Church building for Westport. Up until now this looked completely impossible but it now appears only humanly impossible...  All we need is a Christian businessman who could buy the building that we are looking at with a view to using most of it for commercial investment. In this way we could still have enough space and money for a church building. Much prayer is needed!"

INDIA - Steve and Rhonda Morris, “Pray that our time at home in Britain will be refreshing this summer. Pray for a date for Leah to have her tonsils extracted when home. Amy- Ruth's last exam is 17 June. Thank you for your prayers for her.  We fly home 20 June and return to India 7 August.”

BRAZIL - Shirley Hough  “Praise God for a great time of refreshment and renewing here in the UK and pray now for me as I say my goodbyes again as I return to Brazil. Pray it will not be too unsettling. Please also pray for Vivian in Brazil, who has returned to the streets after nearly 3yrs off the streets. Her partner recently died and this has greatly affected her. Pray she will turn to God rather than the streets to help her in this crisis. She has left her three young children and 12yr old son, pray for them in the midst of this too.”

FRANCE - Emmanuel and Maria Hartiel, "Thank you for praying for the children's work. We had a first monthly Youth meeting in May - please pray for the continuation of these meetings. Please continue to pray for the Lord's blessing on the series of Bible studies on the basics of Christianity. We were disappointed at having to cancel the Summer Team this year but think ahead already to the possibility of a team next summer. Please pray also that we would be able to get some time away as a family for a break some time over the summer. We would also appreciate prayer for the health of our parents, brother/brother-in-law, sister which is somewhat fragile."        

SIERRA LEONE - Mike and Vi Webb, Please pray for Mike and Vi during this time of Home Assignment… that the meetings they take will be times of real encouragement, that they will be able to enjoy a break and some refreshment and that the Lord would continue to help them think through how best to use the many opportunities that there are in Sierra Leone.

BURKINA FASO - Alan and Pauline Ashmore, "We praise the Lord for a wonderful week of teaching evangelism at Niendouga Bible Institute, out in the east of the country. The 130 students were enthusiastic and serious in their studies.  Please continue to pray for our teaching and for the students at IBEO (evening Bible Inst .in Ouaga) and ESL.  We have had a couple of rain showers but everyone is waiting for more.  Please pray into this situation (although we need it to be dry at the times of our film outreaches!).”   

OPERATION CENTURION - Pete and Sue Nye, At this stage a number of potential Operation Centurion trips are being discussed. Please pray for those who are thinking of receiving a team, those who are thinking about joining the teams and for Pete and others who are planning and organising trips.  

UK/PAPUA NEW GUINE - Bernard and Linda Lewis, “Thank you for praying for us last month. We began to realise that there is more to settling ‘at home’, than getting off a plane. Please continue to pray that we will adjust well. We praise God that all our gear arrived safely from PNG with virtually no damage, but we now have to find a home for everything. June is fairly busy and will mean us being apart for some of the trips. Please pray that we will enjoy God's added grace.”

SPAIN - Laura Sanlon, “I thank God for His help during this time on HA. My HA has been extended by a few weeks to give me time to work on my studies. I will return to Spain in June in time to attend the FIEIDE Assembly meetings from 22 June near Alicante.  Please pray for these last few weeks at home with family, friends and my home church.  Pray also for young people to join the  team going to Albania-Kosovo in July.”

UK - Our couple working amongst ethnic minorities, “Pray for anointing for an important speaking appointment which has major evangelistic opportunities. Following a surprise encounter with someone making intrusive enquiries into our activities, pray for the protection of our ministry. Praise for regular attendance of minority children to the kids club, where they actively gain Bible knowledge. Our eldest had a few setbacks and is still in the process of finding the right course for his future training. Mum's trip (in June) to her home country to visit family and friends.”

BRAZIL - Jason and Andrea Murfitt, “On Sunday the 4th of May there was a boat accident just outside of Manacapuru where 59 of the 103 passengers sadly lost their lives. It was a stark reminder of both the dangers of river-work, and also the urgent need for souls to hear of Christ whilst it is still the Day of Salvation. Praise God for the opportunity on the radio that same day to broadcast to some 250,000 people about the eternal hope of Christ for all who believe. Pray that that message, along with others before and since, would not have fallen on deaf ears, but would have been planted in the good soil of divinely prepared hearts, where the good news will continue to produce a harvest of righteousness.”

UK/ITALY - Jonathan and Annette Gilmore, It is good that there continue to be opportunities for ministry at the local schools in Sandbach and we pray that God will give wisdom and good responses. Please keep praying for those who are preparing and planning for the ‘Missione 2008 Congress’.

APPOINTEES - Please pray for our appointees in their various stages of preparation for service - Paula Harris (Brazil), Tomasz & Monika Kucharski (Poland), Phil & Angela Hill (Israel), Shaun & Tania Abrahams (Ireland) and Catherine Anwar (Spain).

PAPUA/CANADA - John and Gloria Wilson, “During my recent time among the Yali in Papua, it was impossible to buy a new Bible. All the Yali Bibles were sold out and most of those in use are beginning to show the fatigue of daily use. Before reprinting, it has been decided to do a revision and a committee has been appointed to collect suggestions for corrections and changes. Everyone is to look out for typographical errors, unclear translation and old Yali terms which the younger generation don't understand. Pray for Anggu Silak and Yusup Bahabol who are coordinating this. HIV/AIDS is spreading more rapidly in Papua than anywhere else in Asia, according to an Australian documentary. Pray for all who are treating the sick, giving education, and promoting prevention of HIV/AIDS. Pray for our son Iain who has just started working under contract with the Bill Clinton Foundation AIDS Initiative in Papua as he juggles family needs with his new responsibilities.”

LEAVE OF ABSENCE - We remember all our missionaries who are on Leave of Absence - Anne Anderson (Brazil), Heather Wilson (Brazil) and Chris and Helena Statter (Spain), Rob and Anne Ball (Brazil), Ian and Tracy Moreton (Brazil) and Danny and Sheila Tanton (Brazil).

FRANCE - Ben and Liz Griffin (Language study), “Please pray for me and Liz as we try to find a French course to do during the long summer break which began this week.  Praise God for fellowship with believers in Bordeaux which continues to encourage us.  Please pray for our children as they continue to cope in their own way with being here.  Praise God for recent opportunities to speak to people about God at college, and pray for continuing contact with these people.”      

FRANCE - Alan and Pat Davey, "Please pray for the English services which started in May in our house, the idea being to continue once we have permanent church premises, to reach out to the international community in Bordeaux.  Pray for the continued outreach to the student community. Several Bibles have been given away and some positive conversations have taken place. Thank you for your faithfulness."

Fiona Steward, “Please pray for my deputation trip in the UK during June and July.  Pray that churches would continue to be burdened to pray for the French mission field and that others would be sent out. Praise God for the baptism of 'S' on 1st June, a Chinese student who was converted around two years ago, but whose parents prevented him from being baptised. They have softened towards Christianity since because they have seen that it has not stopped him from succeeding in his studies.  However, he has now decided to be baptised without their assent.  His mother plans to come to Bordeaux this summer to look after 'S' after a hip operation, pray  that it will be a great opportunity for him to shine the beauty of Christ in his everyday life.  Currently she is having problems obtaining a visa.  Pray too for Sen, for whom this will be the first of several operations. He needs much grace and faith.” 

BRAZIL - Bron Hewett, “At the beginning of May there was a tragedy in the Guajajara village Anajá. At about 9:30pm a non-Indian Brasilian entered the village and shot 5 bullets in the direction of a lighted house where a group of 4 adults and three children were watching TV. Three shots missed totally, one shot scraped the leg of one of the children and tragically the fifth bullet went through the head of an eight year-old girl, killing her instantly. The girl, whose name was appropriately, Mary of the angels, had recently made a profession of faith in God, and just that afternoon said she was going to fish with God in heaven. There was no way she would have known what was about to happen.  Please pray for the family of Mary. Her mother is a Christian, but her father has resisted the claims of God on his life. Of the other ten adults in the village only two are not Christians. Pray that there will be forgiveness and acceptance of God's sovereignty in this situation and that God will be glorified; also that there will not be any desire for revenge on the part of the non-Christian father and uncle.”

MONGOLIA/UK - Mark and Gill Newham, “The month of June is a busy one for us. We have visitors and increased commitments in the business. Please would you pray with us that the Lord would enable us to keep our hearts and minds centred on him and doing only those things which he is directing us to. On a practical note would you please pray that we would be able to complete the renovations which we began in February, we are half way through painting the bathrooms and have only painted one floor in the bedrooms of the guest house.”      

MOLDOVA - Maureen Wise, "We are full of praise to God for meeting all our needs at the House of Joy and for the 6 women who live there.  Pray for good health for the women - Diana has kidney and gall stones and is not strong enough to have an operation and Nastea has broken her leg badly in 2 places.  Vera has a serious eye problem and needs a good diagnosis from an ophthalmologist.  Medical care is poor and we are praying much about these health needs - the women have suffered years of neglect in institutions."

BRAZIL - Andrew and Cora King, We give thanks that Cora was able to take her final exams for the theology course that she has been doing and for the strength and determination that the Lord has given her to get to this point. Cora and Andrew have many churches to visit during their Home Assignment and two family weddings to prepare for and attend and we trust that they will be aware of God’s goodness during this time.

Joe and Evelyn McCartney, Joe and Evelyn returned to Brazil at the end of May after having had to re-schedule their flights because Joe’s step-mother was seriously unwell. Please pray for them as they try to keep in close contact with Joe’s father and step-mother. Now back in Brazil Joe and Evelyn are busy with Pioneiros and also the selling of the old church and the development of the new one – much wisdom is needed.

CAMBODIA - Jane Lopacka, “This is not so much a Cambodian specific prayer need but more of a global missionary prayer focus. Missionaries in two-third’s world countries as well as those in the ‘WEST’ can sometimes feel at the mercy of inflation and exchange rates. Please remember this in prayer as you think about supporting your missionaries wherever they are in the world.’      

CAMEROON - Geoff and Pat Mitchell, “It's nice to be back in the UK. Please pray for us as we settle in and adjust to retirement.”  

Anatole Lordon, “Pray for our young people sitting exams this month. Pray for us as we begin to prepare for summer events, children’s camps and football tournaments, that we will know God's guidance.  Pray that as a church we will continue to know the Lord's blessing in all aspects of the work.”

BRAZIL - Graham and Tina Nash, We give thanks to the Lord that he has helped the girls in their studies and during their exams. We pray that Graham and Tina and the family will enjoy a good break this summer.

Mike and Janice Gee, “We give thanks for a good number of mothers who turned up to the recent Mother's Day events, pray for continued contact with them. Pray too for the security and perseverance of those living on the Boas Novas site who have experienced a number of attacks on the property and had their own vehicle vandalised.”