December, 2010 Prayer Requests

I'm sure you all know the oft-quoted verse from Isaiah heard so frequently during the Christmas season:

For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

It's the last phrase- "Prince of Peace"- that weighs on my heart this month as I ask for prayer for the Beng.

Ivory Coast, once the picture of stability on an unstable continent, has encountered political turmoil since 1999 and civil war since 2002. Many have hoped that a free and fair election would bring peace and stability back to Ivory Coast, but elections have been canceled 6 times in the past 5 years.

Elections were finally held in October, with a run-off in late November. The current president (from the largely non-M*slim south of the country) is facing a popular candidate (from the largely M*slim north of the country). Initially, run-off results showed that the northern candidate had won, but later some of the results were annulled and the current president was declared the winner.

Though some Ivorians have taken to the streets in protest and a few have been killed in the process, I suspect that the vast majority of people in Ivory Coast (the Beng included) just want peace. Instead, their present situation is one of confusion, uncertainty, and fear.

Not only do they face less-than-peaceful circumstances, but many do not know the Prince of Peace mentioned in the verse above. Pray that the political situation in Ivory Coast will lead many to seek out God as a source of peace and comfort. Think of the Beng as you hear this verse from Isaiah this month.

November, 2010 Prayer Requests

Here in the U.S., fall conjures up images of crisp, colorful leaves and bountiful cornucopias, brimming with vegetables. "Harvest parties" abound. Many sit around the dining room table with friends and family and enjoy plentiful food.

The Beng have an annual harvest time too. It's an important time, often determining the quality of a family's life for the coming year. The food they gather at harvest time has to last until the next harvest. We can just run out to the grocery store when we need to make dinner for our families, but the Beng depend on the abundance of food they are able to produce themselves. When the food runs out, they have to wait until the next harvest.

Pray that this year would be a bountiful harvest for the Beng and that they would have plenty of food for the coming year. Pray also that there would be a bountiful spiritual harvest among the Beng, with many people coming to know the Lord.

October, 2010 prayer requests

I just finished reading a prayer letter, asking for prayer for Christians in other parts of the world who are being persecuted for their faith. I am reminded that believers in some parts of the world do not have the freedom to gather together and worship God. They are sometimes jailed, beaten, or even killed for expressing their faith in Christ.

Thankfully, Beng believers do have the freedom to profess Christ openly and gather together to worship. In their part of the world, though, you can't really be sure that changes in government or tensions between various ethnic or religious groups couldn't someday bring this to an end. Pray that the Beng's freedom to worship together would endure, and that many more believers would be added to their number.

September prayer requests

Many Beng are hungry today. Some are hungry because their families don't have enough food, but others are voluntarily hungry. It's Ramadan, a time of fasting for Musl1ms, a time of increasing their spiritual piety and improving their standing before Allah. They fast during the day and eat after sundown. The lunar month of fasting ends with a big celebration. (This will be be on or around September 9th this year, depending on the moon.)

Pray that God will speak to many Beng during this time of fasting. Pray that He would reveal truth to them, through dreams, visions, and interaction with Christians. Pray that they would give their hearts and lives to Jesus.

July prayer requests

All this week on the radio, the weather man has been talking about our need for rain. We are a number of inches below what is considered normal by this time of year.

I understand that for some Americans- farmers, firefighters, and the like- a lack of rain is a serious plight. I couldn't help but think, though, that my life isn't greatly affected by a lack of rain. My grass may be brown and there may be sweat on my brow, but I can still find food in the grocery store.

When it doesn't rain enough in West Africa, however, there is more widespread devastation. Most of the Beng people are subsistence farmers, so if there isn't enough rain, there isn't enough food. Period.

Let's pray this month that God would send rain to the Beng region, providing food and drinking water to the people.

I remember a time when I was visiting another people group in Cote d'Ivoire years ago. We stopped to greet the chief in one village, asking if there was anything we could pray for the village. He asked us to pray for rain. We prayed there with him and continued our visits in the village. An hour or so later, as we were leaving, the gray clouds rolled in and the rain started. God had answered our prayer. The chief had to have noticed that it was the God who we had prayed to who had sent the rain.

Pray that as rain comes to the Beng, they will recognize the one true God as the giver of all good things, rain included.

April prayer requests

Pop quiz: Are you familiar with Eid* al-*Fitr? How about *Diwali? Why is *Visakah *Puja celebrated?

If you're anything like most Americans, you (we) couldn't really answer those questions. Christianity is the predominant religion in our country, and its holidays are the only ones we know much about. We've never heard of most of the Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist holidays such as the ones listed above.

Imagine it were reversed. What if you lived in a place where Easter wasn't talked about? That's what it's like for many of the Beng people. Some of them have heard of Easter and maybe a few could tell you why it's celebrated, but the majority are altogether unfamiliar with this eternally significant holiday.

Let's pray this Easter that God would give the Beng Christians many opportunities to share with friends and neighbors what Easter is all about and that many would come to faith in Christ as a result.

March prayer requests

This week is the annual missions conference at my church. It's always an exciting time- exciting to hear about what God is doing in other parts of the world and hear stories of people's lives being transformed as they give their lives to Him.

The missionary who is visiting this week spoke on Sunday of his service in a country in Asia. At the present time the government of this country is allowing missionaries/ development workers, but they don't know how long this window of opportunity will be there. They are trying to train leaders in that country so that when or if the "missionaries" have to leave, the church will continue to grow and flourish, with nationals serving as missionaries in their own country.

That is in fact what has happened in other countries in Asia. Missionaries have been forced to leave, but the number of Christians has continued to grow. Praise God for this exciting phenomenon!

As this man spoke, I couldn't help but think of the Beng. When I last visited them 9 years ago, there was a small number of Christians in a few villages. I pray that when I or someone else next visits the Beng, they will find that the number of Christians among the Beng has grown exponentially and that they are growing and thriving. Would you pray with me?

February prayer requests

Romans 1:5 says, "Through Christ, God has given us the privilege and authority to tell Gentiles everywhere what God has done for them, so that they will believe and obey him, bringing glory to his name." (NLT)

Though we may not be able to (at this time) go in person and tell the Beng about Jesus, we can pray these verses nonetheless. Let's pray that the Beng will hear "what God has done for them" and that they will "believe and obey him, bringing glory to his name".

I think sometimes we underestimate the power of prayer. I know I sometimes catch myself thinking, "Well, since God hasn't called me to go overseas at this time in my life, I guess I'll just have to pray instead." Just pray?! Prayer is just as much an action as going overseas is. When you pray for the Beng, you are taking an active role in their coming to Christ. You may even get to meet a Beng believer in heaven one day who is there because of your prayers! That's so much fun to think about. So let's pray!

On a side note this month, I have some personal news... My husband, sons, and I are soon moving to Fredericksburg, VA to help start a new church there. We're excited. I'm attaching our newsletter for those who are interested in learning more.