The Beng People of West Africa: October, 2013 Prayer Requests

Friday, October 4, 2013

October, 2013 Prayer Requests

This week I am reading 1 Samuel with my Bible students. We talked about the call of Samuel. You know the story... Samuel hears a voice in the night and thinks it's Eli. He asks Eli what he wants and Eli says he never called him. This happens a few times before Samuel and Eli realize that it is God calling Samuel. Samuel responds in obedience, giving his life to God and following in the path that He has for Samuel's life.

It is so exciting to know that God speaks to us in such a real and personal way. He is not far away and hard to know. He is near, and He is real. He wants to communicate with us.

As I sat down to write a prayer request for the Beng tonight, I thought of this story and how incredible it would be if God called out to the Beng people in a similar way. Pray that God would speak to them in a real and personal way and that they would respond in obedience, giving their lives to Him!

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Welcome to Bengland

The Beng, also known as the Gan or Ngan, are a people of Cote d'Ivoire, West Africa numbering around 17,000. They live in a remote area of central Cote d'Ivoire. Most are farmers, growing coffee, cocoa, cashews, and peanuts as cash crops. The Beng live in small mud-brick homes and live off the yams they grow in their fields and sauces made from leaves, seeds, and nuts. Access to adequate water sources and health care is a problem in the approximately twenty Beng villages.

Even in their own country few have heard of the Beng or know much about them. They are a peace-loving people with a relatively quiet history, having earned a reputation as refugees, fleeing from attackers and invaders rather than fighting them. The name Beng means "meeting" because of the meetings they organized and presided over in order to establish peace among different ethnic groups.

A little more than half of the Beng population is Muslim, though they often mix animistic beliefs with Islamic ones, producing a form of folk Islam. Others practice traditional religions, based mainly on animistic beliefs focusing on worship of the earth. Each village has a sacred tree where spiritual leaders called "masters of the earth" present sacrifices on behalf of the people of their villages. Less than 1% of the Beng are Christians. Several villages have no Christian presence at all.

Get involved!

Many of us dream of going on a mission trip and seeing lives changed, but the time and resources are not always available to do so. This blog is an effort to bring the mission field to you. By praying for the Beng, you can change lives and bring God glory in another part of the world. You may not see the effects of your prayers right away, but wouldn't it be awesome to meet the Beng people that you prayed for once you get to heaven?!

You can go a step further by sharing about the Beng with family, friends, and your church. Introduce your small group or Sunday School class to the Beng. Brochures, photo prayer cards, and book marks are available as resources in addition to the information on this blog. If you'd like to introduce your kids or the kids at your church to the Beng, we have a booklet of activities that teach kids about the Beng and their lifestyle.

For more information, contact prayforthebeng@hotmail.com.