Prayer regarding Saeed Abedini’s situation

Naghmeh and Saeed Abedini with their children. 

Lord, today we pray for Iranian American pastor Saeed Abedini. We are so thankful he was released after more than three terrible years in an Iranian prison. Thank you for sustaining him as he was beaten and pressured to recant his faith. Thank you for the unity brought about as believers all over the world joined in prayer for his release. Lord, in the midst of the joy over his release, there is so much uncertainty and confusion. We are grieved about the abuse allegations made by his wife Naghmeh Abedini. We rejoice in her powerful testimony as she too stood firm in her faith and advocated tirelessly on behalf of her husband. We are terribly disheartened that abuse may have been part of this couple’s marriage. Lord, we pray for healing and help for everyone involved, including recovery from any kind of abuse in any situation. We pray for truth to come out, because truth is always better than deceit. We pray that you will be glorified above any drama or distraction surrounding the powerful testimonies of these two people. Thank you for being bigger and more powerful than any drama, abuse or persecution. You are the Healer and Victor. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

Prayer for crisis off the coast of Libya

The deadly capsizing of a migrant boat in the Mediterranean. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-36383897

Lord, today we pray for the crisis unfolding off the coast of Libya. With hundreds of migrants dead in the past few days alone, due to attempting to reach Europe in unseaworthy vessels, we are just overwhelmed by the loss. And to hear that 13,000 were actually rescued in the past week… the numbers of people seeking safety and better lives in this part of the world are staggering! Lord, we pray for those who comprise the multinational patrol of ships monitoring these waters. May they be effective, diligent, and stout of heart. We pray for the migrants who are so desperate that they risk their own and their families’ lives, that they would make wise decisions, and that they would be able to identify when someone is taking advantage of them before it is too late. We pray for the governments of the nations where people feel the need to flee, that those leaders would address the crises that are driving their people to such desperation. Lord, the situation is so overwhelming, but we know you see and know all, and that you have seen “everything under the sun” since the beginning of time. Please intervene in this crisis, and save souls in the midst of saving lives. We pray in Jesus’ name, amen.

Prayer for Brazil's March for Jesus

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2016/05/26/tens-thousands-take-part-in-brazil-march-for-jesus.html

Lord, we pray for Brazil’s March for Jesus, where hundreds of thousands of your followers marched together to celebrate you today. Lord, we pray for those who witnessed the three-mile march, that they would reflect on what they saw, and thus consider you. We pray for the concerts and festivities that are continuing even now, that they will glorify you and draw people closer to you. We pray that people who have never considered you before would decide to explore your truth through your Word and ask their Christian friends to tell them more about you. We pray that all believers involved in the event will be reinvigorated in their faith and excited about following you as they get this special chance to experience solidarity on such a massive scale. Please protect all those involved with the festivities as well. In Jesus’ glorious name we pray, amen.

Prayer about the boarding school fire in northern Thailand

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2016/05/23/thailand-boarding-school-fire-kills-18-girls.html?intcmp=hplnws

Lord, today our hearts ache for the students of the Pithakkaiat Witthaya School in northern Thailand. Please be with the remaining almost 400 students as they deal with the loss of 18 classmates to last night’s dormitory fire. Provide excellent grief counselors—formal and informal. Grant parents and school leaders wisdom as they walk through this grief and trauma with the children. Help investigators discern what caused this fire and what could have been done differently in order to save more lives. We pray for the injured students and teacher as they recover from their wounds. We pray for all involved to learn to sleep, trust, and find peace again. We pray very specifically for 11-year-old Suchada, who raised the alarm. Bless her for her bravery and quick response, and please be very close to her as she processes through the fact that some of her friends did not believe her, ignored her entreaties to escape, and then perished. Help Suchada replace these bad memories with good ones. Help her become wholly secure in you. Finally, we pray for the families of those who perished. May your Holy Spirit and their support networks strengthen and surround them during this time. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

Prayer for EgyptAir flight 804

Loved ones await news. Photo: Khaled Desouki, AFP/Getty Images

Lord, today we grieve the loss of EgyptAir flight 804 and the 66 lives on-board. We pray for those left behind: mothers, fathers, children, spouses, friends and other loved ones. Comfort them in their time of sorrow—this deepest kind of sorrow. Give them peace as they wait for answers to their questions about why their loved ones were taken in such an unexpected way. Lord, we pray for the investigators who are searching for answers about why this plane crashed. We pray for hidden things to come to light, so people might have closure and so we can learn from this tragedy. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

Prayer for translating Scripture into Cree languages

https://www.wycliffe.org/prayer/articles/cree-people-ripe-for-harvest

Lord, today we pray for Wycliffe Bible Translators’ Western Cree Partnership in Canada. We pray for Bill and Norma Jean Jancewicz  and the other faithful translators who are working so hard for speakers of the Cree-Innu-Naskapi languages to have God’s Word in their own heart language. Thank you for the sacrificial labor of the Cree members of the translation team, who use their vacation and spare time to work tirelessly on this project. Thank you for Harvest Church of Georgia, USA, and their commitment to partnering with this project through prayer and funding. Thank you for the fruit that is already being produced as churches and individuals share their faith using their own Cree Scriptures. Please work in the lives of people so that they may be transformed as they read and listen to Your Word in the translated Cree languages. And please continue to bless the translators as they seek to complete this project. Give them endurance, efficiency and lasting encouragement. We pray in Jesus’ name, amen.

Continued prayer for Fort McMurray and surrounding communities

Picture: fontenews.it. More information: https://www.thestar.com/news/fort-mcmurray.html.

Lord, today we continue to pray for those forced by wildfire to evacuate from Fort McMurray and surrounding communities in Alberta, Canada. Thank you that the wildfire is no longer a serious threat to these communities. Thank you that over 100,000 residents were evacuated safely, with only two deaths in a car accident during the evacuation process (though we grieve for these families). Thank you for protecting firefighters, for the generous giving toward the Red Cross, and for people and organizations, ranging from the oil sands work camps to Covenant Bay Bible Camp, providing housing to evacuees. Lord, please give both the federal and provincial governments wisdom and funds as they manage this immense disaster. Continue to guide firefighters as they manage and stop the wildfire. Help the authorities as they seek to verify that the infrastructure is stable enough before beginning the process of returning evacuees to their homes. We pray for the process of rebuilding that which was lost, and for healing from the trauma of this experience. Glorify yourself in the midst of this trial. We pray in Jesus’ name, amen.

  

Prayer for Cheng Jie and her family

http://www.chinaaid.org/2016/02/church-run-kindergarten-director.html

Lord, today we pray for Cheng Jie and her family. We are so thankful she was returned to her family after being imprisoned for her faith for two years. Thank you for that! Thank you for those who supported and encouraged her husband Du Hongbo as he continued in ministry and was a single parent to two boys while his wife was imprisoned. Thank you for Cheng Jie’s faithfulness to you in prison and for her ministry to others, including leading four death-row inmates to you. Lord, please help her to reconnect well with her young children, the youngest who didn’t even remember her upon her return home, since she was taken away while he was so young. Please heal Cheng Jie’s mind and body from the damage done by the difficult conditions in the Chinese prison where she was detained. We pray for the family to figure out their new roles and their new location. Help their trust in you to grow ever-deeper as they heal from their ordeal and look to you for guidance for the future. May their ministry and family be even more powerful as a result of this persecution. We pray in Jesus’ name, amen.

Prayer for the Penan people of Borneo

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/borneos-ruined-forests-nomads-have-nowhere-to-go-180958107/. Photo by Varial.

Lord, today we pray for the Penan people of Borneo, specifically those who still live semi-nomadic lives. Lord, we are sad about their island being deforested to make room for palm oil plantations. We appreciate palm oil, but this is affecting both the Penan and the animals they rely on for food and other needs. Lord, help the Penan people discern the balance between adapting to the world around them and preserving their culture. May they grow strong and wise as they face adversity. And, of course, Lord, we want them to know you. Please draw them to you. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

Prayer for imprisoned Chinese pastor

http://www.freeyanghua.org/

Lord, today we pray for Pastor Yang Hua, imprisoned in China for his faith. Holy Spirit, strengthen, comfort and empower him. Bring your Word readily to his mind, so he may meditate on it and share it freely. May guards and fellow prisoners see Christ in Pastor Yang, and may they turn to you. May truth come out about Pastor Yang’s location and the false accusations the government is using to hold him. Lord, we also pray for his wife, Wang Hongwu, and their two sons. Please continue to bless them with courage, faith and hope, as they pray and wait. May people rally around them to support and provide for their needs while their husband/father is away. Finally, we pray for their church, Living Stone, to continue to grow in trust while their pastor is away. May the people not live in fear, but be strengthened in their faith when faced with the choice between eternal or earthly security. We place our trust in you; amen. 

Prayer about the wildfire in Alberta

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2016/05/04/entire-canadian-city-ordered-to-evacuate-as-wildfire-creates-widespread-panic.html

Lord, today we pray about the wildfire raging in Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada. We praise you that all 88,000 residents were able to evacuate in time. They are safe, but we pray for their healing as they experienced the trauma of evacuating in the midst of “Armageddon”-like conditions. Help them move past this ordeal through trusting you and experiencing the support and love of those around them. Bless those who are housing them, including those at the oil sands work camp, which has been pressed into caring for 10,000 evacuees. Lord, we pray for the hundreds of firefighters actively trying to save this city and contain the fires. Give them strength, courage and safety. May no lives be lost to save property. Yet may as much of the city’s infrastructure be preserved and the fire be contained. We pray in Jesus’ name, amen. 

Prayer for albinos in Southern Africa

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-36168742

Lord, today we pray for people with albinism in Southern Africa. It is incredibly disturbing to learn that people with this skin disorder are targeted for witchcraft and the sale of body parts in Malawi, Tanzania and Mozambique. Lord, may this evil be exposed for what it is. May those tempted to seek this means to money realize that this is murder, not business. Help people realize that albinos are merely people who lack melanin, and may they treat them with the dignity and humanity they deserve. We pray in Jesus’ name, amen.