From: Pastor Austen Ukachi, Lagos, Nigeria | IPC Leadership Team
You are probably as shocked as I was to learn of the spate of attacks and deaths that greeted the New Year in Nigeria.
Worshippers who had just had Crossover Service in their church in Omoku, Rivers State, were gruesomely murdered by heartless cultists. Over 15 people, including innocent women and children, were cut down in a hail of bullets. As if that was not enough, the following day, we heard how Fulani Herdsmen invaded villages in Guma and Logo Local Governments in Benue State and killed several people (some speculate over 50!) and destroyed houses and properties.
The government seems to be powerless and have been accused of being impervious to the sufferings of the people. The security agencies appear to be so desensitized that you wonder if they still have value for human lives. But we cannot fold our hands and let this continue, it’s time to rise as intercessors and pray.
The following prayer points are only a guide. May the Lord bring us to the depth of prayers that will stem this rising tide of violence in our nation.
1. Fulani Herdsmen are rated as the 4th most deadly terror group on the Global Terrorism Index, yet the government does not seem to be concerned about the daily destruction they cause to lives and properties. Let’s pray that God will stir up a national and international outcry against this group.
2. Ask God to release His plans to reverse wicked evil political actions that have led to the murder of innocent lives across the nation (especially government’s inaction concerning the destruction of lives and properties by the Fulani herdsmen)
3. People in Guma and Logo Local Government in Benue State have been thrown into mourning following the invasion by the herdsmen, which led to the death of tens of people. Let’s pray that those who carried out this attack will be caught and judged.
4. The activities of the herdsmen now extend to virtually every part of the country. There are speculations that it is a modern form of jihad. Let’s pray that God will expose community leaders in the South who are conniving with them
5. Let’s pray that the Middle Belt states would be undeterred in implementing the anti-grazing bills that have been passed in some of the states. Pray that they will not be intimidated by the antics of the herders
6. Pray for the prosecution of the leaders of Miyetti Allah in Benue State who promised to cause mayhem in the state. Pray that the government will be bold enough to bring this man and his group to justice
7. Let’s pray that the National Assembly will now see the need to pass laws that will curtail the activities of the Fulani herders. Pray that the Open Grazing Bill will be frustrated and thrown out.
8. Let’s pray that these communities will not be intimidated. Rather, may the Lord strengthen their resistance against the Islamic agenda
9. Pray concerning the state of insecurity in Rivers State, especially Omoku and its environs. Let’s pray that the group that carried out the recent massacre will be arrested and judged
10. These were people returning from Crossover service in a church. Let’s pray that God will arise and judge those who perpetrated this mayhem on innocent worshippers
11. The violence in Omoku (and most of Rivers State) has their root in cult conflicts. Let’s pray that God will rain judgment on these cults and those behind them
12. The acrimonious politics of Rivers State has created an environment that engenders violence. Let’s pray that God would restrain Governor Nyesom Wike and Hon Chibuike Amaechi, that they will begin to work for the peace and welfare of the state
13. Let’s pray that God will comfort and encourage families who lost loved ones in the carnage. Let’s pray that God would use this situation to bring salvation to the community.
More at www.pray4nigeria.org
Pastor Austen Ukachi
(and the “progressivism” that pushes this distortion)
Friday, January 05, 2018 by: Ethan Huff
(Natural News) A mother from New York is taking a bold stand against the LGBT mafia and its relentless and demonic war against innocent children. Kristie Sisson says that transgender activism and its youth-centric indoctrination agenda ultimately led her daughter, Danielle, to want to transition into being her “son” – and she isn’t going to stand for it.
According to Sisson, it all started when the family decided to move from Long Island down to North Carolina after Danielle graduated from public middle school. The adjustment process for Danielle was rough, which led her to seek acceptance from whoever would give it.
This led her to a friend who happened to be a lesbian, and who apparently convinced Danielle that she, too, was a lesbian – even though she had always grown up liking boys. After being enrolled in a private high school in North Carolina, Danielle encountered several biological girls who were in the process of trying to transition into boys, to which Danielle also jumped on the bandwagon.
In the fall of 2016 things got really ugly, as Danielle informed her parents that she wanted to start dressing like a boy and would soon pursue surgery to become a “male.” This took Danielle’s parents completely off guard, as they were unaware at the time that Danielle was being so innately influenced by her new friends.
“It took us completely by surprise,” Sisson told Breitbart News, “because Danielle had a normal childhood, did all of the typical girl things – from dressing up like the princesses, to playing with dolls, to wearing make-up, perfume, and jewelry.”
Sisson says transgender activists actively recruit young children on the internet and social media.
While Kristie Sisson and her husband say they never prohibited their daughter from interacting with lesbians and transgenders prior to this drastic change in Danielle’s mindset, they very quickly became the victims of LGBT assault simply for trying to advise their daughter on a better path.
Danielle was sent to a therapist who had promised her parents that she wasn’t going to just affirm Danielle’s desire to transition to being a “male.” But this turned out to be a lie, upon which the Sissons sent their daughter to another therapist who, in effect, did the exact same thing – after just 30 minutes of speaking with Danielle.
“I feel like it’s the parents against the world,” Sisson lamented. “The therapists, the doctors, the schools – everyone is pushing this very liberal agenda and this transgender movement, and it’s harming our children.”..
Many prominent organizations like the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Pediatric Endocrine Society (PES) that once recognized transgenderism as the mental illness that it is are now endorsing “gender changes” as well, which is making it that much harder to protect children from this onslaught of perversion.
“Transgender ideology is not just infecting our laws,’ writes pediatrician and researcher Dr. Michelle Cretella, a mother of four and president of the American College of Pediatricians (ACP). “It is intruding into the lives of the most innocent among us – children – and with the apparent growing support of the professional medical community.”
The ACP is bold in asserting that one’s biological sex is a permanent fixture, and that it can’t be changed as the LGBT mafia claims. And to subject children to such lies represents a form of child abuse that parents need to put a stop to by joining together and fighting back.
Pray for the overthrow and rejection of this perverted and satanic effort to harm our children and youth.
While everyone was preoccupied celebrating the New Year, Planned Parenthood hoped nobody would notice that they released their 2016-2017 annual report to little fanfare.
Planned Parenthood committed 321,384 abortions last year alone – nearly identical to the number of lives they ended through abortion each of the previous two years.
Not only that, but Planned Parenthood raked in $1.46 Billion in revenue including over $543 million from U.S. taxpayers.
Despite the fact that Americans elected a pro-life Congress and president who pledged to defund Planned Parenthood, you and I are still being forced to funnel our money to the nation’s largest abortion vendor.
But there’s one more thing that scares me about this annual report.
It’s that Planned Parenthood states they received nearly $87 million more in “Private Contribution & Bequests” from their previous report – a whopping 20% increase!
After Congress’ failure to live up to their promises to defund Planned Parenthood, the abortion lobby now believes the political winds are shifting in their favor.
So it’s more important than ever that we double down on our efforts in 2018.
Pray: Ephesians 6:12 into the fight to end abortion. Let’s call upon God to grant us powerful prayers over the evil of abortion.
Pray: positive impact and success for Students for Life of America and other campaigners and advocates – that God’s will is done through their efforts.
For Life,
Kristan Hawkins
President, Students for Life of America
Students for Life of America
4755 Jefferson Davis Highway
Fredericksburg, VA 22408
Website
Many Churches have been ordered and faced closure of their meeting places. These pressures signal a coordinated campaign of the intensified action against Churches by the governing authorities.
So far, two Churches, the House of Hope and the Church in the south have been closed for meetings and activities. Nine others have been visited by local authorities and it seems like this is their first step before ordering of their closure.
All the accusations leading to the Church closures have been unfounded. The arguments of the authorities are that the local Church buildings are inappropriate for worship and the Church licences that was granted in 2011 are incompatible to the 2012 new law concerning the different associations, and that includes the EPA (The Algerian Protestant Church Association).
They seem to be trying to weaken the Church and render it ineffective. Pastor Mourad of the Church in the south which was recently closed said, “The Church of Jesus is not the walls or the roof, but it is Jesus’ people, His living Body!”
Pray: that ‘no weapon that is formed against God’s people will prosper; and every tongue that rises against them in judgment shall be condemned.’ (Isaiah 54:17)
Pray: for persecuted Christians in the Algerian Church – that they may remain steadfast in their faith despite these challenges.
Pray: strength and wisdom for Pastor Mourad as he continues to lead, teach and nurture his congregation as the ‘Living Body’. (Psalm 17:8)
The situation on the Korean Penninsula remains critical.
We would highlight the following articles and encourage our prayer partners to continue to mobilise prayer across your networks, into this tense standoff.
North Korean leader: The launch button is on my desk - Israel National News - Kim Jong Un warns his country has developed the capability to hit the entire U.S. mainland with nuclear weapons.
Kim Jong Un orders up larger missile with re-entry ability:The Asahi Shimbun
Kim Jong-un is 'setting a trap for the US and South Korea' | Daily Mail Online
KIM JONG UN ARMING, TRAINING CHILDREN FOR WORLD WAR 3
'North Korea is very militarized, far beyond any imagination of western powers'
Russia Warns World Faces War Worse Than Any Other In Human History
If you are in prayer ministry and care about the work of the Lord in the Middle East region, this event is for you. You are invited to participate and to contact the organizers at the email or phone below.
Date: Feb 28 - March 3, 2018
Theme: RESET: 'Remaking the Beginning'
Isaiah 12:5 for he has done glorious things; let this be known to all the world.
Yerevan, Armenia
The Ark Hostel
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
by Raymond Ibrahim January 21, 2018 at 5:00 am
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/11775/persecuted-christians-open-doors
In short, the overwhelming majority of persecution that these 215 million Christians experience around the world — especially the worst forms, such as rape and murder — occurs at the hands of Muslims.
If time is on the side of Christians living under Communist regimes, it is not on the side of Christians living under Islam. The center of the great Christian Byzantine Empire is now an increasingly intolerant, rapidly Islamizing Turkey. Carthage, once a bastion of Christianity — where one of Christendom's greatest theologians, St. Augustine, was born and where the New Testament canon was confirmed in 397 — is today 99% Muslim-majority Tunisia.
As what began in the seventh century comes closer to fruition and the entire world becomes more Islamic and "infidel" free, as in Iraq, confronting these uncomfortable facts is at least a welcome first step in countering the problem.
"215 million Christians experience high levels of persecution" around the world, according to Open Doors, a human rights organization. On its recently released World Watch List 2018, which ranks the world's 50 worst nations wherein to be Christian, 3,066 Christians were killed, 1,252 abducted, and 1,020 raped or sexually harassed on account of their faith; and 793 churches were attacked or destroyed.
The Islamic world had the lion's share of this persecution; 38 of the 50 worst nations are Muslim-majority. The report further cites "Islamic oppression" behind the "extreme persecution" that prevails in eight of the 10 worst nations. In short, the overwhelming majority of persecution that these 215 million Christians experience around the world — especially the worst forms, such as rape and murder — occurs at the hands of Muslims.
These Muslims come from all walks of life and reflect a variety of races, nationalities, languages, socio-economic and political circumstances. They include Muslims from among America's closest allies (Saudi Arabia #12 worst persecutor) and Muslims from its opponents (Iran #10); Muslims from rich nations (Qatar #27 and Kuwait #34) and Muslims from poor nations (Afghanistan #2, Somalia #3, and Yemen #9); Muslims from widely recognized "radical" nations (Pakistan #5), and Muslims from "moderate" nations (Malaysia #23 and Indonesia #38).
But if the World Watch List ranks North Korea — non-Islamic, communist — as the number one worst persecutor of Christians, why belabor the religious identity of Muslims? Surely North Korea's top spot suggests that Christian persecution is not intrinsic to the Islamic world but is rather a byproduct of repressive regimes and other socio-economic factors that proliferate throughout the Muslim world?
There are some important distinctions that need to be made. While Christians are indeed experiencing a "life of hell" in North Korea, overthrowing Kim Jong-un's regime could not only lead to a quick halt to this persecution but also to a rise of Christianity — as has happened recently in Russia. Under the Soviet Union, between 12 and 25 million Christians were killed for their faith[1], and approximately 153,000 churches were shut down.[2] Since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, about a thousand churches have been (re)built every year, and, according to a 2014 Pew report, between 1991 and 2008, Russians identifying themselves as Orthodox Christian rose from 31% to 72%. That "South Korea is so distinctively Christian" reflects what could be in store — and creating fear for — its northern counterpart.
In the Islamic world, the fall of dictatorial regimes rarely seems to alleviate the sufferings of Christians. On the contrary, when secular dictators fall — Saddam in Iraq, Qaddafi in Libya, and attempts against Assad in Syria — persecution of Christian seems to rise as a grassroots byproduct. Today, Iraq is the eighth worst nation in the world in which to be Christian, Syria is fifteenth, and Libya seventh. Under dictators, these countries were significantly safer for religious minorities.
A militiaman from the Nineveh Plain Protection Units (NPU) walks through a destroyed church on November 8, 2016 in Qaraqosh, Iraq. The NPU is a militia made up of Assyrian Christians that was formed in late 2014 to defend against ISIS. Qaraqosh is a mostly Assyrian city near of Mosul that was captured by ISIS in August 2014, and liberated in November 2016. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
Similarly, the only countries that were part of the former Soviet Union that still persecute Christians are, rather tellingly, the Muslim-majority ones of Central Asia. These include Uzbekistan (#16 worst persecutor), Turkmenistan (#19), Tajikistan (#22), Kazakhstan (#28) and Azerbaijan (#45).[3]
The "extreme persecution" of Christians throughout the Muslim world is part of a continuum begun nearly fourteen hundred years ago. The same patterns of persecution are still prevalent — including attacks for blasphemy and apostasy, restrictions and attacks on churches, and a general contempt for — followed by the vile treatment of — "subhuman infidels."
Unlike the persecution of Christians in Communist nations, rooted to a particular regime, Muslim persecution of Christians is perennial, existential, and far transcends any ruler or regime. It unfortunately seems part and parcel of the history, doctrines, and socio-political makeup of Islam — hence its tenacity and ubiquity. It is a "tradition."
That those persecuting Christians come from a wide variety of racial, linguistic, cultural, and socio-economic backgrounds — from African, Arab, Asian, and Caucasian nations — and share little in common with one another, except for Islam, sadly only further underscores the true source of the persecution.
If time is on the side of Christians living under Communist regimes, it is not on the side of Christians living under Islam. The center of the great Christian Byzantine Empire is now an increasingly intolerant, Islamizing Turkey. Carthage, once a bastion of Christianity — where one of Christendom's greatest theologians, St. Augustine, was born and where the New Testament canon was confirmed in 397 — is today 99% Muslim-majority Tunisia. Centuries of persecution and forcing non-Muslims to live as barely-tolerated third-class residents are responsible for the demographic shift that Tunisia and other formerly non-Muslim nations are experiencing.
Long after North Korea's Kim Jong-un has gone, tens of millions of Christians and other "infidels" will still suffer persecution. As what began in the seventh century comes closer to fruition and the entire world becomes more Islamic and "infidel" free, as in Iraq, confronting these uncomfortable facts is at least a welcome first step in countering the problem.
Raymond Ibrahim is the author of Crucified Again: Exposing Islam's New War on Christians (published by Regnery with Gatestone Institute, April 2013).
[1] James M. Nelson, Psychology, Religion, and Spirituality, 2009, p. 427.The 50 worst places on Earth for Christians
'They will just execute somebody who commits their life to faith'
http://www.wnd.com/2018/01/the-50-worst-places-on-earth-for-christians/
215,000,000 Christians Persecuted, Mostly by Muslims
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/11775/persecuted-christians-open-doors
You have probably heard about the massive attack on an international Hotel in the Capital City on Sunday, where a dear sister of us was murdered. Two days later a well-known NGO who worked the country for many years was attacked with many people killed.
This building up of armed aggression against foreigners and NGO’s needs re-evaluation on our side. Please pray that we have wisdom how we can improve the safety of our workers and for much needed peace and security in the country.
There are serious differences between the governor in a Northern Province and the president. The tension is rising and there are fears for a feud within the government. Pray that this will be stopped.
TEAMS
The teams are quite shaken through the sudden death of our good friend. Continue to pray for protection and encouragement during these times of uncertainty.
CP
Despite this, one team could reach out to people who showed interest. Pray that they will continue to do so with much boldness and wisdom.
Pray for the local believers that they will be equipped and that doors may open into a neighbouring country in order to start regular training programmes there soon.
Thank for praying with us,
Your ElRock Team
Yemen has been undergoing a major civil war over the past three years. Cities are continuing to be bombed and the infrastructure is collapsing. The media reports that over 10,000 people have been killed with three million displaced from their homes. There is severe famine in parts of the country. Its few oil fields are not producing. Cholera is epidemic, the currency is collapsing, prices are soaring, and many in the public sector haven’t been paid in over a year. There is also fear that school age boys will be recruited to fight for the Houthis who control large areas of the country.
7 Key Areas for Prayer for Yemen:
Please pray for the peace and the rebuilding of Yemen in these seven key areas:
Hunger: The humanitarian crisis in Yemen is severe as many are starving or on the verge of having nothing to eat. Malnutrition and infant mortality is becoming normal. Pray that food will be sent and arrive to those who must have it to survive. Pray that ships, airplanes and trucks will be given permission to bring an abundance of food and supplies. Pray that those who seek to exploit others due to high prices will be led by God to put aside greed and help the many who are battling poverty.
Cholera: Yemen currently has one of the world’s largest epidemics of cholera. Pray that this illness will not spread, that medicines to help those suffering will become available, and that people suffering from it will get well. Pray that garbage will be picked up, that there will be fuel to boil water, and that the people will have clean food and water.
Bombings: Pray that those who are fighting one another will put aside their differences and go to the negotiating table. Pray that they will agree to work together for peace. Pray for the violence to cease!
Infrastructure: Roads, houses, schools, factories, oil fields, and hospitals have been destroyed. Pray that the generosity of others will flood this nation. Pray that peace will come so that rebuilding can begin.
Displaced people: There are three million displaced people in areas of the country which are relatively peaceful. Displaced families have moved there. Pray for those who are hosting them that they will have enough to meet their own needs as well as the needs of others. Pray for peace to remain in these areas. Pray that the displaced people will be able to return to their homes.
Trauma: Three years of war have created a nation of people who have buried family, been injured physically, and have suffered extreme mental trauma. Pray over them the words about Jesus in Isaiah 61:1 – “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound.”
Yemeni believers: Thank God for brothers and sisters in Christ who continue to be a witness in Yemen. Praise Him for bringing many Yemenis to Himself! Pray that God will provide for their needs during this time of war and economic disaster. Pray that their numbers will increase and that they would be able to worship together. Pray that they would be mobilized to serve their communities and be a light that shines brightly in the darkness of this war. In addition, Yemeni believers suffer extreme persecution according Open Doors which has ranked Yemen as the ninth most difficult place to be a Christian on its 2017 Open Doors World Watch List. So not only is there a physical war, but a spiritual one as well. Pray that the believers would wear the full armor of God and stand strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might (Ephesians 6:10,11), serving and loving each other and their neighbors for Christ’s glory in Yemen.
On the PTAP web site, you can also find a word.doc version of this and also a powerful PowerPoint about what is going on in Yemen. http://www.pray-ap.info/yemen.html
By John D. Robb
For today's hyperactive missions leaders, apart from opening and closing meetings, saying grace at the table or as a special consolation in time of emergency or stress, prayer is most often treated as a harmless pastime rather than a strategic resource. In our attitude we often relegate it to the likes of doting old ladies who have nothing better to do with the autumn time of life. Certainly, for most mission leaders, prayer does not seem to be where the action is, otherwise wouldn't we be giving it far more attention in our busy lives?
A Revealing Case Study
One of the greatest illustrations of prayer as a strategic resource in frontier missions is found in the experience of J.O. Fraser, the pioneer missionary to the Lisu tribe of southwest China. As a young missionary with the China Inland Mission in the early 1900s, he preached Christ for several years among the far-flung mountain villages of this people with almost no outward results, Fraser's few converts fell back into the clutches of demonism, and he himself, attacked by severe depression and suicidal despair, almost gave up his mission. Breakthrough occurred when two things happened:
1. The Spirit of God enabled him to pray "the prayer of faith" for several hundred Lisu families to come to Christ.
2. He succeeded in forming a prayer support group of eight to ten Christians in his home country to back up the work in ongoing prayer.
His wife later wrote about the difference this prayer effort made in Fraser's work: "He described to me how in his early years he had been all but defeated by the forces of darkness arrayed against him.... He came to the place where he asked God to take away his life rather than allow him to labor on without results. He would then tell me of the prayer forces that took up the burden at home and the tremendous lifting of the cloud over his soul, of the gift of faith that was given him and how God seemed suddenly to step in, drive back the forces of darkness and take the field"
Fraser himself said:
"Work on our knees. I am feeling more and more that it is after all just the prayer of God's people that call down blessing upon the work, whether they are directly engaged in it or not. Paul may plant and Apollos water, but it is God who gives the increase, and this increase can be brought down from heaven by believing prayer whether offered in China or in England......If this is so, then Christians at home can do as much for foreign missions as those actually on the field. I believe it will only be known on the last day how much has been accomplished in missionary work by the prayers of earnest believers at home...
Solid lasting missionary work is done on our knees. What I covet more than anything else is earnest believing prayer, and I write to ask you to continue in prayer for me and the work here."
"I used to think that prayer should have the first place and teaching the second. I now feel that it would be truer to give prayer the first, second and third places and teaching the fourth....We are not dealing with an enemy that fires at the head only- that keeps the mind only in ignorance-but with an enemy who uses poison gas attacks which wrap the people around with deadly effect and yet are impalpable, elusive...Nor would it be of any more avail to teach or preach to Lisu here while they are held back by these invisible forces...But the breath of God can blow away all those miasmic vapors from the atmosphere of a village in answer to your prayers. We are not fighting against flesh and blood. You deal with the fundamental issues of this Lisu work when you pray against the principalities, the powers, the world rulers of this darkness, the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenlies (Eph. 6:12)."
In the years that followed hundreds of families accepted Christ and ultimately a people movement involving tens of thousands of Lisus ensued. Today in southwest China and northern Burma they are a missionary tribe taking the Gospel to other tribes about them.
What would have happened if Fraser had not formed that prayer support group which he so faithfully kept informed with up-dates from the field? Would the breakthrough have occurred? In the decades since, how many potential breakthroughs among the unreached have not occurred because:
1) Prayer was not perceived and used as a strategic weapon.
2) Prayer supporters were not kept linked ongoingly to a particular unreached group or provided with a supply of up-to-date information? In relation to our society's theme for this year, could it be that prayer as perceived and practiced by "Great Commission Christians" is a crucial missing link in the accomplishment of world evangelization?
After dealing with the nature and importance of prayer briefly, I would like to enumerate some reasons from Scripture, history and current experience, why prayer may be the crucial link, the strategic weapon in frontier missions. Having demonstrated the importance of strengthening this link, we will then put our minds together in discussion to discover new ways we might operationalize the linkage of focused intercession and the unevangelized world.
Prayer at its very heart is a linking activity. First, prayer links us with God to receive His power and direction as we pray for the world and carry out our own ministries. Secondly, as we pray for the unevangelized world, it links us with particular unreached groups and the Christian workers laboring among them. It links our efforts and their efforts to God in His almightiness, without whose help all such efforts ultimately are in vain. O. Hallesby writes:
"The work of prayer is prerequisite to all other work in the Kingdom of God for the simple reason that it is by prayer that we couple (italics mine) the powers of Heaven to our helplessness, the powers which can turn water into wine and remove mountains in our own life and the lives of others, the powers which can awaken those who sleep in sin and raise up the dead, the powers which can capture strongholds and make the impossible possible.
Yet having said this, prayer can often be the missing link in our efforts on behalf of the unevangelized world. As important as good organization, planning, and strategy are in world evangelization, in our busyness for God we may have neglected to link up with His power and direction to carry out that particular part of His mission given to us. And that is a crucial omission! John D. Robb is Chairman of the International Prayer Council and International Prayer Connect