Moldova: limited access to Covid vaccines
So far Moldova has only received 36,000 doses of the Covid vaccine, barely enough for 1% of its population of 2.6 million. This stock isn't even enough to cover the country’s primary target - its 60,000 medical staff. A coordinator from the National Vaccine Program said a three-stage rollout is ready, but the doses are not. He explains that to keep to their target of immunising 70% of their population, ‘we need to have more negotiations with manufacturers. But we are a small country, with a small population; we are not as interesting for manufacturers as other countries. The consequences of the lack of doses are dire, especially for the most fragile’. An NGO distributing lunch boxes to elderly and isolated populations in a poor neighbourhood said, ‘The week we went there, the death rate had almost doubled compared to the previous week. Yet despite this, there is still no sign of more vaccines.’
USA / Central America: many are fleeing
The US homeland security secretary said they are expelling most single adults and families but not unaccompanied children. An average of 565 lone children are crossing the border daily. The highest number of families come from Honduras, the most unstable Central American country. Many lone children come from Guatemala, where youth population and unemployment are high and smuggling networks are developed. The transition from Donald Trump to Joe Biden has persuaded would-be migrants that a limited window now exists for US entry. In the Trump years human traffickers were thwarted, but they are now eager for more. Also, two major hurricanes have inflicted severe human and economic damage in Central America. Taking to the road to find a better life is dangerous, especially for children. Most flee from violence, corruption, and poverty all around them. Doctors Without Borders said 75% of migrants with children were fleeing threats of violence, including forced recruitment by gangs.
Australia: flood devastation
Days of torrential downpours caused rivers and dams to overflow around Sydney and south-east Queensland. The military helped search and rescue in a ‘one-in-fifty-years event’. By 22 March 18,000 people had been evacuated and 10 million people across Australia were under a weather warning. Dead livestock floated through floodwater and houses were engulfed, causing over 22,000 flood damage claims to be lodged by 25 March. Receding waterlevels have begun to expose the extent of flood devastation to collapsed homes and businesses.Pray for those who have lost homes, farms, cattle, and businesses to have government support. Pray for people ordered to evacuate, still sheltering in centres living in fear and apprehension of what they will find when they return home. Pray for people warned to prepare for flash flooding and landslides as rivers rush in their direction. New South Wales Health is warning residents to be aware of the risk of contamination and water-borne diseases. See
South China Sea: fake fishing fleet
On 22 March the Philippines demanded China withdraw its massive ‘fishing fleet’, controlled by its navy, from waters that Manila has exclusive economic rights over. These boats have been nicknamed ‘little blue men’ because their role is similar to Putin's famous ‘little green men’ (Russian soldiers without official insignia who invaded eastern Ukraine on behalf of Moscow in 2014). For the Chinese navy to masquerade as fisherfolk is nothing new. But this time the sheer scale of the flotilla, a whopping 220 vessels, totally outnumbers the ill-equipped Philippine navy, coastguards, and local fishing boats which have long complained of China chasing them out of their own waters. As China's power rises, so too has Beijing's determination to dominate the South China Sea despite American intervention in the past, and the Philippines’ attempts to prevent illegal control.
Lebanon: worsening crisis
Lebanon has failed again to form a new government. President Michel Aoun wants help from other countries to overcome the deadlock. There is economic despair as political instability drives the currency down. As the currency dips further, the minimum wage sinks below that of third-world countries. It is unbelievable how little people are earning now. They are stuck in a vicious circle, with no end in sight. Each time the currency loses value, prices go up, and people can buy fewer daily essentials. A bottle of milk was 3,000 Lebanese lira, now it’s 8,000. But that same bottle of milk bought with US dollars is less than 50 cents. It becomes ¼ of the price for people with dollars, but the poor people pay over double the price. As the crisis worsens, people have nowhere to put their hope, so they are starting to put their hope in Christ.
Eritrea: EU announces sanctions
On 22 March the European Union announced a number of sanctions on Eritrea’s national security office. This positive EU move should hardly be a surprise to the Eritrean government. It has faced sanctions for its human rights and religious freedom violations in the past, earning the nickname of ‘Africa’s North Korea’ for its systematic flaunting of international standards and its insular foreign policy. The recent sanctions target arbitrary arrests, extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances of persons, and torture committed by its agents. Eritrea has a well-documented history of treating its prisoners inhumanely and of targeting religious minorities for particularly harsh treatment. Me’eter Prison, the customary holding place for Eritrean prisoners of conscience, is notorious for its regular use of torture, for example to induce religious recantations. Prisoners are kept in metal shipping containers placed on the open desert floor.
Ethiopia: crisis for children
UNICEF is underscoring the need for continual aid for children amid a worsening situation in the Tigray region of Ethiopia. Five months since the conflict began, a picture is emerging of killings and sexual violence against women and children. UNICEF reports schools and health centres looted, vandalised, and occupied by armed groups. In addition, deliberate attacks of violence and looting have left 60% of health care facilities not operational. 57% of boreholes (providing water) in 13 towns are not functional, and a quarter of the region’s schools have sustained damage. Although UNICEF and partners give humanitarian aid to the needy, there are urgent needs for children’s protection. Fighting, media blackout, and government-imposed restrictions leave humanitarian organisations unable to provide adequate aid, and they have had difficulty accurately gauging the need. Basic service outlets must be protected and the safety and security of everyone working in and accessing those services guaranteed.
China: church in chains - Pastor John
Just one of the Christian prisoners in China is Pastor John Cao (60), serving a seven-year prison sentence for ‘organising illegal border crossings’ between China and Myanmar. He made many trips from America to his native China to establish schools and work among the poor before expanding his humanitarian work into Myanmar. He was detained in 2017 while returning to China from Myanmar and sentenced a year later. His defence lawyer and his mother asked prison authorities to deliver a Bible to him. They refused. His mother writes Bible verses in each letter she sends. Please ask God to bless Pastor John and keep his faith strong, and pray for healing from his various health problems. Pray that he will be released early. Pray for his witness to prisoners and guards, and that others would continue his ministry to the poor.
We are pleased to bring you this special edition of IPC Connections.
We would appreciate your help please - by sharing this information as widely as possible!
As well as bringing some extremely important international prayer briefings, this edition marks the launch of ‘Hope of the Coming Harvest 2021’ which is a coming together of a number of events and initiatives with a common focus on prayer, mission and revival that are taking place between now and August. The theme for this program is based on Luke 10:2: He told them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.’
Dr Jason Hubbard’s Editorial article carrying the same title sets out the Hope of the Coming Harvest theme. In it, he brings to life the strength in the words that Jesus used both to instruct us to pray, but also the prayer for the laborers not to be just ‘sent’, but to be ‘hurled forth’ into His harvest!
Jason also highlights the GO Movement’s ‘GO Month’ which takes place through May. This is a further unique collaboration of a huge number of Christian mission organisations and evangelistic networks that seeks to mobilise 100 million in prayer to reach 1 billion for Christ over this next decade!
Do be encouraged as you reflect on and respond to Jason’s inspirational teaching and sharing of the ‘GO Month’ vision.
We are covering a number of key events that are part of the Hope of the Coming Harvest below. Each one is remarkable in its own right!! Please participate as you are able, help us get the message out… but above all, do be in prayer with us for this unprecedented season of outreach, for an outpouring of God’s spirit on all people. (Acts 2:17-21)
You are invited to join us for World Prayer Together on Saturday 1st May - a 2-hour online prayer and worship gathering launching GO Month.
The event is being led by a group of highly respected prayer ministry leaders from around the world and is being broadcast from IHOP KC and GODTV globally at 7pm in each region.
Full details follow below and at
www.worldprayertogether.com
We are pleased to report that the Global Family 24/7 - 365 Online Prayer Room is going from strength to strength with continuous prayer led by 168 hourly hosts each week. Do join us anytime!
With each edition of Connections, we are introducing you to members of the IPC Council. This month we welcome and talk with a long-standing friend and colleague, Rev Ann Low from Malaysia who is an Exec Team member who also serves with the South East Asia Prayer Council.
Giving thanks for Luis Palau - This last month, we saw the passing of another great evangelist and man of faith - Luis Palau. He passed away on Thursday March 11th from complications of lung cancer. He was 86. In 55 years of ministry, it’s estimated that Palau reached one billion people in 75 countries with the message of the Gospel - through crusades and then “CityFest” outreaches. Many of the IPC team have had associations with him and his remarkable ministry. John Robb shared: ‘Luis Palau and I were in Indonesia to speak for a conference about 30 years ago, and I remember his warm-hearted, engaging personality as well as the compelling, passionate speaker he was in declaring the Gospel of Christ. Earth is now poorer, but Heaven is richer because of this dear man of God.’
Situations Vacant – As our partner projects continue to develop and grow, we are finding an ever-increasing demand for voluntary help with translation, technology / IT, social media, research and copy-writing skills. We would welcome enquiries from anyone looking to serve in these areas. Please email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Thank you for continuing to partner with us in mobilising and informing united prayer across nations, denominations, movements, and generations for the fulfilment of the Great Commission.
May we express grateful thanks to Andy Page and the IPC Editorial Team who put this email together each month.
Every blessing,
Jason Hubbard - Director
International Prayer Connect
Please use this link if you would like to sow into our ministry with a donation
Disclaimer…
The views and opinions expressed in IPC Connections and the articles on our website are those of individuals and our partner organisations. They do not necessarily represent the policies or views of IPC or its individual leaders.
We aim to respect the diversity within the prayer movement and yet embrace our unified calling to mobilise prayer for the nations. (2 Chron 7:14)
If you wish to discuss the appropriateness of any articles, please contact us.
“And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore, pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” Matthew 9:35–38 (ESV)
Jesus sees the crowds and has compassion on them. His heart is moved with love and empathy, longing for them like a good shepherd has for his lost sheep. He gives this glorious promise of HOPE, the harvest is plentiful!
In the midst of this global pandemic, fear, and uncertainty, we sense that many are ready to hear and receive the glorious good news of Jesus Christ, the gospel of the Kingdom proclaimed and demonstrated with power.
The Gospel is -
“the news that Jesus Christ, the Righteous King, died for our sins and rose again, eternally triumphant over all his enemies, so that there is now no condemnation for those who believe, but only everlasting joy” – John Piper
We sense it is Gospel-empowered ‘Harvest Time’ in the nations of the earth.
However, as Jesus said, the laborers are few. He asks his disciples as he is asking us today, ‘therefore Pray earnestly…” When Jesus taught us to pray to our Father in heaven, He used the Greek word proseuchomai—the common word for prayer in the New Testament. But here in Matthew 9:38 and also in Lk 10:2, Jesus used the Greek word deomai, a much stronger word meaning to ‘plead desperately.’
Jesus didn’t simply tell His disciples to pray for laborers to be sent out to the harvest fields. Jesus used a much stronger word—ekballo, meaning to ‘drive out, or hurl forth!’ This same Greek word ekballo is used in Mt 9:34, 10:1 and 10:8 for casting out demons! In both Matthew 9:38 and Lk 10:2, Jesus commands us to deomai (plead desperately) to the Lord of the Harvest to ekballo laborers (thrust them forcefully) into His harvest! Every believer a witness. Everyone can reach someone and together we can reach the world!
May we ask the Father, the Lord of the Harvest to give his Son, the nations as his inheritance. They belong to him. He is worthy! He is all deserving of all the worship, all the obedience and all the affections of the nations of the earth! May this season, this hinge of history go down as the ‘great quarantine revival,’ a global decade of harvest!
We have a saying in our house of prayer, “Little Keys Open Big Doors.” As we pray desperately, witness bodly, and make disciples consistently, God can use each of us like little keys in his hand to open big doors of awakening and revival in the nations! We pray as Paul did,
“At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ” (Col. 4:3).
Read more about the Hope of the Coming Harvest 2021 Partnership | Download the #HopeofHarvest2021 Flyer
Go Movement
As we did last year, we are partnering with the Go Movement, to see 100 million united in prayer and 1 billion come to Christ over this next decade! GO Movement | GO 2020
As John Robb writes, ‘No one organization or movement can accomplish such a staggering feat, but if we flow together like tributaries in one unstoppable river, this can be achieved! Getting God’s heart of love for the lost through prayer will lead to our sharing Jesus with them in the power and sensitivity of the Holy Spirit just as the early church experienced.’
Imagine with me…
- 100 million Christians inspired and empowered by the Holy Spirit to pray and share the Gospel with as many as possible in their own communities and to the ends of the earth.
- One billion people being reached with the Gospel and millions upon millions getting saved all over the world over the course of this next decade!
- Unreached people groups hearing the Gospel for the first time and planting new churches among them. We have put together a series of helpful guides to praying for unreached peoples around the world. Here is the ‘40 Days Prayer Guide’ for March 24th through to May 2nd.
We praise God for the promise, ‘effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much’ (James 5:16).
May we cry out in 2021 to the Lord of the Harvest in fervent, desperate, Bible-based prayer for this coming ‘Decade of Harvest.’
May the Lamb who was slain receive the due reward for his sufferings!
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing” – Revelation 5:12
For the Glory of the Lamb,
Dr Jason Hubbard - Director
International Prayer Connect
Full details of the Hope of the Coming Harvest 2021 events including GO Month follow below!
#hopeofharvest2021