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Prayer requests from Global Diaspora Forum participants
The Feast of Booths (Sukkot) begins the evening of October 4 and will continue for eight days. Compared to Passover, the Feast of Trumpets (Rosh Hashanah) and the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur), a small percentage of Jewish peoples celebrate this feast. According to Leviticus 23, the Lord designed this feast so “that your generations may know that I made the people of Israel dwell in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt” (v. 43). Please pray that the families celebrating Sukkot will recognize the Messiah – who “became flesh and dwelt among us” for their freedom (see John 1:14).
Please lift up GDN members who are speaking, teaching and training at conferences, schools and seminars regarding diaspora-related matters. Pray that DL, JU, DD and all others will be filled with the Holy Spirit and speak the word of God with boldness (see Acts 4:31).
Please ask the Lord to bring relief to those suffering due to drought, earthquakes, flooding and hurricanes. Pray that the Church would effectively minister to physical, emotional and spiritual needs in each of the areas affected (see James 2:15-16). Pray that these displays of love would lead to many turning (or returning) to Christ for years to come.
Pray for spiritual fruitfulness in business as mission entities led by GDN members. Pray that they will seek first God’s Kingdom (see Matthew 6:33). May the often cross-cultural and international personal interactions which arise from business dealings lead to more growing relationships with Christ. Pray that AM’s associate S will bless the Lord, will experience His forgiveness and will know His healing (see Psalm 103:2-3).
As the violence against the stateless Rohingya in Myanmar (Burma) has recently intensified, please pray that every Rohingya man, woman and child will know that God demonstrated His great love for them through the death of Jesus (Romans 5:8). Ask God to send dreams and visions which show that He sees and hears them in their trials (Genesis 16:13, 21:17).
Please ask God to show His people how to love our neighbors of many nations (see Luke 10:25-37). To give a few specific examples: pray that churches in Malaysia will reach out to the two million migrant workers; pray that influential Portuguese living in Macau will gain God’s heart for China; pray that a language center in Poipet on the border between Cambodia and Thailand will see much spiritual fruit. Pray that we will be compelled by the love of Christ (see 2 Corinthians 5:14-15).
As more Christ-followers understand the strategic importance of diaspora ministry and missions, there is a greater need for training materials to be organized and accessible – in terms of language, geography, cultural context and more. For this task, pray that the Church will “grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” (Ephesians 4:15-16)
People Going: Hindus
From October 8-22, brothers and sisters in Christ will be using the Hindu World Prayer Guide to learn about and pray for over 1 billion Hindus. The timing is meant to coincide with the festival of Diwali, which is widely celebrated worldwide among the many diverse Hindu traditions. As the prayer guide points out, while most Hindus live in India, around 70 million are scattered in over 140 countries. Perhaps as people pray, the Spirit will move them to meet, develop relationships with and share the good news of Jesus with diaspora Hindus.
Praise the Most High God, the light of the world in whom there is no darkness at all (see John 8:12 and 1 John 1:5). Pray that during Diwali the Creator will send dreams and visions to Hindus that “will turn the darkness before them into light” (Isaiah 42:16). Pray that our Lord the Sustainer will demonstrate His abundant provision for Hindus in diaspora – whether migrant construction workers in the Middle East, international students in Europe, computer programmers in North America, doctors in Southeast Asia, or merchants in East Africa (see Genesis 22:14). By the authority of the Destroyer of Death, pray against spiritually evil attempts to prevent complete joy in Hindu families (see 1 Corinthians 15:24-26). Ask the Holy Spirit to prompt millions of Christ-followers to pray for their Hindu neighbors, co-workers and classmates by name and be eager to see God’s answers, as the “prayer of a righteous person has great power” (James 5:16).
Diaspora Hub: Islands of the Caribbean
The movement of people in various forms has played and continues to play a significant role on the islands of the Caribbean Sea. European exploration in the late 15th century soon led to colonization by Spain, and later by Britain, France, the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway and the United States. Indigenous peoples were usually killed or enslaved. West Africans were trafficked as slaves until the abolition of the slave trade; in the 19th century indentured servants from China, India and Indonesia were sent to the Caribbean. In modern times, much of the Caribbean economy depends on international tourism. The destruction caused by recent hurricanes has led some residents to consider moving elsewhere even as humanitarian aid workers arrive.
Praise God who “works all things together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). Ask the Lord to forgive the sins which were brought through the movement of people and to remove the offenses and hurts which linger, for “to the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness” (see Daniel 9:9). Pray that Christ-followers in the Caribbean of all languages and cultures will be strengthened, so that through them the good news of Jesus might be fully proclaimed in the islands and beyond (see 2 Timothy 4:17). Pray that the beauty of the islands would be surpassed in fame by the “glorious splendor” of the Lord’s majesty in the Church in the Caribbean (see Psalm 145:4-7).
(Information gathered from Hindu World Prayer Guide and Wikipedia)