Download English pdf here.
Prayer requests from Global Diaspora Forum participants
We praise God for the increased awareness and interest of God’s purposes among the people on the move. Please pray for wisdom for ministries, denominations and other organizations who are addressing Kingdom perspectives on migration through workshops, conferences and other gatherings. Pray that these will lead to increased effective engagement with diaspora peoples and issues and that Scattered and Gathered: A Global Compendium of Diaspora Missiology will prove to be a valuable resource for such a time as this.
Ask the Lord to give wisdom to the editors to identify those to write book reviews of the compendium to be published in the mission and ministry journals. Please pray that many educational and training institutions will make use of the compendium in their courses and programs. Pray for the safe arrival of the compendiums to their destinations as they are shipped from Chicago and Manila.
An outreach campaign was recently held in two Israeli cities among Russian-speaking as well as American Jews. Please pray that the Holy Spirit will remind people of their conversations so that even those who may have initially rejected the Truth will turn their hearts toward the Lord. Pray also for continued boldness and power for those following Yeshua in these cities.
Over a billion people will be observing a month of fasting when Ramadan begins June 6. Please pray that the Lord will send dreams and visions and cause spiritual breakthroughs to happen among many Muslims. Pray for Christ-followers to pray by name for friends, classmates, co-workers and neighbors who are Muslims living in diaspora. Pray for the Lord’s grace and favor to be evident in the lives of Christ-followers living in diaspora in Muslim-majority countries.
Pray for Israeli post-army trekkers in northern India to encounter the Living God. Messianic Jews and Indian Christ-followers are partnering together for opportunities to reach out to these young adults from June through August. Pray that there would be many meaningful spiritual conversations. Please also ask the Lord to protect and grant health to those who are working with this ministry.
The Korean Diaspora Forum will be meeting in Paris from June 21-24. Please pray that this gathering will be fruitful and have a great impact for Christ’s Kingdom. Pray for safe and pleasant travels for all those involved, including ST.
Please pray for planned outreaches in July among Jewish peoples in Budapest and Berlin. Pray for softened hearts and opened eyes among Hebrew, Russian and German speaking Jews. Please come against the plans of the enemy to hinder those who will be sharing the good news.
The UK will be voting on June 23 on a referendum on its membership in the European Union, a vote which has many implications for migration and travel. We lift up Jesus, Ruler over all the kingdoms of the nations. Pray for increased opportunity for Christ-followers to share the good news of the Kingdom with migrants in the UK and across Europe.
Pray that our Savior will make a way so that, in every place, the kingdom of God may be proclaimed with all boldness and without hindrance.
Diaspora People Group in Focus: Burmese
Most Burmese, the dominant people group of Myanmar (Burma), hold a mixture of Buddhist and animist beliefs, making them one of the largest unreached people groups in the world. The Burmese-led military’s violence against ethnic and religious minorities led to the scattering of many of the people groups of Burma, including Rohingya and various Karen and Chin groups. Close to 1 in 30 ethnic Burmese live outside of Myanmar, including political dissidents and economic migrants.
Praise God, who shows no partiality and who grants forgiveness to all who believe in Him, for the plans He has to draw Burmese people to Himself. Pray that many ethnic Burmese living in diaspora will experience the authority of Christ over evil spirits as well as the Lord’s compassion in our sufferings. Pray that Karen and Chin followers of Christ living in diaspora will love their Burmese neighbors. Ask our Heavenly Father to protect Burmese in Thailand from those who might try to exploit them. Pray that Burmese in Bangladesh will hear in their own language the message of hope in Christ. Pray that culturally relevant, Bible-based resources will be available to every Burmese person, whether they are living in Asia, Europe or North America.
Country of Diaspora: Lebanon (video prayer for Lebanon)
The turmoil in past decades of civil war and conflicts with neighboring nations led a reported 80% of Lebanon’s population to have been at least temporarily displaced at some point. Now relatively politically stable, Lebanon has become a shelter for many refugees, asylum-seekers and stateless peoples, who make up around 1 in 5 people there. Unlike the other nations in the region, Lebanon has religious freedom, including the freedom to legally change one’s religious affiliation.
Praise God for the freedom and peace which Lebanon currently enjoys. Many Christ-followers left Lebanon during the wars; pray that the Lord will give courage and clear vision to those who remain. Ask God to bring healing across the land and to allow those who follow Christ to lead in extending forgiveness and working towards reconciliation with people from different religious traditions. Pray that the Lord will raise up more pastors and other spiritual leaders so that the Church may be strengthened and grow in maturity. Pray that God’s Word communicated over radio, TV and internet programs will bear fruit among many peoples.
Praise God for the open opportunity to share the good news of Christ with international migrants in Lebanon. Praise Him also for the Bible colleges and seminaries which host students from across the region. Please pray for God’s favor to rest upon our brothers and sisters who are training to become servant-leaders so that the Kingdom may advance. Pray that many Syrians, Iraqis, Kurds and Palestinians will come to know the Creator as their refuge. Pray that the stateless, including children born in Lebanon of refugees and asylum-seekers, will see the Lord’s provision of jobs, healthcare, education and a heavenly country. Pray for the Lord’s protection over 250,000 migrant domestic workers from nations such as Ethiopia, Sri Lanka, and the Philippines; pray that He will bring hope and deliverance to those in dangerous situations.
(Information gathered from Al Jazeera, Joshua Project, Operation World, UNHCR)