Changing our world through Prayer
For fifteen years, Leroy had faithfully shown up at the prison in Longuenesse, France, to minister to the inmates. Bible studies there never seemed to work out and there were no baptisms, until recently!
As sons and daughters of our heavenly Father, it is our joy to be obedient in praying for every matter near to His heart, however hard it may seem at the time.
I told the children, “The Lord can turn nothing into something!” and I reminded them of the story of Elijah and the widow. They had a simple child-like faith and believed that God could provide for their need.
What does it mean to do an Esther fast? When do you do an Esther fast? It is important to understand the context of a biblical ‘Esther fast’ and how Believers can apply it to their own lives today.
Children and young people are in a process of finding their identity. It is important for us as adults to guide our children and help them to get Biblical answers to their identity questions.
Disillusioned with religion, Hamid sought escape from his painful circumstances in drugs and alcohol. “The Pastor on TV said to pray with him during the programme and Jesus Christ would help me.”
Although we all have a unique relationship with the Lord, the Bible gives us safeguards, principles and guidelines that help us discern what God’s will is for us in different situations.
How do we manage to give thanks to God after a year filled with seemingly unending challenges? G.K. Chesterton said: “When it comes to life, the critical thing is whether you take things for granted, or you take them with gratitude”.
On the ship to Israel we met a Jewish family who believed Jesus was the Messiah. We wondered how Jews could possibly fall into the trap of giving allegiance to the Christian God. Nazis and some of the Russians who tried to kill us, also believed in this Christian God.
Seeking Jesus’ face by praying His Word is one sure way to draw closer to Him – Jesus is the Living Word! (John 1:1) Let us pray through the I AM statements of Jesus and honour Him.
When a man from Honduras realised the man teaching him was the one in his dream, he suddenly realised how God had been pursuing him.
Taking a moment to reflect on your year allows you to see it from God’s perspective and helps you realign yourself with God’s purposes before the start of the new year. This will give you much peace and confidence in Him, whatever lies ahead in the next year.
His mind was consumed with the physical—anything spiritual did not concern him. To this doctor, there was no soul, just a body. But his own medical crisis changed all that.
Usually, one does not end up burnt out due to hard work alone. Burnout is also accompanied by emotional and spiritual fatigue, leaving a person so tired that they struggle to regain equilibrium.
Jan thought she had gone to Japan to share the love of Christ with the Japanese, yet in those early years she could understand so little of their language. She learned that God uses us even when we don’t feel very useful.
When we experience trauma it can cause us to wonder: Where was God when this happened?
In Mexico’s Chiapas state, more than 35,000 indigenous evangelical Christians have been expelled from their communities just because they are no longer taking part in their community’s religious practices and rituals.
Many Christian workers are oppressed, mocked, imprisoned or beaten for sharing the gospel in countries where religious persecution is common. They endure enormous risk to keep sharing Christ with unreached peoples. You may ask the question – what can I do?
Helen, a missionary to the Congo in Africa, was raped twice, beaten and savagely kicked, losing her back teeth through the boot of a rebel soldier. After spending 11 years of service for the African people, she wondered whether it had been worth it.
In 2021, 360 million Christians lived in countries where persecution was “significant”. Nigeria has 4 out of 5 martyrs worldwide and Afghanistan’s persecution is now worse than North Korea. They want to know we are praying with them.
In the Gulf states, believers from a Muslim background face intense persecution from their family, communities and governments. If they are found out, new believers are at serious risk of even losing their lives. And yet, still people across the Gulf are choosing faith in Jesus!
What happens in the life of an individual facing and going through hardship and persecution for their faith in Christ? In this article, we will look at what the Word says about the blessings of persecution.
He knocked and a man in a white garment opened the door. “Who are you?” Jaffar asked. The man told him he was the owner of the door and invited him in. Knowing what was behind him, Jaffar stepped over the threshold.
Throughout history, believers were persecuted for their faith. And persecution is still happening in many parts of the world today. What does the Bible say about the different types of hardships that a believer may be faced with?
Hundreds of millions witnessed Gladys Staines forgive her family’s murderers in the name of the gospel on Indian television. It “may have achieved more for the gospel in India than many years of missionary work,” according to an Indian evangelist.
Praying the ‘Our Father’ prayer can be likened to entering a spiritual house. In a sense, every part of the prayer can be viewed as a room of treasure to be explored. In this second article on the topic, we reflect on the last few facets of the ‘Our Father’ prayer.
Even if we don’t have a biological daddy anymore, we have a much better heavenly Father who is the founder and Creator of everything, including you! He cares about you and sees you where you are now.
Praying the ‘Our Father’ prayer can be likened to entering a spiritual house. In a sense, every part of the prayer can be viewed as a whole room of treasure to be explored in prayer. We reflect on each facet in two consecutive articles.
Silas, who grew up in Turkmenistan when it was part of the Soviet Union, was once an atheist in his mind and a Muslim in his heart. Watching the Jesus Film changed all that.
“We live in a place that desperately needs change. I can’t do it. I can share, I can love people, but I can’t change a single person’s heart—only God can. And so, Plan A is that we pray, and we ask Him to do what only He can do.”
This FREE booklet encourages and equips the Body of Christ to pray from Scripture for 31 days.
Have you ever wondered how you can honour the Lord more with your life? Scripture is filled with guidelines of what a life pleasing unto God looks like. Scripture also mentions the ‘crowns’ God has prepared for those who believe upon the Lord Jesus Christ.
J. Thomas was a Welsh missionary with a burden for the kingdom of Korea in the middle of the nineteenth century. He went up the Taedong River and he took as many Chinese Scriptures with him as he could carry. When they reached Pyongyang, they were not welcomed.
The Word is powerful because God has authority and power. God will never break His Word, just as He will never break His covenant with the day and with the night (Jer.33:20). Flowers may drop off and grass whither, but the Word of the Lord endures forever. (1 Peter 1:24-25).
You never know when the time is right for someone to hear the gospel. It is important to take the step of obedience to share Christ. Do it, and see what God will do.
Experience the power of God’s Word in your prayer life. Various subjects from Scripture are provided that can help you focus on the Word during times of prayer.
When Jesus taught His disciples how to pray, he also told them how they should not pray. Clearly this is important to remember in our own prayer life.
One night, as Abu fell asleep he saw somebody appear from a shining light. “Then the first question He asked me was: ‘Who are you?’ I asked Him: ‘Who are you, too?’ He said: ‘I am a King… you are a son of a King.'”
This is the second article of two parts looking at the characteristics of people who strive after holiness.
26 September – 18 November 2022. A Prayer initiative by the South African Christian Leadership Initiative ( SACLI), toward the healing of Africa from the wounds caused by slavery, colonialism, exploitation and racism.
For thirty years, a Frontiers team has added a special reminder to their communion time, and God is using it to bring more Muslims to the table.
What is true practical holiness? This article is the first of two parts looking at the characteristics of people who strive after holiness.
For hundreds of years, this group in Ethiopia lived with no witness of Jesus. Then the gospel arrived!
Are you feeling overwhelmed by everyday challenges and life in general? Perhaps you feel that God may have forgotten you, or perhaps that your prayers are not reaching His heart and ear. What does the Lord expect from us when facing challenges?
How is it possible for a Muslim Afghan man to become a Christian? Only through the transforming power of the Living Word.
Everyone is called to ministry, but only some are called to the ministry. How will you know if you are called to the ministry?
As a North Korean woman was baptised in secret there were no photos, no baptism certificate, no crowd, no hearty echoes of affirmation. But in that tiny place in the middle of nowhere, three Christians stood on holy ground.
When you read the Psalms, you will often hear David say: “Lord, where are you? Why are you silent? Why don’t you speak to me?” What must we do in such times?
Some cross-cultural workers trust the Lord to bring the right job opportunities in the right places with the right connections, all so that His name will be known and glorified among the least-reached.
Many marriages, Christian included, suffer devastation through one spouse having an extra-marital affair. Temptation is never far away. If you recognise some of the warning signs in your relationship, know that you can find your way back to safe ground.
God can use us anywhere He places us, if we would only allow Him.
Proverbs 31:10-31 describes the virtuous woman who has a godly character and whose faith is firmly set on her Maker. How can we use this example to pray for ourselves and for other women?
“How long, oh Lord? Will you forget me forever?” It’s a heartfelt cry, but is it the truth? Has God forgotten His children in North Korea? For that answer we have to investigate the spiritual life of North Korean Christians.
Women can hold on to the hope of the Lord’s promise that He has given His word of power to enable them to rise above their circumstances, to be bearers of hope and transformation.
A teenager who suffered under the Khmer Rouge communist forces when they took control of Cambodia in 1975, was filled with hatred and wanted to get revenge. How would he respond when facing his persecutor years later?
To bless others and to be a blessing to people should be an integral part of every believer’s character and conduct. That includes praying the blessing of the Lord over them.
Faith does not make room for ‘treading water’ and stagnant faith will cause your heart to harden and drift away from God. The Book of Hebrews urges readers to go on to maturity in their faith and to not remain spiritual babies.
A Christian family’s deep love and acceptance of others set a young man on a journey of serious inquiry about what it was that enabled them to live and love so freely.
In your relationship with God and other people, you will only continue to grow if you continuously experience a deeper and fuller revelation of the Fatherhood of God.
One day she realised she didn’t have any friends who weren’t believers. That seemed normal. Except, there was that little verse in Matthew 28 about making disciples. There was that… But she found strangers scary and intimidating.
“We are facing hunger on an unprecedented scale, food prices have never been higher, and millions of lives and livelihoods are hanging in the balance.” Ordinary solutions alone will not solve the problem.
When Tom’s grandfather died he began to search for the meaning of life. Others expected Tom to go into the priesthood at a Hindu temple, but he had questions.
It was very dear to Jesus’ heart and also a command from Him that the church should be a house of prayer (Matt.21:13), but this is one of the greatest challenges for churches.
Danesh is a father who went from being an alcoholic who shamed his family, to a spiritual leader pointing his family to Jesus.
The Book of Revelation is the revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ (Rev 1:1). There are at least 20 names of the Lord Jesus found in chapters 1-3 and it is important that we focus on them.
Pausing and praying slowly through Psalm 23 unveils the character of God in greater depth, lighting up truths that can otherwise easily be missed.
Knowing and understanding God’s character, commands and works, will help us to discern His will and voice through the Holy Spirit.
Let us share our desires for our grandchildren with the Lord. When we pray according to His will, we know that He hears us and will answer our prayers (1 John 5:14-15).
The overflow of singing praises amid great difficulties has tremendous spiritual power for helping to win the spiritual battle.
If the prayers you pray do not move your own heart, do you think it will move the heart of God?
Ninety percent of the time, when Jay invested his time and energy in sharing the gospel with Muslim men, he didn’t see fruit resulting from it. God had never promised his followers that they would see fruit.
In Psalm 86 David touches on 10 attitudes of the heart when coming before God in prayer.
Persecution and violent attacks are a reality for many Christians around the world, but surprisingly it can make us stronger in our faith.
Contralesa (Congress of Traditional Leaders of South Africa) suggests that the 8th of May become a public holiday, called Ancestors Day – a day for the veneration of the ancestors. Let us pray about this practice which forms part of ancestor worship.
Why are my prayers not answered? Why does it take so long for certain prayers to be answered? Is there a different way in which to pray that will render my prayers more effective?
Russia invaded Ukraine on a Thursday and by that Saturday the first Ukrainian refugees arrived on the front steps of a church in the Bucharest area in Romania. How would the church respond?
Have you ever felt upset with yourself for saying something that was unnecessary? It is possible for us to grow in wisdom to discern those times the enemy wants to tempt us into saying or doing things that are really not displaying the fruit of the Spirit or the character of Christ.
Geylan asked God why He had allowed them to go through wars and lose their home in Syria. She asked Him if Jesus was really God. Then, as she slept, she saw her spirit leave her body and ascend high up. And God spoke to her.
Sikhism is based on the teachings of the ten Gurus contained in ‘Guru Granth Sahib’. Their pursuit is forever to strive for salvation through balancing work, worship and charity. They don’t know yet that Jesus is their only Saviour.
A man of God commands respect without words and he is awe-inspiring, but it is not respect and awe regarding the man himself. In an inexplicable way, we instinctively know that God is in this man. Why are there so few men of God?
Upon hearing yet another testimony of a believer’s martyrdom, many questions can rise. “Why this tragedy, Lord? How long will you allow this to continue? What is the sense in all of this?”
We take a look at Billy Graham’s own description of how he studied the Bible and see if we can’t find some good advice and encouragement for our own study in the Word.
There are more childless couples than we realise. Many have tried everything humanly possible without success and they struggle physically, emotionally and spiritually. How can you pray if this is you?
Our God is both gracious and compassionate. As we choose to follow Him, He wants us to follow His example and be kind and open-hearted.
During this time of conflict between Ukraine and Russia, we need to lay hold of the Lord for His glory to be displayed – regardless of personal and media opinions. More than ever, we need to exercise discernment, wisdom and withhold ourselves from choosing sides.
Some in the Church wonder whether conversion, and its corporate expression, revival, are not just manifestations of Western individualistic thinking. What does the Bible say?
The life, character and prayer life of Daniel provide secrets to unlocking spiritual breakthrough in our communities and nations (Daniel 5:11). This is a call to 21 days of 24-7 prayer and fasting for godly leadership in society, awakening of the Church and salvation of nations.
The 1857 prayer revival that began as a small prayer meeting for businessmen in lower Manhattan, New York, spread throughout the US and other parts of the world – including at sea.
The power of God works through men who consecrate their lives to God. This is the last article in our 3-part series exploring the characteristics of such men.
Aunty Alice was the wife of Pastor Allen Yuan in China, who was imprisoned for 21 years. She had five children and her mother-in-law to care for. One night her mother-in-law informed her, “There is no rice left to feed the children tomorrow morning!” Alice complained to the Lord.
Connecting with God can easily be mistaken as having a specific ‘feeling’ or ‘experience’ when praying. Although that can serve as a great bonus, what can you do when you do not feel or experience anything?
In February 2022 we will embark on a journey we call ‘Unlocking Prayer’. This will be done in the form of a video series. Watch the trailer and subscribe so that you don’t miss any of these teachings.
The age of a child and their experience will determine how able they are to pray. However, listen to the prayers of a child concerning someone or something that is close to their heart, and you will hear the fervency with which they can pray.
Many people want to be more fruitful in God’s kingdom and desire a deeper and closer relationship with God. This is an invitation to join other Christians to pray “The Prayer of Jabez” daily (or as often as possible) until June 2022. The aim is for at least 1000 Christians to participate.
In Southeast Asia frontline workers were told that the people had been waiting for them to pray for a man who were troubled by an evil spirit. The spirit made him physically and mentally disabled. And so the frontline workers prayed.
The power of God works through men who consecrate their lives to God. In this 3-part series we explore the characteristics of such men. This is part two in the series.
Whether the past year was a “mountain top” or a “valley of despair” year for you, pause a moment to reflect.
Catea was asked to start a project to support the elderly in her home village in Moldova. She was worried what people in the community might think, as they knew her and her background.
Nobody likes a rude person, but often Christians leave such an impression when they share their testimony or faith. So, how can you gracefully share your faith with an unbeliever?
We must pray for our first responders e.g. Police service, Fire and rescue service, Medical and Emergency response teams. Added to the tragic and devastating situations that they are exposed to, they are sometimes hindered to do their work with efficiency due to corruption, violence and mismanagement.