Tonight at 6 pm, a small gathering of believers will be praying for the 11 countries of the October 2018 route A. You can join us in prayer by following this abbreviated prayer guide.
All of the following information was found from the website of http://www.operationworld.org/countries-alphabetically
COLOMBIA
Colombian missionary vision is growing. Several Amerindian peoples are closed to foreigners, but Colombians are increasingly reaching them. The large majority of Colombian missionaries serve short term within their own country. A small but growing number of Colombians have gone to other lands, but church support is limited. Pray for the ongoing ministries ofCOMIBAM as well as Centro Cristiano de Misiones Mundiales in inspiring Christians to be involved in mission.
Unreached peoples. Pray specifically for:
a) The thousands of gamines, or street urchins, in the cities. Bogotá has one of the highest numbers of street children of any Latin America city. YWAM, LAM, Tearfund and several new local ministries provide food, shelter and preparation for a life off the streets.
b) The wealthier classes are small in number but control most of the economy. White rather than mestizo, they are overwhelmingly Catholic (although often very nominal) and generally isolated from evangelicals, who focus on the poor. Their wealth and ties to the circles of political and ecclesiastical power make them objects of resentment.
c) The Muslim community numbers around 35,000 of Syrian, Lebanese or Palestinian background.
d) Student and youth work is slow and hard. The history on campuses of Marxist ideology and then post-modern individualism hinders interest in serving others and seeking God. With more than half of the population under age 25, reaching the younger generation is crucial. Campus and youth ministries and even youth-oriented prayer movements such as Tribal Generation are all growing. Pray for their work to be creative, passionate and fruitful.
ECUADOR
- The largest groups are HCJB, MAF, AoG,CB/CMML, AV, OMS, IT. Many opportunities remain for missionary recruits in supportive ministries, church planting and pioneer work in the groups mentioned below. Pray for good church-mission relationships. The ever-present danger of administrative and financial paternalism threatens to impose Western patterns and stifle Ecuadorian initiatives.
The less-evangelized:
a) The slum-dwellers of Quito and Guayaquil. Over 60% of the latter’s population are extremely poor, and many live in slums built on a polluted marsh. Few Christian workers have a vision for these deprived people.
b) The upper and middle classes are relatively unresponsive (CMA, OMS and others).
c) University and school students. Over eight agencies are involved in campus ministries among the 250,000 students (on more than 300 campuses), including CCCI, CECE (IFES),YFC, LAM and four denominational groups. There is still much room for growth.
d) The Afro-Ecuadorian people are only 0.03% evangelical. Although there are many Catholics among them, Spiritism is the true spiritual power at work in their midst. Pray for a breakthrough among this unique group.
e) The 28,000 people living on the distant and barren Galapagos Islands now have a growing ministry in their midst through MVI. The islands host many eco-tourists who, through Darwin’s legacy, are often hostile to biblical Christianity.
f) Loja province is isolated from mainstream Ecuadorian life and is only 0.1% evangelical. Operation Esperanza is a multi-agency effort to see fruit in this region through prayer, radio, evangelism and holistic ministry (SIM, OMS, WV). Good Shepherd Radio broadcasts the gospel to many isolated villages otherwise difficult to access.
PERU
Foreign missions have passed through difficult times, especially missions from the USA (over half of the missionary force in Peru); anti-US bias, accusations of espionage, occasional lack of cultural sensitivity, active hostility of anthropologists regarding Amerindian groups and widespread activities of Mormons and JWs have not helped. The majority of missionary effort is rightly directed to pioneer work in the eastern jungle, Bible translation, leadership training and the developing of holistic ministry. Some larger agencies are: CB/CMML, ABWE, SIM, MTW, BMM, VDM.
Challenge areas for ministry:
a) Lima is Latin America’s fifth-largest city. Almost two-thirds of the population live in slums ringing the city where abject poverty, unemployment and malnutrition are rife. Evangelization of the sprawling slums of Lima and nurture of churches in that difficult environment are a challenge, although Pentecostal groups, SAMS and Latin Link (LL) are seeing real progress. Praise God for the remarkable church growth in Lima through the work of foreign missions as well as many new Peruvian churches and ministries.
b) Less reached Amerindian tribal peoples. There are still a number of unreached peoples (at least 12) with populations often only a few hundred per group. Wariness of outsiders and inaccessibility make reaching them extremely sensitive work that must be undertaken with great wisdom and patience.
c) The business/professional and upper classes are traditionally staunchly Catholic and rather isolated from most existing evangelical witness. This is changing with the work of SIMand the influence of the emerging charismatic megachurches.
d) Ethnic minorities. The 9,000 Gypsies are coming to Christ in significant numbers. The nearly 900,000 Chinese have only a few established evangelical churches, and the Japanese population (declining in number) needs more of a witness.
e) Street children have multiplied in number, especially in certain areas of Lima. Poverty, social breakdown and war led to many being abused, exploited and forced to work long hours for a pittance. SU and others are working in their midst.
BOLIVIA
Evangelical Christians are growing in number and in influence, but face many challenges. Low literacy levels, lack of biblical knowledge and limited discipleship opportunities give rise to theological error and moral failure. There is a great need to raise the standard of discipleship. The Association of Evangelicals (ANDEB), a major fellowship link for churches, is committed to widespread prayer and unity. Pray for these to be achieved and for believers to increase both in quantity and quality. Some other evangelical goals are:
a) For Bolivia to become at least 30% evangelical. While growth is impressive, this goal is still some way off from being achieved.
b) Increased mission sending. Bolivia’s sending has increased significantly, but there is still scope for further growth, especially into cross-cultural missions.
c) Social engagement. Evangelicals must be at the core of Bolivia’s battle against poverty, injustice and vice by demonstrating radical Kingdom values.
ARGENTINA
Church leadership remains a critical bottleneck in further growth. Leaders who train, disciple and release other leaders into ministry and who minister in the Word and the Spirit are always needed. Pray for those involved in training through seminaries, Bible schools and TEE; there are literally hundreds across the country. Pray also for students who are hindered by lack of finance, facilities or time.
Amerindians from the Chaco have long been a marginalized and exploited minority, their cultures ravaged by the majority. Only in 1996 did the peoples of the Chaco region gain official title to their lands. Many of these groups’ beliefs are a highly syncretized blend of Catholicism and animism. Chaco peoples have become believers through the work of CMS(Wichi, Toba, Chorote, Chiriguano), Mennonites, BMS and Argentinean Baptists (Wichi) and through WV (Guarani). Pray for maturing of the indigenous Church, and for both expatriates and mainstream Argentineans to be sensitive to this. Pray also for ongoing translation programmes in indigenous languages (SIL/LETRA, UBS, CMS).
INDIA
Training Christian workers is an important need that is immediately urgent and essential in the long term.The life and health of the Church depend on the proper development of pastors, teachers, evangelists and missionaries. In churches, poor discipling and lack of teaching and modelling of biblical life and leadership are problems. India’s strong philosophical tradition and religious, cultural and ethnic diversity make adequate training crucial, but most workers are sent out with very little specific preparation for their ministry context. There are over 100,000 full-time workers in India; about half are pastoring local churches. There is, on average, one trained pastor for every six congregations. Pray for:
a) Degree-level seminaries, which now number over 100; praise God for the multiplication of these! There are three accrediting agencies – Senate of Serampore College, Asia Theological Association and Indian Institute of Missiology. Many of these seminaries are theologically evangelical. The number of seminary graduates opting for missionary service, however, is decreasing. Pray for an increasing stream of well-trained, spiritually passionate workers with a burden for effective ministry in their nation.
b) Bible schools number over 1,000 and are doubling in number every 10 years. Evangelical institutions are full. Bible schools are moving from merely teaching theology to giving practical skills for ministry, particularly for church planting.
c) Training centres for indigenous workers play a significant role. Set up largely for church planters, these number over 100 (FMPB, IEM, OM, ICRM, GEMS, Missions India, Seva Bharat, Operation Agape, others). GFA has set up 55 such centres, with 7,000 currently receiving training.
d) New, creative ways for multiplying leaders must be developed. The need is greater than what residential institutions can produce, and 90% of pastors lack access to adequate theological training. Also, residential institutions must move beyond a Western maintenance model that has minimal impact on the non-Christian majority. Thankfully, there is a growing stream of non-formal education that is looking at how to address this challenge.
e) Training Christians – those outside of the traditional roles of pastor, evangelist and missionary – to be effective witnesses and ministers is essential. The Indian Church must learn to have a greater impact in the workplace, especially in the newer areas of IT, business and such.
f) The house/cell church movement is rapidly spreading in many parts of the country, with estimates of up to 100,000 such gatherings. These movements are proving culturally appropriate, affordable, biblically authentic and very effective.
g) The South Asia Bible Commentary will be a boon to potentially hundreds of thousands of pastors, lay leaders and students.
NEPAL
Freedom of religion is guaranteed by law, but only in limited measures. Non-Hindus cannot proselytize. If they do, they risk fines, imprisonment and, in the case of expatriates, expulsion. Despite this law, the Church in Nepal grows because of courageous evangelism. Hindu fundamentalists as well as Maoists often single out Christians; their non-violent nature and connections to the West make them soft targets. Pray for perseverance for believers, that neither laws of man nor threats of violence deter them from sharing the gospel.
ARMENIA
Evangelical Christianity has thrived among the Armenian diaspora of up to eight million, with many congregations in the Middle East, North America and elsewhere. Most Armenians retain close links with their homeland even after many generations away. Since 1988, a host of Armenian churches and ministries have given generously and invested in reaching their homeland, with remarkable results. Pray for the world to be blessed through this global people.
Christian help ministries. Pray for:
a) Relief work. The legacy of the communist era includes economic depression, widespread poverty and unemployment. These heighten the value of a number of ministries (Tearfund, Elam Ministries, Love Armenia) that focus on enabling Armenians to provide for themselves economically, especially believers.
b) Youth camps in the summer provide an excellent opportunity to communicate the reality and power of the gospel to young people. Thousands each year are reached and discipled through the ministry of AMAA, which runs such camps in Armenia and several other nations.
c) Student witness is fruitful. CSUA(IFES) has groups in eight universities and colleges; others work among students, especially through summer camps (SU, Baptists). Pray for openness within students as well as permission from campus and government authorities to minister.
d) Bible distribution. Bible reading is very rare in this culturally Christian nation, but a modern Armenian version of the NT has recently been released, which may help change this. A modern-language OT is in progress. The Bible Society has an established ministry with a well-used Bible Centre in Yerevan and is reaching into schools. EHC focuses on literature distribution, often to mixed reception.
e) The JESUS film is widely used in four languages.
f) Christian Radio. TWR in Albania broadcasts in Kurmanji and Armenian. TWR also broadcasts from Armenia to nine Central Asian and Middle Eastern countries – 60 of the least-reached mega-peoples are within range of the station.
GEORGIA
The Georgian Orthodox Church’s history stretches back to AD 150; it can be regarded as the world’s second-oldest Christian nation. Communist repression, infiltration and subversion brought both martyrdom and compromise. Since Communism’s collapse and Georgian independence, many have returned to the Church of their ancestors. Some minority groups converted as well. For most Georgians, this is mostly an expression of nationalism and cultural identity, not a living spiritual faith. Pray for access to the Word of God, and that through it many may find the Truth of the gospel. Pray also for renewal among Orthodox clergy; some small beginnings of this are occurring.
The small Protestant Church struggled under Communism and, since independence, at the hands of some factions of the Orthodox Church. Evangelical ministries have been repressed, their work maligned as sectarian. They have had problems acquiring buildings and the permits necessary to hold meetings. There have been incidents of meetings being broken up, sometimes violently, and materials confiscated. Some legal changes in 2005 offer hope of greater freedom of religious expression. Pray for a relationship of mutual respect and understanding between the Orthodox and other churches; pray that Protestant and Independent churches and believers might conduct themselves in Christ-like ways, even amid hostility.
ROMANIA
A legacy of brokenness endures from the days of Ceausescu’s regime, a moral vacuum being filled with every kind of social evil. Substance abuse, prostitution, pornography, human trafficking and challenges to child welfare are widespread. Romania has one of the highest abortion rates in the world, with three or more abortions for every child born. Poverty is still common, with widespread unemployment and economic instability, caused to a large degree by rampant and entrenched corruption. Divisions in government reduce its effectiveness; major strides forward are needed in its legal, education and health care systems as well as police and local administrations. Pray for leadership that has the wisdom to chart the right path and the integrity to implement the right policies.
Christian media ministries.
a) Literature. Pray for the Christian publishing houses and for the distribution networks to establish a viable, indigenously funded literature ministry. Pray that more locally written material might become available. Few pastors have a theological library. Pray that the recent inter-confessional NT will be a blessing and a useful tool for all Bible-minded Christians.
b) Broadcasting. Radio ministry continues to develop despite difficulties with permission and licences. It is a powerful tool in Romania. RMS and HCJB collaborate with the EA on the Voice of the Gospel radio network, which includes eight FM stations, all uplinked to satellite. Pray for both local commercial Christian stations and transmissions from abroad. Alfa Omega TV and Credo are interdenominational stations available on cable, satellite and the Internet with immense potential impact in evangelism, discipleship and promoting Christian values.
ALBANIA
Christian help ministries:
a) Scripture translation. There are three complete translations of the Bible in Albanian; one literal, one paraphrased and one Catholic. The NT was recently retranslated into modern Albanian in a collaborative project of Orthodox, Catholics and Protestants; a new OT translation is underway in the same project. Pray for accuracy, timely completion and for widespread use of the Scriptures.
b) Religious literature from many faiths flooded the country upon the fall of Communism.EHC blanketed the country with Christian literature twice. Christian books are published by Vernon, Karte e Pende and Shigjeta as well as by several missions, but there are very few Christian bookstores. Pray for translation of useful Christian books and literature and for their impact.
c) Christian radio is an area of great growth. TWR, Albanian partners Gospel Waves and Radio 7 produce and broadcast non-stop on shortwave and FM via several transmitters and stations. They are hoping to expand their broadcast reach into Kosovo as well. Words of Hope is also producing and broadcasting radio programmes in Albania. Pray for wider coverage so that people in more isolated areas may also be blessed.
