2015 March Prayer Powerlines

March 2015
On this mountain the Lord Almighty…will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations; he will swallow up death forever.  -Isaiah 25:7 

1. FILM PROJECT. The Hudson Taylor Film Project is at a critical juncture in the development stage. God has provided the finances to complete a screenplay, but $168,000 is needed in donations by April 1, 2015 for meetings with Chinese film studios, finding potential investors and translating the screenplay into Chinese. Pray for wisdom for the film’s leadership and God’s provision for the needed funding. [Update: Praise God for his provision! The development stage is fully funded.]
2. IMPACT CONFERENCE. Intercede for the IMPACT Conference in early March in California. IMPACT seeks to mobilize and ignite church-planting movements among Southeast Asia’s 230 million Muslims. Ask that many churches and believers would answer God’s call to go and live among those who need to hear the gospel of grace.
3. SUCCESS STORY. At his baptism ceremony, a young Chinese man shared how he had gone to London to study, then heard the gospel in his own language at a Mandarin Bible Forum. Upon returning home to China, he started attending a returnee fellowship group, then got plugged into a local house church. Pray that this man’s story would be commonplace for Chinese scholars studying overseas.
4. CAMBODIAN CHURCHES. OMF International partners with the Fellowship Churches of Cambodia (FCC) to help train, encourage and resource local pastors. As the number of Cambodian churches increases, we are looking to increase partnership. Pray for a retreat on March 6-7 including local church leaders and OMF workers. Ask God to strengthen relationships and guide plans for future partnership.
5. RETURNEE RETREATS. Pray for wisdom for the North American Diaspora team as they pilot Chinese Returnee Retreats this year to prepare Chinese returnee Christians for the challenge of returning home with new faith. Mentors who will walk alongside retreat participants need to be identified and trained. Pray for God to guide the planning.
6. PEOPLE OF PEACE. As Christian workers in Laos take short-term teams around unreached villages looking for “people of peace” (people receptive to hearing the gospel), pray that God would lead them to homes where hearts are prepared for Christ and willing to release their fear of spirits and idol worship.
7. INFO LEAKS. A study cited by Robert King, U.S. Special Envoy for North Korean Human Rights Issues, reports that 85 percent of refugees and travelers abroad have seen foreign DVDs in North Korea.  King says that information and media leaks into the North are rising. Pray that DPRK citizens would start to realize that life and truth exist outside of their country and its self-reliant philosophies.
8. CHINESE IN POVERTY. Several hundred million people live in poverty in China, despite China’s rapidly growing middle class. The poor are pensioners, the disabled, drug addicts, street children and hordes of migrant workers in slum dwellings in the suburbs. Pray that the Chinese church would reach out to the rural and urban poor.
9. CHRISTIAN CENTER. Some Christian workers feel an immediate need to reopen the Aomori Christian Center, which once operated in Aomori, in the northern part of the Tohoku region of Japan. Pray for God’s blessing and empowerment as workers make plans, that the Japanese near the center would know God’s love for them.
10. GOSPEL CHOIRS. “Gospel music is more popular here in Japan than the gospel itself,” says a Christian worker. It is not uncommon for non-Christian Japanese to join these gospel choirs, and sometimes conversions result. Pray that the gospel’s popularity would increase through these choirs and that the Japanese would know Christ as a result.
11. AKHA PEOPLE. The Golden Triangle is the place where Laos, Thailand and Myanmar meet. The Akha people who live there are an animistic and ancestor-worshiping people, but they are rapidly coming to Christ—so much so that there are not enough spiritual leaders for them. Pray that God provides the necessary training to raise up spiritual leaders for the Akha.
12. RADIO BROADCAST. Pray for a training in Cambodia, taking place March 13-25 to teach local believers how to produce a Christian radio broadcast in Ratanakiri Province. Ask God to use the broadcast for the spread of the gospel among unreached Cambodians.
13. LOCAL SHARING. “We knew about the Creator God but we never heard about Jesus,” said a believer from a minority group in a village outside of Hanoi, Vietnam. He did not hear about Christ until he left the country for work. Pray that Vietnamese believers would be diligent in sharing the gospel with the lost around them.
14. TRANSLATION. Pray for a team in Vietnam that is trying to translate Christian resources into a local language. Their language helpers have cancelled on them numerous times. Pray that God will frustrate the plans of the Evil One, and show a way forward for the workers.
15. THEOLOGICAL EDUCATION. Established in 1995, the Union Bible Theological College (UBTC) is Mongolia’s only inter-denominational Bible college. The rise of cults and false teachings makes theological education critical for developing Mongolian pastors and leaders, many of whom cannot afford seminary. Pray that God provides funds to make theological education more accessible in Mongolia.
16. EQUIPPED TEACHERS. “The rapid growth of urban and rural churches demands more equipped pastors and lay leaders,” say Christian workers in China. Ask God to provide trainers who are theologically sound and culturally adaptable, that the Chinese church will not just grow in scope, but in righteousness and devotion to Christ.
17. UNREACHED FILIPINO VILLAGES. In the Philippines, 29 million people live in 21,000 villages that have no evangelical witness. Ask for God to send messengers of the gospel to them and for villagers to repent and turn to the living God for salvation.
18. TEACHER AND MENTOR. Lift up OMF International worker Amor Hallowell as she teaches three classes at the Biblical Seminary of the Philippines, while also mentoring students and some Filipino Christian women. Ask that Amor be filled with the Spirit and be able to speak words of life, wisdom and encouragement to those she influences.
19. PREPARING THE WAY. A devout Muslim woman in Southeast Asia has begun listening to Christian songs. Another Muslim in the area has started reading the Bible on her cell phone. Praise God for these encouraging signs and ask that these women would respond to the words they are seeing and hearing and surrender to Christ.
20. PROJECTS ON HOLD. Hold-ups relating to government permissions need to be resolved in order for several projects in an unreached area of Southeast Asia to move forward. Please pray for administrative logjams to be cleared soon and that the projects would be allowed to start as a means of blessing to the local communities there.
21. NO FEAR. A new worker in Southeast Asia was robbed recently. Ask that she not let fear interfere in her life and ministry. Ask that she will live in the peace that God is in control and that she can always find rest in him.
22. GUEST HOME MANAGERS. At OMF International’s international headquarters in Singapore, the new guest home managers recently received their employment passes. Praise God for this and ask for his blessing as this couple begins this vital ministry to the fellowship.
23. FORTUNE TELLERS. In Taiwan, fortunetellers can be seen and consulted almost anywhere—markets, temples, near railway stations etc. Ask for God to break the spiritual bondage in these peoples’ lives and in the lives of those in Taiwan who consult them on a regular basis.
24. RETURNING TO THAILAND. A veteran OMF International missionary is returning to Thailand in March after several difficult years in the U.S., during which time he lost his wife to cancer. Ask for God to help him persevere and serve with joy among the people he loves dearly.
25. BUDDHIST INFLUENCE.Thailand’s religious culture is a complex web of spirit appeasement, occult practices and Buddhism, which is closely interwoven with social culture. Pray that Christians may be able to express their faith without losing their cultural identity.
26. COUNTER-CULTURAL. In a recent sermon, U.S. pastor John Piper noted that after 350 years of general cultural acceptance of Christianity in America, that is starting to no longer be the case—and that may be a good thing. Pray that the U.S. church would be a loving, Christ-centered, sacrificial, gospel-proclaiming church that shines in darkness no matter the social, cultural or physical costs.
27. VIRTUAL TEAMS. Many of OMF International’s departments and teams now function as “virtual teams” who are not based in a single location, but meet via online software and e-mail. Pray for these virtual teams to still function in a unified, God-glorifying way that is productive and fruitful for the gospel’s advance in East Asia.
28. LINK ASIA. The OMF International (U.S.) Link Asia team recently spent a few days thinking and praying about how to come alongside churches that God is calling to take up the burden of missions.  Pray for the Link Asia team as they work on connecting U.S. churches and overseas missionaries and teams to partner together in reaching East Asia’s billions.
29. AREA COORDINATORS NEEDED. Praise God for the Global Ministry Group movement that continues to grow throughout the U.S. In light of this growth and future possibilities, ask God to raise up new Area Coordinators to join the OMF International (U.S.) Mobilization team to lead and facilitate this movement.
30. MATCHING GIFT. Two OMF International missionary appointees are rejoicing that a financial supporter has committed to match the next $350 of monthly support that God provides for them. Praise God for moving in people’s hearts to give, and pray for the remaining financial support for this family to come in soon.
31. CHANGE IN CANADA. There have been many changes to government rules and regulations in Canada recently. The OMF International Canada office asks for prayer that the changes in the national health care system do not adversely affect people who live for long periods of time outside of Canada—such as OMF International Canada missionaries.

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