PRAYING ‘ROUND THE SAM REGION
June, 2008
2008 Emphasis: Pray for the Southern Baptist Convention that will be held June 10-11, 2008 in Indianapolis, IN. The IMB Report and Presentation will be on the evening of Wednesday, June 11. The 2008 Emphasis will be on South America. Pray that God will call many out to be involved in winning the lost of this continent.
PEOPLE GROUP FOCUS: The Vlach Gypsies of Brazil
“For a day in Thy courts is better than a thousand outside.” Please lift before the Lord the 330,000 Vlach Gypsies (or Lovari or Kalderash people), who live in Brazil without knowing how great it is to live in the court of the Lord. They are 0.0% evangelized and need to know Jesus. Presently there is no one engaging this people group. Pray for Brazilian believers to not be afraid to go to the Vlach gypsies and share the gospel with them.
Posted on website: www.imb.org/southamerica
DAY 1
PARAGUAY: (Greater Asuncion Team) – Please pray with IMB missionaries, Donnie and Lori Starkey, for God’s preparation here in Paraguay for a volunteer team that will be coming May 27- June 5. The team will be prayer walking and sharing gospel presentations in several schools, parks, and the one Baptist church in Arrollos y Esteros, where about 14,000 people live. Pray that God will prepare the hearts of the youth and adults, both on the team and national Paraguayans that will help share the gospel with ones in this area. Pray for the lost need to hear the gospel and respond to it, that God will prepare their hearts to hear, and that they will come to the presentations and receive the gospel. Please pray for safety for the team, the missionaries, and nationals involved as they travel and work in the country during this time. Pray that this will be an encouraging and positive experience in the lives of the team members and others involved.
DAY 2
URUGUAY: Criollo Uruguayan Team, interior of Uruguay:Generation Xers are the new missionaries who have a zeal to win the world for Christ. Pray for Amy Wright and Joni Howard, summer missionaries to San Jose, who will be leading Bible studies, discipleship groups, and evangelistic activities with adolescent girls and young adult ladies from June 2 – July 31. Also, pray that this zeal will touch and change the lives of these persons with whom they will be working.
DAY 3
URUGUAY: Urban Team, Montevideo, Uruguay: June 3rd of each year thousands of person head to the middle of the country of Uruguay to pay tributes and pray to San Cono who is an adopted saint of good luck. Persons have been known to walk the 95 kilometers from the capital of Montevideo in order to express their thankfulness for some blessing they feel that San Cono has awarded them. Pray that the hold of idolatry will be broken and that Uruguay will be known for as a Country who knows and follows Christ.
DAY 4
BRAZIL: Urban Center Belém, Pará: A group of five Baptist volunteers from Tennessee will return to Belém(Bey-LANE) to continue a partnership with a local church. The Brazilian church is also preparing their first mission trip to Chile in July. Pray that this relationship will deepen, they may be equipped and encouraged and that together they may serve God and accomplish His desires to bring the people of Belém and Chile to salvation.
DAY 5
CHILE: More than 4,000 people had to evacuate the city of Chaiten in south Chile due to the eruption of Chaiten Volcano. They have been told that it will be at least 3 months before anyone can return to the city. Pray that their physical, emotional, economic and spiritual needs will be met, and that Christians in the cities where they are will have an effective witness that will result in the salvation of many.
DAY 6
PARAGUAY: (Deaf Team) Praise God with us that 16 students have enrolled in Seminary Extension classes that began in March and will go through November. The classes are for the first time being offered in Paraguayan sign language. Please pray for the students, the future Deaf pastors and church leaders, as they take evangelism, church planting and discipleship classes. Also pray for missionaries Ray and Cindy Hodgins and national leaders Mirta and Ruth as they teach, mentor, and encourage the seminary students.
COSTA RICA LANGUAGE SCHOOL: Please pray for the Field Hermeneutics Conference for Language School Missionaries in San Jose, Costa Rica June 6-7, 2008. Pray that the Lord would speak powerfully to each one through His Word.
DAY 7
CHILE: Six women from the IMB office in Richmond gave a week of their time and energy to encourage various ministries in Santiago. Pray that God will use the impact they had on people’s lives to make an eternal difference. Join us in thanking God for their unselfish willingness to serve and inspire both Chileans and the missionaries they worked with.
DAY 8
VENEZUELA: The week of June 8th-13th the Professional Team of Maracay (mar-a-KI), Venezuela will be hosting Dr. Dan Taylor and his wife, Priscilla from Mobile, Alabama. They have been with us before, leading conferences and Bible studies for professionals. Please pray for them this week as Dan will be speaking to health professionals at two hospitals on the importance of treating not only the physical needs of patients, but also the emotional and spiritual needs as well. At the same time, Priscilla will be speaking to groups of professional ladies. Pray that all the events will be well-attended and new small groups may be started as part of the follow-up after the conferences.
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DAY 9
COLOMBIA: Nicodemus Team: In June and July the El Camino (The Way) Baptist Church in the northern part of Bogotá will host a volunteer team who will come to teach intensive classes in English. Pray that many people who live in the neighborhood of the church, school teachers, and other non-Christian friends and families of church members will attend the classes, learn English, hear the sharing of the Gospel, and come to know Christ as Lord and Savior.
DAY 10
DAY 11
ECUADOR: In April, a National Strategy Coordinator training retreat was held in Ecuador. Ten key leaders from the Central Sierra attended. Pray that they will use what they learned to begin new works in this area. Pray for missionary Johnny Maust as he coordinates the work in the Central Andes of Ecuador.
DAY 12
PERU: In the village of Chiquian, high in the Andes Mountains of Peru, 5 leaders of the Chiquian Baptist Church are meeting weekly with missionary, Keith Hocutt, to deepen their understanding of their life in Jesus. Ask God to open the minds of these 5 men to recognize and take their responsibility to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit in order to lead their own families to God and direct the church. Thank God for their openness and desire to study the Bible and to seek God’s will for the church and its out-reach to the community. Pray for the families of these men to see the witness of these brothers, husbands and fathers and know the difference that Jesus makes in a life!
DAY 13
BRAZIL: Urban Team, Fortaleza: The Fortaleza (for-tah-LAY-zah) Brazil Urban Team would like to request prayer for one of our team members as he takes his church plant to the next level. Three years ago, seminary student, Wagner, and his wife, Patrícia, began a new work in the Parque Albano community. With a Church Planting Jump-Start Kit and a women’s craft project, they started with just their family. God blessed them to secure land and build a worship area full of people…so a month ago they launched a new mission in the next community! Pray for their team as they plant this new work, that the Lord will give them strength, guidance and encouragement.
DAY 14
URUGUAY: Urban Team, Montevideo, Uruguay: Please pray for our International World Changers team that will be working in Montevideo, June 14th thru the 21st. They will be involved with GAP (Gospel Advancement Project) and working with seven neighborhood projects. Pray that many would be reached through this team of youth and college students. Most of the Uruguayan missionary team will be helping with this effort. Pray for the extensive follow up time for this event that outreach groups can be started with the contacts made during the week.
DAY 15
COLOMBIA: Indigenous refugee team: There have very recently been some security issues concerning working in the refugee neighborhoods of Bogota. Please pray for security of Stan and Debra and other team members as they work amid the people there. Pray that Storying will be adapted by the indigenous of Guiania, so that God and His Word would become real to them and change their lives. Pray especially for Solomon as he teaches other Indigenous Christian to Story the bible so that they can take the Word to all indigenous nations.
DAY 16
CHILE: June 16-21 a volunteer team from 1st Baptist, McKinney, TX will lead a basketball clinic in the Maria Eufrasia Catholic School in Ovalle at their invitation. This is the first opportunity to work in a Catholic school in the area. Missionaries Ken and Linda Bowie will be working with the team.
DAY 17
ECUADOR: The Guayas Mestizo Team asks that you remember in prayer the five sub-teams who are going out five nights a week training different churches in the COSECHA discipleship/church planting materials. Our goal is for every church that we train to plant at least one other church, every believer trained to win/disciple at least four others this year.
DAY 18
ARGENTINA: Héctor and Cintia were the last ones to sign up for the mission trip. As young believers they struggled with the commitment of time away from their university studies, and with how they were going to explain to their un-churched parents this expenditure of limited resources. God has been at work in their lives, and they are learning to put Him first and then to trust His provision. Héctor and Cintia prepared to serve during the trip by taking the two main roles in the drama group¹s mime representation of God¹s creation of man, man¹s rebellion, and God¹s provision of redemption. Héctor and Cintia were able to see how this simple put powerful presentation of the gospel touched many lives during the mission trip, and they returned from this experience with a new understanding of God¹s provision, and a new commitment to serving him. Thank God for his work in Héctor and Cintia. Ask God to continue his work in their lives as they grow in maturity and service.
DAY 19
VENEZUELA: God has been blessing us so much by having the Jesus film in the P language. We have a P team of translators who are doing the revision of the New Testament in their own language and also preparing P discipleship material. There is still a lot of need to have Bible stories recorded in their own language so the people who can’t read have access to God’s Word. There is a training of three and a half months by the Grabaciones Buenas Nuevas (Good News Recording) in Colombia that we need to send one person or a couple to. This training will be so wonderful because the P team will have everything they need to reach their own people. Please pray that the Lord will lift a P young man or a couple that will be willing to do this ministry for His Glory!! The training will start the first part in July and the rest in October.
DAY 20
ARGENTINA: PARAGUAYAN CRIOLLO OF NORTHERN ARGENTINA TEAM: I. is a 17-year-old Paraguayan Criollo believer. He faithfully attends church services, studies the Bible, and helps wherever needed at church. He lives in a one-room, 10-foot-by-10-foot home with his mother, two brothers and his sister. Life is not easy for I., but he remains faithful to the Lord. Pray for I. as he continues to grow in the Lord and matures spiritually. Pray that I. will follow God’s plan for his life and will be faithful to share the gospel with other Paraguayan Criollos.
DAY 21
COSTA RICA LANGUAGE SCHOOL:
SAM Apprentice Missionaries
Pray for the 21 apprentice missionaries who begin their first year of missionary service with intensive language study. SAM missionaries spend their first year in San José, Costa Rica studying Spanish before they go to the country God has called them to serve. In addition to attending the language institute, they begin to learn how to minister to the lost in their new cross-cultural setting. This experience is their first opportunity to share the claims of Christ in the heart language of the people of Latin America. Apprentice missionaries are involved in a wide range of evangelistic activities that enable them to share their faith. For example: small group Bible studies, witnessing to neighbors, translating for volunteers, making friends, personal evangelism and discipling new believers.
DAY 22
BOLIVIA: Please continue to pray for Bolivia Baptist Convention as they continue to catch a missionary call. Pray the Evangelism and Mission Board (JEM) as they support Bolivian missionaries both in Bolivia and overseas. Pray for the local churches Baptist churches that have also sent out missionaries to begin works in areas of Bolivia where there are no churches. Praise God for their faithful support of these endeavors.
DAY 23
COSTA RICA LANGUAGE SCHOOL: Pray for John and Jessica Pham, missionaries to Peru. They work in a half way house called “The House of Restoration” that ministers to alcohol and drug addicts. John works with the men and Jessica works with the women. Their ministry activities include developing friendships, small group Bible studies, preaching, and discipleship training.
DAY 24
PARAGUAY: (Deaf Team) June 24-July 1 – Pastor Gary Wieborg is leading a volunteer team of 8 from First Baptist Church Bratt, Florida. Please pray for the team as they prayer walk, share their faith, teach painting classes and encourage national workers and church members of the Deaf community. Pray for open doors as we seek for new contacts and open hearts to the Gospel of Christ.
DAY 25
COSTA RICA LANGUAGE SCHOOL: Please join the Language Missionaries in San Jose, Costa Rica in praying for a local ministry to a settlement called ‘La Carpio.’ This is a settlement of thousands of immigrants from other Central American countries who have little in the way of material possessions but who are so valuable to our Savior. Please pray for John McLamb, Jeff Holeman, Jessica Dooley and others who minister each week through playing, Bible studies and personal evangelism. Pray especially for God’s Spirit to move through La Carpio and that reproducing churches will be planted.
DAY 26
ECUADOR: The Chinese Team, Ecuador: Praise God that the Bible Study led by a believer in Guayaquil is starting to share their faith among their friends in the nearby communities. Pray God will give them the boldness and a fruitful spiritual
harvest.
DAY 27
REGIONAL: Please pray for the Brazil Annual General Meeting (AGM) that begins today and will conclude on July 1. Pray that this will be a time of wonderful spiritual renewal, training, and fellowship.
DAY 28
BRAZIL: Regional Field Mobilization Team: The Regional Field Mobilization Team writes — “While several of the countries in the South American Region have a number of strong mission agencies, there are others that are hampered in their mission sending. Some do not have a mission board at all, or do not have a foreign mission board yet established among Baptists or other Great Commission Christian groups either. Some countries feel they are unable to send missionaries or maintain them on the field due to a weak financial footing. Some leaders have not yet caught the vision that the Great Commission calls all Christians to the task, and so have not pushed to organize a mission board yet. Nevertheless, God is calling out many Christians to become missionaries in all the SAM countries — so pray that one way or another, through our SAM mobilizers or through others, we might be able to push away the obstacles that have impeded Latin missionaries and watch a veritable flood of missionaries go to the remaining unreached peoples and harvest fields of the world!
DAY 29
COLOMBIA: Paisa team: “How can a person’s name be written in the Lamb’s Book of Life?” That was the question from H, a man who started attending church just 8 weeks ago with his family. We were studying Revelation 3:5 which talks about the Book of Life and how “the victor’s” name will never be erased. The leaders stopped the study and explained to H how a person can have their name written in the Book of Life. After a few minutes and several more questions H prayed aloud in his own living room to accept the Lord as his personal Savior. After the prayer H. asked “Why do I feel so different? I feel like someone has lifted a big weight off of me?” The leader went on to tell him, “You now have the Holy Spirit who lives in you!!” Praise the Lord with the Paisa (PIE’ sah) team for H and his family. Pray for H and his wife to mature in their new walk with the Lord and as they are baptized. Lift up before the Lord the four children who have not yet made a decision for Christ.
DAY 30
VENEZUELA: The teachers are teaching, the students are studying, the lodgings are very good! But, the Centro de Capacitación de Misioneros Trans-Culturales (Center of Missionary Cross-cultural Training) is in great need of a director. Please join the Mobilization Team in praying that God will call forth the Godly, mission-hearted Venezuelan that is the person for this role.
Church Planting Movements among all peoples; the gospel to every person; every believer a full participant in the Great Commission.
