Staff team retreat

Pray for Carrie, Tara, Dave and Cathrin, the Innsbruck City Team, as they meet for a couple days to reflect on both their ministry as a team and as individuals. They will be praying, listening and planning their ministry for the coming year as well as celebrating what God has done among them this past year. 

Answered prayer for baby

Two weeks ago Tony and Laurie, ReachGlobal personnel in Asia, were mentally and emotionally grieving the loss of their baby Laurie is carrying when God stepped in. Praise the Lord for hearing the prayers of many and moving in a miraculous way. After 10 days in the hospital, Laurie is back home and on complete bed rest. Pray for her as she disciplines herself to rest and wrestles with feelings of helplessness and discouragement. Pray for Tony and their two daughters that God would give them patience and grace as they take on extra responsibilities during the months left until the baby is born. Pray for God’s healing hand and Divine purpose for their baby boy.

Departing for the field

Pray for David, Tina, and their four children who are departing the U.S. to join the Birmingham City Team. They have their support and God has supplied housing near schools and transportation for them.  Pray for safe travel, the needed furnishings for their apartment, a smooth process getting the children registered in schools, and their swift and easy adaption to the culture.

Car accident

Wednesday evening (Aug. 25) Oksana, wife of David who is ReachGloblal staff with EFCA EQUIP, was in a car accident.  A driver broadsided her car. Their daughter, Elizabeth, was with her, and was treated and released.  Pray for Oksana who is still in the hospital under observation as there was bruising to one of her kidneys. Praising the Lord that it appears there are no major injuries. Please pray for Oksana and the family. This possibly could affect their planned trip to Ukraine in September.

School year begins at HOPAC

Pray for the new elementary principal, new secondary principal, and new director at Haven of Peace Academy (HOPAC) in Tanzania. Praise God for the new administration He has brought to HOPAC and the evidence so far that they are godly, visionary and gifted. School started yesterday and there is still an urgent need for an upper-level English teacher. There is a person interested but she still needs to get her visa and her support before she can fill this position. Ask the Lord to work out His perfect will in this situation for this teacher and for HOPAC. 

Establishing grace groups in DR

Pray for Clyde and Rebecca, ReachGlobal Latin America area staff, ministering and encouraging the church plants in the Dominican Republic. Rebecca is supervising and helping to develop leaders for the grace group ministry “Corazones Abiertos.” Clyde is focusing on discipling pastors and male lay leaders in the churches and helps develop a partnership program for Ministrios Bendiciones.

Flooding in Pakistan

Monsoon rains have resulted in the worst flooding in Pakistan’s history, impacting 20 million people. The floods have washed away food stored until next harvest; has flooded/ruined crops in the field; has ruined seed for next planting season this fall; and has fields inundated to impact ability to plant. It has also washed away homes and flooded cities. Pray for the rains to stop and disease to be held at bay; and for the love of Christ to be evident. EFCA Crisis Response has been in contact with a partner missionary who is associated with a local ministry work in Punjab, Pakistan. Funds have been sent to supply tents for displaced victims. Crisis Response has started to initiate contacts with other partner ministries and relief organizations.

Teams in Haiti

Ask the Lord to work through the teams going to Haiti and for His Spirit to be revealed through their demonstrations of compassion. Pray for Mark, ReachGlobal staff with EFCA TouchGlobal, as he works with local church partners and the EFCA Crisis Response Team in Haiti August 21-28. Pray for Daryl and Carol, ReachGlobal personnel, serving in Haiti August 26 to September 11, and Jessica and Jason, EFCA national office staff, in Haiti August 26-Sept. 4. Praise Him for the ongoing preparations that are being made to establish a multi-national missionary team for that country.

Pastors' wives fellowship

Pray for Arlys, ReachGlobal staff in the Philippines, who is in Manila for a Pastors' Wives Fellowship August 19-24. Pray for safe travels and that there won’t be a typhoon in Manila while she is there. Then following this conference, Arlys flies to Davao to another Pastors' Wives Fellowship August 27-31. Pray that she can meet individually with the pastors' wives to be an encouragement to them.

Strategic meetings Congo

Kevin and Jim, ReachGlobal Africa leaders, leave for Congo today for two weeks. Pray for the Lord to anoint this trip with His provision of clarity, timing of events, coordination of making contacts with the right people, and to extend His blessing through the interaction that takes place as they meet with Congolese leadership.

Praying for answers to health issue

Pray for Eileen, daughter of Ernest and Effie, ReachGlobal staff in Venezuela, who is experiencing constant pain in her feet, legs, arms, and hands making it difficult for her to walk or move. The preliminary findings from two MRIs, blood tests and doctor visits have revealed that everything is normal. Pray for patience and comfort for Eileen and her husband, Paul as they wait for results from other tests including a third MRI. Ask God to give the doctors wisdom to discover the cause so they can treat Eileen effectively. Pray for ongoing stamina, sleep, and that they will be able to rest in the Lord.

Health concern

Pray for Jim, ReachGlobal staff in Thailand, who had to return to the U.S. for possible back surgery. After an MRI and consulting with his doctor about options for treatment, Jim can forego surgery at this time. Pray that the treatment of nerve block injections, physical therapy, and two other medications is successful and limits the incidents of pain. Also pray for Vicki that God would give her strength as she deals with the stress of this situation with Jim’s health. Ask the Lord to give them wisdom in making decisions concerning the areas they work in when they return to Thailand. They have been very hands on with Harvest Home and the short-term constructions teams helping with this project.

Ramadan

Pray for the Muslim peoples during this month of Ramadan that began August 11. Pray that they will be able to hear the truth of the gospel during this spiritual season. Pray that the male spiritual leaders will hear of the love of Jesus and willingly teach others to follow Him. Pray that the men studying the holy books would have their eyes opened to the glory of God in the face of Christ.

English camps in Austria

Pray for the ReachGlobal personnel in Austria during the next two weeks of Outreach English Camp. Pray that the staff would continue in unity, that they would have good health and energy, and that many who hear about Jesus would decide to give their life to Him. Ask God to show the staff how they can effectively challenge the Austrian believers to be encouraged in their faith and rooted in Christ.

Appointment with government authorities

Jim, ReachGlobal staff in France, is the liaison with the French government authorities and the missionaries on issues regarding taxes, social security, visas for new staff, etc. A major current issue is a significant retroactive tax bill that Michael and Emilie, ReachGlobal staff in France, received earlier this year. Pray for Jim who will be accompanying Michael to Paris later this month to an appointment with an international tax lawyer. Please pray for a positive resolution for the French tax situation. It has significant potential implications for all staff in France, and indeed all of Europe.

Basketball, Friendships, Gospel

God has opened doors through the sport of basketball for a couple serving in a creative access country in Asia. "M" has been playing pickup games at the city park where college students and guys in their twenties gather to play every night. Recently, they asked "M" if he would train the provincial basketball team for the upcoming national tournament so six days a week they have been practicing for the regional tournament being held August 9-17. This ReachGlobal couple have made very good friendships with the players and the girlfriends and wives who come to watch. Please pray for their new friends as they get to know them and have opportunities to share their faith.

Upcoming surgeries

Pray for the health issues Tom and Kristie, ReachGlobal staff in Bosnia, are currently experiencing. Tom is undergoing surgery for a basal cell carcinoma on August 10. Kristie had her first cataract surgery on August 2, which went well and will undergo her second cataract surgery on August 16. Please pray for good outcomes to these surgeries and for God’s healing hand on them as they recover.

Bookstore ministry

Pray for Lois, ReachGlobal personnel serving in Russia, and Gennady, the Christian bookstore manager in Kursk. Ask God to bless his travels and appointments with a number of Christian bookstore managers in the U.S. Pray for Lois and Gennady as they share about this bookstore ministry on August 8 at the Evangelical Free Church in Grand Island, NE, and at the Hershey Evangelical Free Church in Pennsylvania on August 15.

Urgent Prayer Need

Pray for Laurie, ReachGlobal staff member in Pacific Asia, who is pregnant and was taken to the hospital this morning because her water broke and there was concern that she was having a miscarriage. Her husband, Tony, reports that, “The baby is still alive, there’s still a heartbeat, and enough amniotic fluid left for the baby to move around. Laurie will be in the hospital for the next five days with catheter, an IV, and medicine to help strengthen the wall of the uterus.” Pray for God’s strength and peace as they have a long road ahead of them. Pray that the baby will stay healthy and strong to the end of term.

Supplies headed for CAR

Continue to pray that the 40-foot container with 38,000 pounds of supplies will soon leave Douala for Gamboula in the Central African Republic. Pray the custom officials will be friendly and won’t need to inspect all 411 pieces in detail. Pray for our colleagues at the destination site who will be manually unloading all the supplies that have been wedged into the container.

Seeds of the gospel planted

Pray that God will continue the good work He began through the ministry of the short-term team from United EFC in Seattle. Bob, ReachGlobal staff in Japan, says, “Good seeds of the gospel were spread and planted.” Praise God that 12 people from the neighborhood accompanied the team on a bus tour and the Buddhist priest who was their bus driver. This opened the opportunity for Bob and Joan to further establish relationships with neighbors. Pray that these friendships will continue to grow and that neighbors will give their hearts to Jesus.

Break-ins at ETF

Within the last month there have been break-ins at the ETF (Evangelical Theological Seminary) in Belgium, resulting in five projectors and some laptops being stolen. The latest thievery was with a Sport Quest group meeting at the ETF for their training time before spreading out all over Belgium to lead different sport outreach events. Six young men came in and stole the bed mattresses, wallets, cell phones, and other items from the Americans, Moldavians and Belgians staying in the building. Pray with Phil and Cindy, ReachGlobal personnel in Belgium, for God’s protection over the school as it has become a “high target” for break-ins.

Visa renewal

Pray for one of our ReachGlobal staff in a creative access country in Europe who is going to the local police station tomorrow to apply for a residence permit renewal. Within the past 16 days there have been some higher officials trying to change the policy to not grant such residence permits. Appeals have been made by various embassies, but it is presently unclear whether the policy has been changed or not. Pray that he would be granted a renewal for his residence permit so he doesn’t have to leave the country.

Building offer falls through

The more the school board of the Christian International School of Prague (CISP) negotiated with the city officials, the more it became apparent they would not be able to afford the building they wanted for the school. The city officials were adding too much to CISP’s original offer for them to be able to manage the expense. Thank the Lord for His goodness in protecting CISP from over-committing the school financially; pray for wisdom for the school board and provision for space for this coming year; pray that whether CISP builds, buys or rents, that the Lord would show them what direction to move in.