Uganda Prayer Guide: Day 5 - March 31, 2017
All In Prayer Booklet: Week 4 - Friday
Week 4 (Friday)
Praying For God’s Power
Matthew 25:35 “For I was hungry and you
gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you
welcomed me,”\
As you pray, please pray for Austin Elementary and other
opportunities in Grand Prairie:
·
Staff (salvation, spiritual influence, family
health, emotional stability)
·
Students (salvation, education, family dynamics)
·
Parents (salvation, family involvement, grace and
wisdom)
·
Judgment House outreach
·
More opportunities to bless the city
“Father, I believe You are loving,
compassionate, powerful, and glorious enough to soften hearts and inspire
change. Your grace and mercy are enough to bring repentance and revival. We
pray for the filling of Your Spirit in our lives that we may participate in
Your mighty work. Use us powerfully in the city of Grand Prairie. Help us to
believe in Your power. Help us to trust in your heart.”
Uganda Prayer Guide: Day 4 - March 30, 2017
All In Prayer Booklet: Week 4 - Thursday
Week 4 (Thursday)
Praying For God’s Power
Hebrews 6:10 “For God is not unjust so
as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name in
serving the saints, as you still do.”
As you pray, please pray for our allies in the effort to reach
our world:
·
MANNA Worldwide
·
Pregnancy Resource Center of Grand Prairie
·
Lifeline Shelter for Families
·
Foreign Missionaries
·
Iglesia Bautista La Esperanza in Irving
“Father, I believe You are loving,
compassionate, powerful, and glorious enough to soften hearts and inspire
change. Your grace and mercy are enough to bring repentance and revival. We
pray for the filling of Your Spirit in our lives that we may participate in
Your mighty work. Use us powerfully in the city of Grand Prairie. Help us to
believe in Your power. Help us to trust in your heart.”
Uganda Prayer Guide: Day 3 - March 29, 2017
All In Prayer Booklet: Week 4 - Wednesday
Week 4 (Wednesday)
Praying For God’s Power
2 Corinthians 4:4 “In their case the
god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from
seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”
As you pray, please pray for the lost in our city:
·
Opportunity to engage in relationships with
unbelievers in Grand Prairie
·
That You would use their pain as an open window for
the Gospel
·
Conviction and repentance
·
For the unsaved to see Your glory
·
Thank You for the power of the Gospel
“Father, I believe You are loving,
compassionate, powerful, and glorious enough to soften hearts and inspire
change. Your grace and mercy are enough to bring repentance and revival. We
pray for the filling of Your Spirit in our lives that we may participate in
Your mighty work. Use us powerfully in the city of Grand Prairie. Help us to
believe in Your power. Help us to trust in your heart.”
Romania Missions Part 1 by Steph & Chris Watkins
Chris and Stephanie Watkins began attending Calvary Baptist Church in April 2016 and reside in Grand Prairie, TX with their daughter, Ema. The Watkins volunteer to teach regularly in the Boulevard (4 years old through kindergarten) area of Kid City. They like to spend time outside in their community garden, camping, and spending time with friends playing games or watching movies.
In the spring of 2003, Chris was taking his first missions classes in seminary. After each class he would be so excited about a new place we could go. He was onboard for missions and eager to launch. He was not held back that he was in his first year of seminary out of four total. Looking back, I believe this is when God first started cultivating Chris’ heart for missions. Mine on the other hand took some time. I probably told him “you’re crazy” more than a few times. Missions didn’t really “fit in” with what I thought our plans for our family should look like. I have a good friend from high school who was a missions major. She planned to go into full-time overseas missions. I thought, “That’s awesome for her” and truly did see her excelling in the field, but I still didn’t think missions were for me. After college, my friend moved to Romania and that’s when we started to hear about the country from a more personal side. We visited in the fall of 2004 and fell in love with the people, culture, and country. I believe God used this trip to plant the seeds of missions in my heart. Chris and I were both still in school so it wasn’t time just yet.
When we visited Romania in 2004 to say it was eye opening would
be an understatement. There’s something about actually seeing with your eyes,
smelling with your nose (yes smelling), holding with your arms, and hearing the
sounds around you. There were street children everywhere; begging for food,
money, candy - anything to fill their stomachs or hand off to their parents. If
they weren’t begging, they were winding between you pick-pocketing to see what
surprises they could find. Children were everywhere. I vividly remember going
to dinner at a Romanian pizza parlor (not really similar to our pizza). The
restaurant was covered with huge windows and our group was seated right near
one. Throughout our entire meal there was a little blond boy just staring at
us. Literally staring; big eyes peering at us as we ate. It was heartbreaking
and also a good food suppressant! That little one went to bed with a full pizza
belly that night. There was a noticeable difference between the Romanian street
children and the Roma (or Gypsy) children on the street. The Romanian kiddos
would instantly pocket the money or eat the food you gave them or they “found.”
The Roma children would immediately take whatever you handed them to an adult
that was peering nearby. In 2004, children and babies who were abandoned were
left in the hospital until they were three. As long as their parents came to
“visit” them once a year they could not be “abandoned/orphaned” and their
parents would still be entitled to the money the government gives the families
until the child is three. After three they went into orphanages. I should mention
that adoption to The States, Americans, was closed at this time. Romanian
babies that were abandoned were quickly adopted by other Romanians. Roma babies on the other hand were not. We
were not allowed to enter an orphanage while we were there.
Being in a third
world country can sometimes challenge what you thought you believed. The
churches in Romania are much more charismatic then what you would find in most
churches in America. Taking away money and niceties can strip people down to
the bare. People see blessings so much easier than Americans tend to. God is
all they have. Romania’s national religion is Greek Orthodox; yes, it is a
religion. While we were in the city we visited a few churches (buildings).
These churches literally have gold all over them. They are beautiful! They have
huge paintings, beautiful stained glass work, gardens, old beautiful wooden
pews, the décor was amazing. We heard stories of people hiding in their homes
as the priests were knocking on their doors, because the priests would make
these visits and the members were required to pay them. The church in Romania appears
to be all about money. They do not believe in helping the people, and were
mostly looking after themselves. The church is stuck in much legalism and even
more in traditions. The Roma had their own church, but again it was very much
about money. The prosperity message was mostly taught from the pulpit. Which
pew you sat in in church depended on your “sins” and if the pastor had deemed
you forgiven or not. The ones in front were doing good, the ones in the back
not so well. The cool thing is we met missionaries from all over, obviously a
few from all over The States, but also from The Netherlands, Sweden and
England. God IS working through His church- His people.
In 2005-06 my friend started a
foundation in Romania, specifically working with the Roma. She asked us to sit on the board and being
board members gave us an inside look at what was going on with Romanian laws,
politics, needs and culture.
It wasn’t until September 2011 that God opened the doors for us
to go back to Romania again. By 2011,
Romania had just started a “foster care” system. Back in 2007, Romania had
become part of the European Union. One of the stipulations of the EU was for Romania
to “clean up” the street children problem. We saw some children out but not
nearly as many. The hospitals were “cleaning out” the children which meant
dumping many of them at last known addresses they had for their families. Some
even with people who happened to be living at the last known address and had no
relation or idea who the child was. Those who didn’t get “dumped” or left and
went into the foster care program and problems too. The main problem being
Romanians (Eastern Europeans) do not think highly of the Roma. So these
children were not being treated with the most love or respect that should be.
We spent most of our time in the little village of Tinca where the ministry we
were board members of was placed. We were able to spend a lot of time with the
children of the center, their families and others in the Roma village.
Chris and I felt the NEED to do
something; to listen and to act. If
we’re being completely honest, there was a HUGE fear of fundraising of that
magnitude, which kept us from leaping sooner than we did. We would constantly
talk about the people, and the need, and being there, but felt completely
stuck. We were there for ten days and leaving was one of the hardest things we
did. God had burdened both our hearts
for the needs there and finally fundraising was starting to look not so
hard. Summer of 2011 was a season of
much thought and prayer for us. We were
feeling a heavy burden for the needy but were not sure where God wanted us. We
came up with two options: (1) move to West Dallas, share Jesus, and help in one
of the poorest areas of our city or (2) move to Salt Lake where Chris had been
offered a job in one of the heaviest populated Mormon areas. Taking the job in
Salt Lake meant we would have to fundraise for his salary. Then, sitting on the
plane in September of 2011 heading back to the States, God threw another idea
in the mix.
This idea was the one that burdened
our hearts for many years, but we never thought the doors would open; becoming
missionaries to the Roma. We struggled a bit with “are we pushing God?”, “does
He really want us there”, or “are we following our own hearts desires?” We
prayed, asked our community to pray, and finally in December of 2011 we both
felt at peace as we sent out our first round of fundraising letters with a date
of leaving for Romania in January 2013 - almost nine years after our first
visit and 11 years after Chris’ missions class!
Fundraising is a full-time job. Chris
and I both worked stressful full-time jobs where overtime was the norm. Yet,
the money kept coming in. We would talk about Romania and someone would come up
and hand us a $500 check or write to us and make a $10 monthly commitment. God
basically did all the fundraising. For Chris and I this felt like confirmation
from Him letting us know Romania was where He wanted us.
Chris and I left the States on January 3, 2013 and arrived in
Budapest, Hungary on the 5th. Budapest is the closest airport to
Tinca, Romania; the place we would call home. We had arranged for a driver for
the additional four to five hours it would take us to get there. Our first
three months we lived in the team home, “Katartizo”, a six bedroom home that my
friend’s ministry turned into a location teams could stay when they came on
trips. In March, we moved into our permanent home which backed up to the Roma
Village. Tinca, the “town” we lived in, was too small to be declared a town or
city, it was a village. We had two main streets with one stop sign. We
frequently walked from one side to the other several times a day, which was
just at a mile. This was the norm for most villages in the area and the nearest
“big” city was a drive of 45 minutes. In Tinca, the two main streets and right
off of those were where the Romanians lived. Romania is still a country of
segregation when it comes to the Roma. The Roma had their own section, which
basically backed up to the Romanian part of the village.
Tinca had the biggest Roma population
in our county. Roma, are nomadic by nature; they go where they can find food or
money until they are kicked out or get bored and want to move on. As you drive
through Romania, you see a few mud brick or falling down wooden shacks here and
there. You see a lot of covered horse drawn carts as they are traveling,
although not rare to see a Romanian in a horse and buggy too. What this means
is for Tinca to have a Roma village of 3,000 was huge! Plus, that’s only the 3,000 that were
“documented”. Tinca was also a village human traffickers would frequent because a
Gypsy gone missing is really not a big deal to them. The Roma village did not
have running water, kitchens, or outhouses. Basically they were one room,
falling down, critter infested huts. There was a constant stream of liquid
running down the sides of the Roma dirt streets. In the winter as you walked in
the Roma village you just kept telling yourself “it’s just mud, it’s just mud”
knowing full well what you were stepping in. Between the Roma village and the
livestock you can only imagine the smell; Romania’s distinct scent will forever
be engraved in our noses. Our home, which mercifully did have indoor plumbing and
a kitchen, backed up to the Roma Village. We walked in almost every night and
spent time with our Roma families. We were also the first people they went to
when they needed something.
In the next edition, we’ll share a
more candid view of what daily life for the Roma looked like and how living out
the Great Commission affected not just the Roma, but us as well.
Ready for Romania Missions Part 2 by Steph & Chris Watkins? Click here!
Ready for Romania Missions Part 2 by Steph & Chris Watkins? Click here!
Uganda Prayer Guide: Day 2 - March 28, 2017
All In Prayer Booklet: Week 4 - Tuesday
Week 4 (Tuesday)
Praying For God’s Power
2 Corinthians 10:3-4 “For though we
walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the
weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy
strongholds.”
As you pray, please pray for Satan’s strongholds to come down:
·
Freedom where there is addiction
·
Boldness where there is fear
·
Strength where there is weakness
·
Victory where there is a defeated spirit
·
Passion where there is depression
“Father, I believe You are loving,
compassionate, powerful, and glorious enough to soften hearts and inspire
change. Your grace and mercy are enough to bring repentance and revival. We
pray for the filling of Your Spirit in our lives that we may participate in
Your mighty work. Use us powerfully in the city of Grand Prairie. Help us to
believe in Your power. Help us to trust in your heart.”
Uganda Prayer Guide: Day 1 - March 27, 2017
All In Prayer Booklet: Week 4 - Monday
Week 4 (Monday)
Praying For God’s Power
Acts 4:31 “And when they had prayed,
the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all
filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with
boldness.”
As you pray, please pray for the filling of the Holy Spirit:
·
Submission to the Lordship of Christ
·
A fresh experience of God’s goodness and glory
·
Supernatural boldness from the Holy Spirit for
witnessing
·
Discernment to know where the Lord is working in
hearts and lives
·
Renewed joy
and passion for Christ and His people
·
Revival and renewal
“Father, I believe You are loving,
compassionate, powerful, and glorious enough to soften hearts and inspire
change. Your grace and mercy are enough to bring repentance and revival. We
pray for the filling of Your Spirit in our lives that we may participate in
Your mighty work. Use us powerfully in the city of Grand Prairie. Help us to
believe in Your power. Help us to trust in your heart.”
Uganda Pastors Training Trip Prayer Guide & Thank You
All In Prayer Booklet: Week 4 - Sunday
Week 4 (Sunday)
Praying For God’s Power
Joshua 1:2-3 “…now therefore arise, go
over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to
them, even to the children of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot
shall tread upon, that have I given unto you…”
The book
of Joshua is
the story of God’s chosen people being led to take ground from their enemies in
the Promised Land. This story has many applications for our New Testament
church.
·
Jesus Christ is our Joshua. “Jesus” is actually the common Greek
form of the Hebrew name “Joshua.”
·
The Church is Christ’s army. 2 Timothy 2:3-4 “Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier gets
entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted
him.”
·
We Have an Enemy. Ephesians 6:12 “For we do not wrestle
against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities,
against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual
forces of evil in the heavenly places.”
·
This Enemy Has Territory. 2 Timothy 2:25-26 “Correcting his
opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a
knowledge of the truth, 26 and they may come to their senses and escape from
the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.
·
We Are To Invade This Enemy’s
Territory. Matt.
28:18-19 “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto
me in heaven and in earth. God ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing
them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost…”
This week we pray for boldness, clarity, and
fruitfulness in our Gospel outreach to the city of Grand Prairie.
“The combination of powerful truth
wrapped in self-sacrificing love is what God uses to transform people.”
-Paul David Tripp
All In Prayer Booklet: Week 3 - Saturday
Week 3 (Saturday)
Praying For Our City
Philippians 4:6-7 “…do not be anxious
about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving
let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses
all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Today, we
encourage you
to pray for tomorrow’s worship and whatever else the Holy Spirit puts in your
heart.
“Lord, thank you that You are sovereign
over all. Thank you for the freedoms we enjoy in this beautiful country. I
believe that our leaders’ hearts are in Your hand. I believe You will use them
as Your instruments. I ask that You would grant them wisdom as they serve this
country. Be glorified, for our city, nation, and world are Yours.”
All In Prayer Booklet: Week 3 - Friday
Week 3 (Friday)
Praying For Our City
Ephesians 6:24 “Grace be with all them
that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen.”
As you
pray,
please pray for these specific requests:
·
Gospel preaching churches in Grand Prairie
·
Christian non-profit organizations
·
Race relations
·
God’s shalom
in our city and families
“Lord, thank you that You are sovereign
over all. Thank you for the freedoms we enjoy in this beautiful country. I
believe that our leaders’ hearts are in Your hand. I believe You will use them
as Your instruments. I ask that You would grant them wisdom as they serve this
country. Be glorified, for our city, nation, and world are Yours.”
All In Prayer Booklet: Week 3 - Thursday
Week 3 (Thursday)
Praying For Our City
John 15:13 “Greater love has no one
than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.”
As you
pray
please pray for these specific requests:
·
Steve Dye- Police Departments Chief
·
Grand Prairie Police Department
·
Police Officers and families
·
Robert Fite- Fire Department Chief
·
Fire Fighters and families
“Lord, thank you that You are sovereign
over all. Thank you for the freedoms we enjoy in this beautiful country. I
believe that our leaders’ hearts are in Your hand. I believe You will use them
as Your instruments. I ask that You would grant them wisdom as they serve this
country. Be glorified, for our city, nation, and world are Yours.”
All In Prayer Booklet: Week 3 - Wednesday
Week 3 (Wednesday)
Praying For Our City
Psalm 127:3 “Children are a heritage
from the Lord…”
As you
pray
please pray for these specific requests:
·
Betsy DeVos- U.S. Secretary of Education
·
School board of Grand Prairie
·
Susan Simpson Hull- Grand Prairie Superintendent
·
Grand Prairie Public Schools’ faculty and families
·
Grand Prairie Private Schools’ faculty and families
“Lord, thank you that You are sovereign
over all. Thank you for the freedoms we enjoy in this beautiful country. I
believe that our leaders’ hearts are in Your hand. I believe You will use them
as Your instruments. I ask that You would grant them wisdom as they serve this
country. Be glorified, for our city, nation, and world are Yours.”
All In Prayer Booklet: Week 3 - Tuesday
Week 3 (Tuesday)
Praying For Our City
Romans 13:1 “Let every person be
subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from
God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.”
As you
pray,
please pray for these specific requests:
·
Ron Jensen- Mayor
·
Tom Hart- City Manager
·
City Council
·
Government Staff
“Lord, thank you that You are sovereign
over all. Thank you for the freedoms we enjoy in this beautiful country. I
believe that our leaders’ hearts are in Your hand. I believe You will use them
as Your instruments. I ask that You would grant them wisdom as they serve this
country. Be glorified, for our city, nation, and world are Yours.”
All In Prayer Booklet: Week 3 - Monday
Week 3 (Monday)
Praying For Our City
I Timothy 2:1-2 “First of all, then, I
urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for
all people, 2 for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a
peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.”
As you
pray
please pray for these specific requests:
·
President Trump and his administration
·
Lawmakers and court system
·
Governor Abbott
·
Elected representatives
·
Military and their families
“Lord, thank you that You are sovereign
over all. Thank you for the freedoms we enjoy in this beautiful country. I
believe that our leaders’ hearts are in Your hand. I believe You will use them
as Your instruments. I ask that You would grant them wisdom as they serve this
country. Be glorified, for our city, nation, and world are Yours.”
All In Prayer Booklet: Week 3 - Sunday
Praying For Our City
Jeremiah 29:4-7 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of
Israel, unto all that are carried away captives, whom I have caused to be
carried away from Jerusalem unto Babylon; Build ye houses, and dwell in them;
and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them; Take ye wives, and beget sons and
daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands,
that they may bear sons and daughters; that ye may be increased there, and not
diminished. And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be
carried away captives, and pray unto the LORD for it: for in the peace thereof
shall ye have peace.
Here in
Jeremiah 29 we
find the Jewish people in Babylon- having been deported there by King
Nebuchadnezzar and his conquering armies. Some people were pressuring them to
assimilate; to fully absorb themselves into Babylonian culture. Others were
pressuring them to segregate; to avoid any investment in Babylon at all costs.
But God had a different command.
God said, “I want you to make lives in
Babylon. Serve it, bless it, seek its welfare. I also want you to retain your
unique identity as my people in the city. I want you to be in the city but not
of the city.” But what did He mean by verse 7? “And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried
away captives, and pray unto the Lord for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye
have peace.”
The Hebrew word, “Peace” (shalom)
literally means, ‘Welfare, completeness, health, prosperity, rest, harmony,
wholeness, tranquility, fullness. Flourishing in every single aspect of life:
physical spiritual, mental, emotional.’
When we seek the shalom of the city in
which God places us, we too receive shalom. 82 years ago, God sovereignly
planted a church in Grand Prairie, TX. This week we pray for the people,
leaders, institutions, and future of our city. How can we best seek its peace?
“If we have not paid our dues by years
of making positive contributions to culture, we simply do not have the cultural
clout to pontificate about cultural crisis. Unless we start serving our cities,
they’re not going to listen to us. The days of going door to door and expecting
people to listen to us because we have some sense of morality are over.” –Tim Keller
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