Please pray with us:
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For Beacon Christian Community Health Center on Staten Island, which is still recovering from Hurricane Sandy. They write: "We just finished the first of 2 days of medical outreach. We are still finding pockets of community residents that are just getting reached for the first time. We had teams go out with medical personnel and med students who went out with workers who can help clean out the debris. We heard so many stories from people as they are working through the events of the last several weeks. By coming alongside these people, we are able to also provide a baseline health assessment, provide tetanus and flu shots as needed, and simply listen to their stories. It's still amazing to see the level of destruction in these areas that were hard hit. Our medical teams are working alongside various churches in SI and they are expecting close to 1,000 volunteers this weekend alone. The volunteers we had working with us are some amazing people; we couldn't have done the outreaches without them! Pray for us as we continue in our outreach efforts this weekend. Also please be praying for us as we continue to stabilze our daily current operations for the health center in addition to providing medical relief throughout the week. Pray for God to continue to raise up resources and people to gather in the harvest."
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For Christian churches in Nigeria that are under attack. A grant recipient informs us that recently 19 were killed in a church bombing. Pray for the end to the violence and for protection. Pray that the church would be able to have a Christlike response in the midst of persecution.
- For Democratic Republic of Congo. A grant recipient informs us that fresh fighting in the East has resulted in massive displacement of residents, putting them at risk for disease, rape, and forced service in the various militia who are fighting.
- For grant recipients whose faith is being tested whether they are preparing to go to the field, adjusting to life on the field or bearing continuing challenges on the field. Pray that they would be victorious in learning the lessons of faith.
Reflection: For grant recipients, "faith boot camp" begins long before they set foot on their respective mission fields. A grant recipient explains:
After many ups and downs and being tempted many times to give up hope, our house has finally sold! We are now beginning our "goodbye" tour before heading for Southeast Asia in September. We are very excited that this dream is starting to come to reality versus the feeling that we were always a phone call away from having it shattered. I realize that while we may never know why it has taken so long, I know our Father God has been teaching us many things. For me this time of waiting and preparing has been a constant battle of learning to trust, moving forward in faith, having patience, and more patience. Did I mention patience? This whole process has constantly tested our sense of calling. Did we "hear" right? Are we mixing our own desires into this and getting ahead of God? What does it mean to move forward in faith when you're not even sure you can see the next step… Will we survive in Southeast Asia? Will we manage to learn a new language and way of life? Amidst the questions and ups and downs, we've learned it's not so much about having arrived at any one point or answer to a question, as it is a lesson in moving through life and walking by faith… Yes, that is what it is about. Walking, planning, moving and living by faith in what is unseen. That is what our Father wants for each of us, whether we are planning to move to the other side of the world or staying here... Trust and faith in our Father is what I keep coming back to. In Him we move and breathe and have our being.
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