Pray for the internally displaced people in the East of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) who are very vulnerable with many risks.Pray for the Mennonite churches locally and in the country who are supporting those in need.
Photo: Siaka Traoré
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Praise God for the meetings of the EMLC (European Mennonite Leaders Conference) which are an instrument of forming and building a communion/koinonia among its members. There is an openness and willingness to recognize each other. Pray that these experiences will continue to be taken home and shared further. Praise God for the efforts of the European Coordinator (and MWC Regional Rep) José Arra”s continue to bring previously unknown branches of our European Anabaptist-Mennonite family into this communion. Pray that through the diversity of old and new Anabaptist-Mennonites, there is opportunities to refocus on identity, slowly carving new from the old.
Photo: European Mennonite Leaders Conference (EMLC) met in Barcelona, 2023/Liesa Unger
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In northern Brazil (Recife), an apartment building a block from the local Mennonite church fell into itself, crushing, injuring and killing several of their members. The church was grateful for MWC’s words of encouragement and asked for continued prayers as they dealt with grief, relocation of those who lost their homes and outreach.
—submitted by Cynthia D¸ck
Photo: Irma Sulistyorini
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Pray for the superintendent, pastors and congregations of the Cabo Delgado district, which underwent a recent terrorist attack. Pray for terrorist activity to cease in Cabo Delgado and for the church to grow and thrive. Pray also for wisdom for Bishop Mubecane Filipe Manharage as he leads the Church in Mozambique.
—submitted by BIC World Mission
Photo: Canva
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Please pray for the leaders of national churches in Canada and the USA. Numerous conferences have undergone senior staff leadership transitions, or will be undergoing transitions in the coming months. Pray that our member churches will be appointing wise, godly leaders that will guide their communities to follow Jesus, live out unity and build peace in their denominational families and in the broader Anabaptist fellowship.
Photo: Canva
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For centuries, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has been plundered for its wealth and by the greed of those in power, whose sole concern is their own enrichment.
This affects the way people live together and the national cohesion. In the province of Grand Bandundu, where a large number of Mennonites live, there is armed unrest between the Bayaka and Bateke tribes.
In the east of the country, on the Rwanda-Burundi border, where Mennonites are gradually settling in, an armed rebellion is destabilizing the province. The collapse of the economy has given rise to tensions. Conditions are ripe for ethnic cleansing, which has already begun.
Please pray for the eradication of greed and corruption, and that the Mennonite Christians of DR Congo will give an example of peace in a troubled country. We need your prayerful support.
—submitted by Reverend Professor …rik Kumedisa, Director of the Centre Biblique Anabaptiste, Kinshasa, DR Congo
Photo: Karla Braun
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Most of the Southern Africa has received limited rains so far. Crops are showing signs of moisture stress or have already become unviable. In Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, dams supplying the city with water have not had any significant inflows so far. Some areas around the city are going for weeks without receiving water! We are concerned that diseases such as cholera can easily spread within the region. Pray that God show compassion to our region and provide rains. The situation is dire.
—submitted by Danisa Ndlovu, regional representative for Southern Africa
Photo: Kristina Toews
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On 3 April 2024, Taiwan was struck by its most powerful earthquake in 25 years, which measured 7.5 in magnitude.
Leaders of FOMCIT (the Mennonite church in Taiwan) report that no members are injured. However, at least nine people have been reported killed, more than 900 injured, and property damage is widespread. The Mennonite hospital in Hualien is prepared to receive emergency patients.
Let us pray for comfort for those who have lost loved ones and for the people who are suffering after the earthquake. Pray for the rescuers searching for trapped people in unstable wreckage with the possibility of aftershocks. Pray for medical teams that are helping the victims.
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28 BIC Nepal church members‘ houses and the building for worship were destroyed in Rangeli Municipality, Morang District, Nepal, after an electric short circuit sparked a large fire.
“Now they do not have any shelter to live and nothing left to eat except some burned rice and even most of their cooking vessels are damaged,” writes Shemlal Hembrom, general secretary of Nepal BIC Church/Brethren in Community Welfare Society. “Some people from the neighbouring village and the local youth club members have provided food to the victims. Other local organizations and local churches including BIC church Nepal have planned to provide one month’s food relief, utensil, cooking gas, a pair of clothes, beds, mattress, bed sheets and two plastic tents for temporary shelter to each family.
“Please pray for all the fire victims and God may open the way specially to support our believers to rebuild their houses and the church building.—
“Be merciful to me, O God; be merciful to me, for in you my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge, until the destroying storms pass by.——Psalm 57:1
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Please pray for our neighbour Haiti. The first country in the region to become independent, its early development was stymied by punitive reparation payments and ostracization. Today, it is one of the poorest countries in the world where frequent disease, violence, and internal displacement make life very difficult for most residents. Pray for the church struggling to live out the gospel of peace in challenging conditions.
—submitted by William George Broughton, MWC regional representative for the Caribbean
Photo: Canva
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There is disruption from protests across Europe concerning European Union decisions, especially regarding agriculture the agricultural sector. Pray for clear eyed perspectives on regulations for building a more just and compassionate society. Pray that people with passion would also cultivate the capacity for deep listening so the sharing of difference can lead to understanding and solutions instead of polarization.
Photo: Canva
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We pray for members of the human family who are in the midst of war or violence in their nations. At this time, our hearts cry out especially for our brothers and sisters in Christ in Myanmar, Ethiopia, Ukraine and Palestine. Lord, deliver them and silence the guns and bombs in those countries.
Photo: Merle Good
