May 1998
Two different visitors to my office this week unknowingly
bore pieces of God’s Word to us for this month. One shared
the story of a missionary whom God had burdened for a
neighboring Muslim nation. When her missions agency refused
to transfer her there, she moved near to that country and began a
double ministry. Day by day, she continued to witness to the
people among whom she lived. Daily, she also went to the win¬
dow facing that neighboring nation and ministered to its people
by fervent intercession. Twenty years passed. Finally, she went
to her heavenly reward, having never seen that country or the
answers to her prayers. But God saw . . . and heard . . . and went
to that people. Today, although Islam still perpetuates its dark¬
ness there, light has come. Believers dwell in that land.
How hard it was for her to remain faithful in prayer, be¬
cause not only did she fail to see answers to her prayers, she also
was too far away to see the country from her window. A mighty
range of mountains obscured her view. How could she press on?
The other visitor brought the answer, as she shared with me one
of her favorite verses, Psalms 18:29, “by my God I can leap over
a waT (NASB).
As fervent intercessors we’re not going off the edge, we’re
going . . .
Over the wall.
Randy Sprinkle, Director
International Prayer Strategy Office
1 LEBANON (eastern Mediterranean). Pray for Muslims
who convert to Christianity. Many face opposition, persecu¬
tion and death at the hands of family.
PERSIANS OF IRAN (unreached people). Join with us today
in prayer for the spiritually needy and hungry people of Iran, who
are the focus of our Day of Prayer and Fasting for World Evangeli¬
zation, May 29-30. To order your free kit, please call (800) 866-3621 .
RUSSIA (between eastern Europe and Asia). Pray for
Baptist representative Mel Skinner, a church planter in Moscow,
as he seeks the Lord’s leading. Mel has begun making trips to the
nearby towns of Domodyedovo and Veednoye. There is little or
no evangelical work among the 200,000 people of Domodyedovo,
and three previous attempts to start a church among the 80,000
people of Veednoye have failed.
2 NORTH AFRICA. Please pray as plans are made for workers
to go to Algeria in May or June to visit some who regularly
listen to gospel radio programs. The workers feel that previous
experiences in this country have been encouraging.
SINGAPORE (southeast Asia). One of our missionaries
recently wrote: “We had a wonderful Lord’s day. An older Hokkien-
speaking Chinese lady accepted Christ. After the service, I learned
that for many years this lady had made a living by working in a
Buddhist temple. How great is God’s love, which reaches out even
to those who have spent a lifetime serving false gods and draws
them to Himself!”
3 NICARAGUA (Central America). You have been praying
for the Miskito people who live along the Caribbean coast in
Honduras and Nicaragua. Pray that a missionary family will be led
to minister in those vast swamplands of unreached people. Pray
for missionaries Ken Cummins and Keith Stamps as they gather
materials and begin developing a worldview that will help the mis¬
sionaries who respond to this call.
SOUTHERN AFRICA. Missionary D. Ray Davis writes,
“Please pray that God will raise up serious, devoted prayer part¬
ners for the Southern Africa region as a unified, extraordinary
prayer support network is developed for the peoples and people
group teams of Southern Africa.”
4 ROMANIA (eastern Europe). Baptist representatives Ron
and Cynthia Gunter began a full-graded Sunday School pro¬
gram in Holy Trinity Baptist Church in Bucharest in September.
They report that, since that time, they have been averaging 350 adults
in Bible study every Sunday! They write, “This is a tremendous be¬
ginning, and we pray it will be a model for the rest of the country.”
MOROCCO (northwestern Africa). Pray that the Lord
will protect the Christians in this Muslim nation who are being
persecuted. May their faith stand firm, and may many others
believe as a result of their stand.
5 LIBERIA (western Africa). Missionaries Bradley and
Carolyn Brown returned to Liberia to minister in the seminary
last November, 18 months after the evacuation from the country.
The Browns ask for urgent prayer, as there is pressure to give up
the houses on the mission compound where seminary classes are
conducted. Pray that the Holy Spirit will intervene to maintain
unity, peace of mind and spirit in the Christian community, and that
God will grant safety and wisdom to those facing critical decisions.
Continue to pray that stability and peace will come to Liberia.
6 ST. LUCIA (eastern Caribbean Sea). Missionary Yvette
Aarons thanks the Lord for His continual work in the lives of
her deaf students attending Sunday School in Vieux Fort. Pray that
they will be open to baptism. Ask God to raise up a St. Lucian to
lead them when Yvette leaves for furlough.
TOGO (western Africa). A village in the Adja region has
been resistant to the gospel. People have now come forward and
asked for someone to come and tell them the stories of God. Pray
