I hope most days of Ramadan to post a brief entry here highlighting some of the prayers posted at various sites focused on praying for Muslim peoples & countries each day of Ramadan. I can’t predict what time I will be able to post every day, but certainly will aim to post usually by 4 p.m. Eastern, (usually earlier). I hope all our readers might commit to spending 5 or 10 minutes before or after your evening meal during these 4 weeks to pray for Muslims’ spiritual hunger to be satisfied in Jesus.
Thank you!
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Here are a few prayers that caught my attention today:
Excellent prayers for several countries in North Africa:
Via OM, excellent prayers for the neighboring countries of Morocco & Mauritania:
For Morocco:
As Muslims are praying and fasting during Ramadan, we pray for them.
Christians across Morocco are sensing more openness among their friends in the last 12-18 months, with more of them open to discuss their faith in light of recent world events. Small numbers are open to hear the Gospel. Ask God to bring a great harvest in Morocco during 2015.
We ask God to open the borders between Algeria and Morocco. We pray that more Algerian Believers will be able to come and minister in Morocco. Ask God for fruit to come from these opportunities, especially among the Moroccan Berbers.
Pray for a victory over a spirit of fear among all Moroccan Believers. Ask God for breakthrough and freedom in this area. May God strengthen each Moroccan Believer to be bold and courageous, wise and mature, so that the church can be built. Praise God for those who are reaching out to other Moroccans boldly.
For Mauritania
As Muslims are praying and fasting during Ramadan, we pray for them.
Slavery still exists in Mauritania, so justice is a real need in this nation. Pray for abolitionist movements within the country. Also pray that all peoples (including Arabs, Berbers, Haratine and Afro-Mauritanians) would be free to worship Jesus, as persecution of Believers can be very severe. Ask God to pour out His courage on them, causing them to grow in faith and works.
Pray also for the local church as they’re seeking divine appointments with those who are interested in knowing more about Jesus and are willing to bring family members and friends along for the journey. Pray that local Christians will be bold in living out their faith so that more people of Mauritania would come to know the Lord.
From PrayNorthAfrica, a great short prayer for Tunisia:
Almighty Father, blow your Holy Spirit over country in this time. Cause the people to realise that idols are useless and worthless and turn to follow you. (Jer.18:15)
Here is today’s Scripture & pray focus from Arab World Media
Praying Scripture over the Arab world during Ramadan
Today’s verse is for victims of war, living in fear.
Psalm 46:1-3: God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.
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Update: Don’t miss Jerry Rankin’s fantastic article at the online edition of Christianity Today: “How Christians Can Observe Ramadan” He writes from his first-hand experience of work in Indonesia and outreach to Muslims there.
During Ramadan, we found our Muslim friends were more open to talking about spiritual things. We would ask them about their practice, why they were fasting, and what they hoped to gain by it. It was surprising to them when we shared our own practice of fasting from time to time to seek God. We do not fast to get something from God but out of a desire for God himself that exceeds our desire for food. Wonderfully, God does meet our needs and answer our prayers, but we should not fast presuming by our piety we are obligating God to do something for us.
While most Muslims observe the fast because they are commanded to and believe there is merit to be gained, many do it as a perfunctory obligation. Some want to avoid the condemnation from more pious family members. However, for the devout, the Muslim month of fasting is actually for the same purpose that we as Christians may occasionally fast: the desire to know God in a deeper more intimate relationship.
[…]
What if Christians fervently prayed during the month of Ramadan that God would reveal himself to Muslims in this time of seeking? What if we covered millions of fasting Muslims with 30 days of intense intercession that something would happen in their spiritual search? Believing in the power of prayer, could we not expect God to respond to our heartfelt burden for the lost millions of the world? […]
Join me this month in praying for Muslims in our own communities as well as those around the world. Pray that they would truly seek God and be open to revelation that would lead them to the truth. In seeking Allah, an impersonal deity that is aloof and cannot be known, may they find a loving, compassionate God who revealed himself through Jesus Christ and died for their sins.
We have a responsibility to observe Ramadan also, to pray for those who are far from the kingdom and for generations have been locked into the bondage of sin and futile religious traditions.
After all, Christ died for them, too. God loves them. Shouldn’t we?
AMEN!
Lent & Beyond 