Faces of Children: Prayer Requests

Faces of Children is an ecumenical prayer ministry under the auspices of First Presbyterian Church of Midland, Texas. Our mission is to initiate ministries of prayer for children in churches, communities, and neighborhoods. In doing so, we seek to provide an opportunity for people of God to join together, learn about children and their needs throughout the world, and celebrate Christ's love (especially as it relates to children).

Prayer Concerns for the week of 08/19/10

Brazil
• Please pray for the children of Rio de Janeiro's slums (favelas) who will be affected by the city's plans to clear and rebuild these areas ahead of the 2016 Olympic Games. Pray for the more than 260,000 households that will be affected by this plan and especially for those in the 123 most at-risk slums that will be destroyed and not rebuilt.
• Please pray that the city government will provide alternate housing for all those who will be displaced and that they will complete the project to improve living conditions for so many marginalized people.
A report from the BBC

Burma/Myanmar, Thailand
• Continue to keep Nancy *and her family in prayer as they care for 18 orphans in their modest home in the northwest part of Burma. Give thanks to God for healing several of the children who were suffering from Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever and for replenishing this orphanage's well. Please pray for 2-year-old Thomas who is very sick with some kind of kidney problem. Pray also for Abisak and Dawtku, two little girls who are also ill. Pray that God will provide the resources to help these sick children and all of the other orphans in Nancy's care.
* Name changed for confidentiality and/or protection.
• Pray that God will encourage and sustain Sarah as she works with children in the refugee camps along the border of Thailand and Burma through Partners Relief and Development ( www.partnersworld.org/ ). Pray for all of the staff and volunteers of this organization as they minister to children in the camps.
• Please continue to pray for the hill tribe children and people of eastern Burma who are being systematically annihilated by the Burma Army. Pray for those who come to their assistance, like Free Burma Rangers ( www.freeburmarangers.org/ ) and Partners Relief and
Development.

Pakistan
• Please keep the children and people of northwest Pakistan held close in prayer as they deal with torrential monsoon rains. Pray for the 3 million people whose lives have been devastated by the worst flooding in 80 years.
• Pray for those who have lost loved ones, homes, schools, businesses, and livelihoods. More than 1,400 people have been killed in the flooding and 1.1 million acres of crops have been destroyed in the Punjab agricultural area.
• Please pray that God will provide for the 1.8 million children and families who need clean drinking water, shelter, and food. Pray for those who are susceptible to water borne diseases like cholera and diarrhea.
• Pray for the vulnerable in Pakistan - children, women, the elderly, religious minorities, and people with disabilities - who are in the greatest need of support and may be the last to receive it because of discrimination and cultural practices.
• Please pray that God will comfort children who have been traumatized by the things they have witnessed because of the flooding. Pray for those who are showing psychological damage, for those who have hallucinations of the sound of water, and for those who wake screaming from nightmares of the horrors they've seen.
A report from Reuters/AlertNet
A report from the Washington Post
Another report from Reuters/AlertNet
Another report from Reuters/AlertNet

United States
• Please keep 6-year-old Ellen held close in prayer as she completes her cancer treatments for leukemia-chemotherapy injection into the spine. Give thanks to God for Ellen's wonderful attitude throughout her treatment. Pray for God's healing mercies and a full recovery. Pray that God will also bring comfort to Ellen and her family.
• Pray for 10-year-old Emily who is recovering from surgery for an extreme form of scoliosis. The rods implanted in her back and the spacers in her ribs need periodic surgical adjustments. Pray that Emily will heal quickly from this latest procedure as well as the serious infections she's picked up in the hospital. Please keep this 10-year-old little girl held close in prayer as she undergoes further surgeries in the near future.
• Give thanks and praise to God for answered prayers concerning 3-year-old Andrea * and her adoption situation! Andrea, a little girl with multiple health challenges, had been with her foster family since she was a baby but was court ordered to be placed with a distant relative. Thanks be to God that the great aunt who was going to adopt Andrea decided the foster parents would be better parents for her.
* Name changed for confidentiality and/or protection.

Faces of Children
• Please continue to pray that more churches and individuals will join with the ministry of Faces of Children in spreading awareness about children in crisis and inviting more people to pray for children at risk.