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 04/09/14
Central African Republic
• A complex sectarian conflict in the Central African Republic (CAR) continues to violently impact children and families. In a coup last year, Seleka Muslim rebels installed the first Muslim leader and then proceeded to massacre members of the country’s Christian majority. Christian militias were formed in response to this violence and began their own campaign of terror against Muslims. Following the recent resignation of the CAR’s Muslim president, Seleka rebels have withdrawn and left the minority Muslim population unprotected.
• Please pray for Christian and Muslim children who’ve been affected by the violence in their cities and villages. Pray for those who are terrified or traumatized by attacks on their communities. Pray for children who’ve witnessed horrific assaults on family or friends. Pray for those who’ve been injured in these brutal attacks.
• Please keep in prayer Christian and Muslim families who’ve been displaced by the conflict and are exposed to further abuse because of their vulnerability. Pray for children, youth, and adults who’ve suffered great loss—loved ones, homes, livelihoods, communities, places of worship—because of the violence in the CAR.
• Please pray for Muslim families trapped in their neighborhoods by Christian militias that target anyone who leaves those areas. Pray for safe passage out of these dangerous situations.
• Give God thanks for the courage of those who refuse to be influenced by the hatreds consuming their country. Thanks be to God for the Christian woman who rescued a Muslim baby girl, Shamsia, when the truck they were in was stopped by Christian vigilantes. Shamsia’s mother and 3- and 5-year-old brothers were forced off the truck and later massacred in front of a mosque.
o Give God praise that this Christian woman was willing to take Shamsia to safety. Pray for this 8-month-old baby girl and the Christian pastor and his family who are now caring for Shamsia. Pray for their safety—this Christian family is in grave danger for hiding a Muslim child in their home.
• Please pray for peace and reconciliation between Muslim and Christian communities. Pray these communities will once again live together peacefully as they have done for many years in the past.
Ukraine, Russia
In February, Russian troops were invited into Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula by pro-Russian Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych following three months of violent anti-government protests. Moscow then quickly annexed Crimea (a region with deep ties to Russia), justifying the move as a way to protect Russians living there. After a week of deadly clashes between anti-government protestors and riot police, President Yanukovych fled the capital on February 22, hastening the fall of his government. In the meantime, 40,000 Russian troops were sent to the eastern Ukraine border to perform military exercises.
• Please pray for the children of Ukraine who are frightened because of the violence and their country’s current instability. Pray for children who have lost a loved one in the clashes between anti-government protestors and riot police. Pray for those who witnessed the violence and are experiencing trauma because of it.
• Pray for children who have a parent or parents in the Ukrainian or Russian military. Give thanks to God that the takeover of Crimea was relatively free of violent conflict.
• And thanks be to God for the announcement by Russian President Putin that his government’s troops near Ukraine’s eastern border were to be withdrawn soon. Please pray for peace and reconciliation in this region.
United States
Four-year-old Jordan had surgery to remove a kidney with a fist-sized-tumor wrapped around it and several days later had surgery to remove another tumor in one of her lungs. Jordan finished 10 days of radiation and chemotherapy the day before her baby sister was born.
• Please keep 4-year-old Jordan McDowell close in prayer as she recovers from two difficult surgeries. Pray God will bring healing to her little body as it recovers from having one of her kidneys (with a fist-sized tumor wrapped around it) removed. Pray for healing from the second surgery to remove another tumor from her lungs.
• Give thanks to God for the safe birth of Jordan’s baby sister Leslie on March 28 and the joy her arrival has brought their family in a time of extreme stress.
• Please continue to pray for Jordan as she endures weekly chemotherapy treatments that last from four to six hours, as well as blood transfusions to boost her blood cell count. Pray for God’s healing touch to be upon Jordan. Pray she will feel God’s comfort and love during this difficult time.
• Continue to also keep Jordan’s parents, Jerin and Kristen, in prayer as they navigate the medical issues facing their precious daughter.
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.
If you have prayer requests about children, those who care for them, those who have authority over them, or those who harm them (the really hard prayers to say sometimes), please send them to Chris Laufer, FOC Coordinator, at claufer@facesofchildren.net
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