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 12/10/14
Mauritania, Uzbekistan, Haiti, Qatar, India, Pakistan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan, Syria, Central African Republic, China, Russia, Nigeria, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Thailand
• • Please remember in prayer the estimated 35.8 million children, young people, and adults around the world who are living as slaves. Modern-day slavery is most prevalent per head of population in Mauritania, Uzbekistan, Haiti, Qatar, and India, but has a strong foothold in ten other countries and can be found in every country in the world.
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• Pray for children born into servitude, trafficked into the sex trade, trapped in debt bondage, exploited for forced labor, or abducted to serve in wars. Pray for those who are denied an education because they’ve been forced to work or marry at a young age. Pray for children who are exploited as unpaid, abused domestic workers.
• Please pray for a change of attitude and practice in Mauritania where hereditary slavery is deeply entrenched. Four percent of this West African country’s population of 3.9 million is estimated to be enslaved.
o Pray for children who are forced to herd camels, cows, and goats, or who are forced to work in the fields.
o Pray for girl children who are forced to do domestic chores like hauling water, gathering firewood, preparing food, or caring for their master’s children. • Keep in prayer the 1.2 million children and adults who are trapped in slave labor in Uzbekistan—many of whom are forced to participate in the annual cotton harvest. Pray for children who are expected to “volunteer” to help with the cotton harvest and are exposed to hazardous working conditions and long hours in the fields.
o Pray for children whose education or health is negatively impacted by this enforced labor practice. Teachers, doctors, and health care workers are expected to work the annual cotton harvest leaving schools, clinics, and hospitals woefully understaffed.
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o Give thanks to God the number of children working in the cotton fields has declined in the last year as authorities have made tentative progress in moving to eliminate the worst forms of child labor.
• Continue to pray for the children of Haiti who are restaveks (children from poor backgrounds who are sent to work for wealthier relatives or family friends). Pray for restavek children who face forced labor and physical, sexual, and verbal abuse in their work places.
• Pray for those enslaved in Qatar, the host of the 2022 World Cup, as large numbers of migrant workers help to build the massive projects for this event. Pray for those who are forced to work long hours, and for those who endure physical and sexual abuse from employers.
o Pray for the children of these migrant workers (predominately from South and Southeast Asian countries) as they are often left in the care of relatives or friends while their parents are overseas.
• Please keep the 14.3 million enslaved children and adults in India close in prayer. India has more people in slavery than any other country in the world and most of those are from lower castes and tribes, religious minorities, and migrant populations.
o Pray for families that have been enslaved for generations in the practice of bonded labor.
o Pray for children forced to work in brick kilns; carpet weaving, embroidery, and other textile manufacturing businesses; prostitution; mining; agriculture; domestic servitude; and begging rings.
• Keep in prayer the 10 million child workers of Pakistan—3.8 million of them are five to 14 years old. Pray for those trapped in bonded labor in brick making, farming and carpet weaving. Pray for those exploited in the commercial sex trade.
• Pray for the children of the Democratic Republic of Congo who are often abducted and coerced into joining armed groups. Pray for girl children who are forced into marriage or subjected to rape as a weapon of war.
• Please remember in prayer the children of Sudan who are exploited for domestic work, commercial sexual exploitation, and forced marriages.
• Keep in prayer the children of Syria who have been recruited as soldiers by government forces and rebel groups. Pray for girl children who’ve been sold as child brides, or forced into marriage or commercial sexual exploitation. Pray for refugee children who have dropped out of school to labor with their families, harvesting potatoes, olives, and bananas in neighboring countries.
• And please keep close in prayer the children of Central African Republic (CAR) who are forced into sexual slavery, marriage, or made to labor in the country’s gold and diamond mines. Pray for the estimated 6,000 children being used as soldiers in the current conflict in the CAR.
• Please pray all children trapped in modern day slavery situations will find freedom. Pray for God’s comfort and peace for all enslaved children.
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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