Invitation to Prayer from Faces of Children ... TODAY

Faces of Children is an ecumenical prayer ministry under the auspices of First Presbyterian Church of Midland, Texas. Their mission is to initiate ministries of prayer for children in churches, communities, and neighborhoods. In doing so, they 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).

Invitation to Prayer ... TODAY

Hi Friends,

Thank you for joining me in prayer for the children of the world. If you can, we'd love to have you pray together with us this Wednesday - TODAY - at 11:30 a.m., in the gym conference room at First Presbyterian Church of Midland, Texas. The church is not currently offering lunch service. If you'd like to have lunch together, please bring a sack lunch and we can eat together.

Also, Faces of Children is now on Facebook! I invite you to like our page so that you can see regular stories, prayer needs, and updates from partner ministries.

All the best,

Carrie

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"For the LORD your God is living among you.

He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness.

With his love, he will calm all your fears.

He will rejoice over you with joyful songs."

Zephaniah 3:17 (NLT)

Dear Intercessors,

One of the sweetest moments of my week was also one of the most simple and unplanned. My six-year-old daughter, Cora, decided she wanted to set up a "Kid's Craft Table" in our front yard and wait for neighborhood children to walk by so she could invite them to make something with her. There were no special kits or fancy supplies -- just a stack of white paper, a basket of scissors, stickers, glue and beads, and old tin cans which she carefully labeled to hold crayons, markers, and decorative tape. I helped her carry her supplies outside and set them out on a small table. She taped a sign she made to the front of the table, and then sat down to wait.

"Do you think anyone will come, Mama?" she asked.

"I think so. School is getting out now, and the neighborhood kids will be walking by soon."

A few minutes later, her favorite playmates from down the street walked by with their mom and Cora ran out in the street to meet them. She invited them to the table and before long, the three little girls were busy cutting, gluing, stringing, laughing and chattering. Their mom and I sat in the shade of the tree in our yard, enjoying the slow pace and simple joy of spontaneous childhood unfolding before.

Courtesy Photo

Over the last few weeks, I've somehow slipped into a fast-paced/performance-based/never-enough-hours-in-the-day mentality. I've been tired... deep-down soul tired. But as I sat there watching my girl with her friends, each of them fully present to the moment they were in and not worrying if they were doing a 'good enough' job coloring or if they had time to pause and paste pink hearts to white paper, I felt nothing but pure joy and delight. They were precious not because they were making spectacular art, but just because they were.

And as I watched, God brought to mind a verse I've been pondering this week, Zepheniah 3:17... and I heard the Spirit whisper to my heart, "Just as you delight in them, so the Father delights over you... just because you are."

I never cease to be grateful for the ways my children show me the heart of God. I didn't have the easiest childhood, and I've grieved what I missed. Truthfully sometimes it feels like I'm raising not just the two little girls God entrusted to me, but three... Cora, Alea, and myself. Through my journey as their mama, God has been healing some of my broken heart, restoring some of what I lost, and learning what it means to be a beloved daughter.

Children are such a gift... simply because they are. This week, as we pray for children and mourn all the ways they are wounded, may we start from a place of gratitude and wonder -- praising God for how He uses them to raise us up.

This week, I'd like to invite you to join me in praying for the following matters:

Malaysia // Over half of Rohingya girls who fled violence became child brides - UN survey

Reuters Photo by Mohammad Ponier Hossain

"More than half of Rohingya Muslim girls who fled violence in western Myanmar ended up becoming child brides, according to a United Nations survey that also showed widespread domestic abuse." ... "In a survey of 85 Rohingya women and girls who have fled to India, Malaysia and Indonesia, UNHCR found about 60 percent married before the age of 18. The average age that they gave birth to their first child was 18. One in every three women and girls also said they were victims of domestic violence, according to UNHCR's 2016 Report on Mixed Movements in Southeast Asia." Learn more here ...

Please pray for God's protection over these girls and for organizations who work to support the Rohingya, like Partner's Relief and Development.

Dallas, Texas // Police Officer Who Fatally Shot 15-Year-Old Texas Boy Is Charged With Murder

File Photo

"The police officer in a Dallas suburb was charged with murder on Friday, six days after he fired his rifle into a car full of teenagers leaving a party, killing a black 15-year-old in the front passenger seat. The Dallas County Sheriff's Department issued a warrant on Friday for the arrest of the officer, Roy D. Oliver II, 37, the authorities said. Mr. Oliver turned himself in Friday night in Parker County, Tex., officials said. Mr. Oliver, who was a patrol officer with the Balch Springs Police Department, responded late last Saturday to reports of underage drinking at a house party. Mr. Oliver and another officer entered the house but left after the police said they heard gunshots outside the residence. As a car with five black teenagers inside drove away from the house, Mr. Oliver, who is white, fired his AR-15 rifle, fatally striking Jordan Edwards, a freshman at Mesquite High School, in the head, according to the police and the law firm representing the Edwards family." Learn more here ...

Please pray for the family and friends of Jordan Edwards as the grieve the loss of a precious son, brother and friend. Please pray for the family of Roy Oliver as well, who are undoubtedly reeling from the sudden turn his life took. Finally, please pray for justice to be done and peace to prevail both in Dallas and around the country.

Guatemala // Femicide the rallying cry for families of girls killed in Guatemalan orphanage fire

Guardian Photo

"After a fire killed 41 girls locked in an orphanage room last month, families are pressing for government and orphanage officials to be held accountable not only for homicide charges, but also for femicide. "They argue that the girls were subjected to abuse and neglect indicative of wider state failings on the protection of women in Guatemala. Lawyers and campaigners are also calling for an investigation into the failure of the police to act on accusations of abuse made by the girls." "Though Guatemala introduced legislation outlawing violence against women in 2008, the country still has one of the world's highest rates of femicide and an impunity rate - 98% - to match. For crimes committed against children - including sexual abuse, rape and murder - 88% of cases go unpunished." Learn more here ...

Please pray for the protection of girls and women in Guatemala. With these kinds of impunity rates, it is hard to imagine how dangerous it is to be female in Guatemala. Please pray for justice to be served and for groups like International Justice mission who work with countries to help them strengthen their justice systems.

Praying with you,
Carrie

Carrie J. McKean
Faces of Children Director
First Presbyterian Church of Midland, Texas
(432) 684-7821 x153

* Name changed to protect her privacy.

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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 info@facesofchildren.net