International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted

[00:00:00] Speaker A: You know, I always offer the welcome to somebody else if they want to go do it, but nobody ever wants to. It's really good. Good morning, everybody. Grateful to be here with you. My name is John. I'm one of the pastors on staff. And today is not a normal Sunday. Today you have arrived on the day that we pray for the International Day of Prayer for the persecuted church. This is happening all over the globe. People are praying specifically for those who, who are Christians and are in areas where they are facing really strong persecution. And so we're going to take time today to do that all throughout our service. So if you have your kids with you, today is a good day to have them in grace kids because the topic is hard. There's nothing gory, there's nothing explicit in any of the videos. But if you want to take care advantage of grace kids, it's a good day to do that. We're going to begin with a responsive prayer. So if you'd stand up, we're going to do this together. We don't do a lot of responsive readings, but today it feels right. This is a collection of various scriptures. I'm going to pretend to be the leader and you pretend to be the people. Okay? Okay. Good. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it. Even the darkness is not dark to you, Lord, the night shines as bright as the day. Lord God Almighty, you see our brothers and sisters in hidden places. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. Lord Jesus, let your light shine through your persecuted church and the prisons as well. Remember those in prison as if you were there with them today. We remember them as we pray. And finally, hard pressed but not crushed, struck down but not destroyed. Jesus, light of the world, shine in the darkest places. Everyone said amen. Will you greet those around you and then remain standing? We're going to sing together. One of my favorite worship songs. Sing with Jenny here. Lord, I come. [00:02:39] Speaker B: Lord, I come. I confess bowing Here I find my rest and without you I fall apart. You're the one that guides my heart. Lord, I need you. Oh, [00:03:11] Speaker C: I [00:03:12] Speaker D: need [00:03:13] Speaker C: you. Every hour I need [00:03:20] Speaker B: you. My one defense, my [00:03:25] Speaker C: righteousness. Oh [00:03:28] Speaker B: God, how I need you. Where sin runs deep, [00:03:39] Speaker C: your grace is more. [00:03:42] Speaker B: Where grace is found is where you are. [00:03:49] Speaker C: And where you are. Lord, I am free. Holiness is Christ [00:04:00] Speaker E: me. [00:04:05] Speaker C: Lord, I need you. Oh, I need you. Every hour I need you. My ones defense, my righteousness. Oh God, how I leave you [00:04:31] Speaker B: so teach my song to rise to you when temptation comes my way. When I cannot stand, I'll follow you. Jesus, you're my hope and stay [00:04:54] Speaker F: so teach my song to rise to you [00:05:00] Speaker B: when temptation comes my way. [00:05:05] Speaker C: When I cannot stand, I'll fall on you. Jesus, Jesus, you're my hope and sing. Lord, I need you. Oh, I need, need you every hour I need you. My one defense, my righteousness. Oh God, how I need you. You're my one. You're my one defense, my [00:05:48] Speaker G: righteousness. Oh God, [00:05:52] Speaker C: how I need. My one [00:05:59] Speaker B: defense, my righteousness. Oh God, how I need you. [00:06:10] Speaker A: Jesus. As your apostle Peter said, where else would we go? Where else do we go? Lord, you're the one that has eternal life. You're the living word. So we come to you today on behalf of our brothers and sisters. You can be seated, everybody. [00:06:30] Speaker H: Well, thanks for joining us today. We are doing a unique opportunity today to pray for the persecuted church around the world. I was thinking about that in relationship to the time of year that this is. For 35 years, the two churches that I've served in have, on the first Sunday of November, have taken this opportunity to pray for the persecuted church around the world with churches from all over the world, literally. And it's no mistake that today is All Saints Day. And I know that that might have weird connotations, but in the high church, All Saints Day is where they celebrate the passing of believers in the last year, and they literally call a roll and celebrate their salvation in many places. And so I'm reminded that, you know, in some ways, the day of prayer for the persecuted church is like Memorial day for Christians. It's like a reminder and a help that people suffer for their faith. And that's happening all around the world. This year, already, 4,900 people have lost their lives because of their faith. That doesn't even include the 60 earlier in this week from Ethiopia who died. So nearly 5,000 people already this year have been killed for their faith in Jesus. Now, you know, when you think about 8 million, 8 billion people in the world, that doesn't really seem like that awesome or huge of a number, but certainly it's a massive part of a person's life and a family's life and the church's life and the reality of people being put to death for their faith. And yet it's not just that people are put to death. 388 million Christians worldwide are in a very difficult place where they deal with the threat of persecution on a regular basis and discrimination for placing their faith in Christ or for worshiping Christ. And so today we Enter in with the local. With the Worldwide Church as the local body here at Grace Community at all five of our campuses. And I'd like for you to think about it in this term. We have the chance to pray for people today, and that is a very specific opportunity that we have this morning to enter in with the church around the world and to pray for people who are suffering. And it's interesting, you know, when we think through that these 4,900 people who have died and their families and the 30,388 million Christians around the world that are suffering, it's not uncommon, nor is it a surprise. In Second Timothy 3:12, it says, Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. And John 15:20 says, if they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. So the reality is that as believers in Christ, we will suffer persecution. And in the years that we have experienced this together as the church, one of the things that's constantly been on my mind, as I've read, is that people who are being persecuted aren't necessarily asking that the persecution be removed, but that they could remain faithful. Now, I think we should pray for their help and the removal of that to a certain extent. But the reality is that, you know, nothing can separate us from the love of Christ, from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus, not tribulation or distress or persecution. So we're not losing anything as we get persecuted, except possibly our physical lives. But we have faith that God is using it to build in us and to build in the church and to build his kingdom, that he will do what he has promised he will do, that he will provide forgiveness of sin because he loves us, and a future that is real and hopeful. And so today we enter in and we pray. And so it's different. We're going to do this in about four different ways. We're going to look at four countries around the world that are really difficult towards believers. The first country we're going to look at today is North Korea. North Korea at one point in time was called the Jerusalem of the east in the early 1900s because they were sending so many Christian missionaries around the world. But about 1912 or 1915, there was a revolution and communism took over, particularly the grandfather of the current leader, Kim Jong Un, who his grandfather, the current leader's grandfather, was a Presbyterian church member until he was 15. Crazy how things change. And in North Korea Today, there are 26 million people, maybe 200,000 Christians, we're not sure. And the Government. Government under Kim Jong Un is a. Is a dictatorship that believes that Christianity and every other form of religion should be exterminated. And so that's what they do. It's illegal to be a Christian there. If you're discovered as a Christian, you will be placed in a work camp and even systematically executed. And so what we want to pray for today are these things related to that. That we have some prayer requests on the screen. I think. Yeah, that. Yes. That believers would be delivered from a brutal regime, that there'd be protection and growth for the underground church, which does continue to grow, and that hearts would be changed, particularly the leaders and his family and the leaders, the other leaders of North Korea. And we're going to try to pray for a missionary at Grace Community. That's not. They're not all necessarily in the country, but they're in the region. And we have a woman who teaches in a neighboring country. And so we're going to pray for her protection, strength and fruit, for her faithfulness as well. And the way we're going to do that, first, the way we're going to start this morning, we're going to do it different ways, but the way we're going to start this morning is I'm going to pray to start us, and I'm going to ask three or four of you to stand where you are and to pray a couple of those prayer requests turning to as many people as you can. So if you're in the front, turn around. If you're in the back, kind of project your voice forward. And if three or four of you would pray, and then I will close us. So I'll start and then if three or four of you will pray, let's do that together. Lord, we come before you now as the body of Christ, representing the church worldwide. Here in our community, we partner together with believers everywhere, praying for the persecuted people of faith. God, we know that. That you are hated around the world, that people have no interest in you, and. And that many want to wipe out every piece of evidence or scope of your existence. And so, God, there are people who are persecuting believers. And. And that's so true in North Africa and North Korea. I pray God, that, that you would come alongside believers right now who are suffering some form of persecution and know that they would know that we are praying for them in this moment. [00:14:46] Speaker I: Open people's eyes to the truth and gospel. They will be saved. That you comfort [00:14:52] Speaker J: those Christians, [00:14:54] Speaker I: strengthen them, [00:14:55] Speaker J: help them to know they are not alone. Oh, precious Holy Spirit, we pray that you would just move them on their in their hearts and move their minds and help [00:15:06] Speaker K: them to see the truth. We pray this in Jesus name. Jesus, thank you for teaching us how to suffer [00:15:19] Speaker L: and thank you for your work. It teaches us that suffering has a purpose. So God, I ask that you would be with the persecuted church in North Korea that they would accomplish your purposes for their lives and for their nation. They would protect them and be with them in the ways that they're expecting you to be with them. [00:15:49] Speaker M: We thank you for the power of the gospel [00:15:53] Speaker J: possesses the power to reach every nook and cranny of this world, even North Korea. Thank you that Jesus, your life, death and resurrection [00:16:03] Speaker M: is truly the one power to transform the life. And [00:16:07] Speaker J: it's a true light in the darkness of this world. We pray that that light would shine brightly in a very, very dark place in this world. Lord, we pray yes, that you strengthen our brothers and sisters in Christ, Lord. Give them courage, boldness and humility, Lord, to. To walk with you and ultimately to be a light for you, Christ. [00:16:35] Speaker H: Yeah. Lord, we thank you so much for your work that's being done. We pray for revival in the hearts of North Koreans. We pray God that you would move in them to know you as their Savior. We pray God that things would change there, that people would know who you are as the God of the universe and that you are offering to them eternal life and a new life. Now we thank you God that revival starts as the people, as people of yours pray. And so God, would you help us as a people to be committed to praying for revival in the nation of North Korea in Jesus name. Amen. Thank you. We're going to next pray for the country of Afghanistan. Why don't you take a look at the screen screen to find out more about that country. [00:18:43] Speaker N: Foreign. Nomad person make Adam Daborisha. Satovs and the gina academy joy. [00:21:28] Speaker O: So we're going to take some time to pray for Afghanistan. There are about 44 and a half million people in Afghanistan. 58 people groups and 58 people groups unreached. Which is a problem because since the Taliban took over in 2021, Christians have had to either flee the country or go underground. And so almost every believer is a convert from Islam and they are punishable. That's punishable by death. So it's dangerous to be a Christian and to spread the gospel in Afghanistan. Almost all of the believers, like I said, are meeting secretly in secret church. That's how the church survives. In secret gatherings, women face severe oppression and persecution. They are banned from going to schools, from getting jobs. And if they are found to be Christians, they face beatings, something that's called honor killings. They could face forced marriages and men too, when they're suspect of converting, have been tortured and killed even by their families. If they skip going to the mosque, then they're suspicious of being converted and they'll face harsh treatment or rejection from their families. And so we're going to pray for the believers, for hope and for peace. To cover them. We also have a missionary going to that region, Dan Perez, who is one of our staff. Sandra, she's our missions coordinator. It's her son and you might remember him, us launching him this summer. So he's in Italy now. His team is preparing. He feels called to the Middle east. So we're going to pray for him. He actually asked us to pray this scripture over him. Habakkuk 3:19. God the Lord is my strength. And so now there's some prayer prompts on the screen. And what we're going to do is take some time to intimately petition the Lord on behalf of our brothers and sisters in Afghanistan. So if you will, in silence, pray individually to the Lord and I will close us in a few minutes. Father, we thank you that you are our protection, you are our strength. And we pray for our brothers and sisters in Afghanistan that your spirit of peace would cover and protect them. Lord, we pray for comfort for those that are facing deportation or have been separated from their families or are experiencing rejection from their families. Would you be close, God? We pray for softened hearts for leaders that are persecuting. Pray that for those, Lord, that have not yet experienced your life changing grace, pray they would come to know you. God, we specifically lift up Dan and thank you for his obedience to you, for his passion to want to go and spread your word. We pray for protection, for wisdom as his team prepares to go to the Middle East. God, and we pray that you would be his hope and his strength. Empower them and equip them with everything they need to make your name great. In your mighty name we pray. Amen. [00:26:29] Speaker A: You stand please and join us. Nobody knows suffering like our Savior. Sing with me [00:26:40] Speaker P: the perfect son of God in [00:26:44] Speaker J: all his innocence. You're walking in the dirt with you and me. He knows what living is. He's acquainted with our grief. A man of sorrow, Son of self and oh, blood and tears. [00:27:11] Speaker G: How can you. [00:27:15] Speaker E: There's a God who weeps. There's a God who pleads. Oh praise the one [00:27:26] Speaker Q: who would [00:27:26] Speaker C: reach for me. [00:27:30] Speaker E: Hallelujah. To the son of son suffering. [00:27:41] Speaker G: Some imagine you [00:27:44] Speaker P: are distant and [00:27:46] Speaker R: removed. But you chased us down in merciful pursuit. Yeah. [00:27:55] Speaker C: To the sinner you were grace [00:27:58] Speaker S: and the [00:27:59] Speaker P: brokenness [00:28:00] Speaker S: you embrace. [00:28:02] Speaker P: And in the end, [00:28:04] Speaker E: the proof is in [00:28:06] Speaker P: your wound. [00:28:09] Speaker E: This in the end, the proof is in your [00:28:16] Speaker T: blood [00:28:17] Speaker G: and tears. How can you. [00:28:22] Speaker E: There's a God who weeps, There's a [00:28:27] Speaker J: God who [00:28:28] Speaker E: pleads. [00:28:30] Speaker C: Oh, praise the one who would reach for me. [00:28:37] Speaker E: Hallelujah to the son of suffering. [00:28:49] Speaker D: Your cross, my freedom, your stripes, my healing I'll praise king Jesus, Glory to God in heaven. Your blood still speaking, your love still reaching. All praise king Jesus. Glory to God forever. [00:29:18] Speaker C: Your cross, my freedom, your stripes, my healing. All praise king Jesus. [00:29:29] Speaker D: Glory to God in heaven. [00:29:32] Speaker C: Your blood still speaking, your love still [00:29:38] Speaker U: reaching. All [00:29:40] Speaker C: praise [00:29:41] Speaker V: king Jesus. Glory to God [00:29:45] Speaker C: forever. Your cross, my freedom, your stripes, my healing. All praise king Jesus. Glory to God in heaven. Your blood still speaking, your love still reaching. All praise king Jesus. Glory to God forever. [00:30:17] Speaker E: Blood and tears. How can we? There's a God [00:30:25] Speaker C: who weeps. [00:30:27] Speaker E: There's a God who pleads. [00:30:31] Speaker C: Oh, [00:30:31] Speaker E: praise the one [00:30:34] Speaker C: who would reach for me. [00:30:38] Speaker E: Hallelujah to the son of [00:30:42] Speaker W: suffering. [00:30:45] Speaker E: Hallelujah to the son [00:30:49] Speaker C: of suffering. [00:30:52] Speaker E: Hallelujah to the son of suffering. [00:31:04] Speaker A: Doug mentioned all saints day in Hebrews chapter 11. The writer of Hebrews lists out this list of saints, and then he says after that, he says, fix your eyes on Jesus, perfecter of your faith. And he says, cling to the cross. Cling to the blood of Jesus and allow that to change you. So let's. So let's sing these next words for ourselves, but also for our brothers and sisters. [00:31:29] Speaker D: What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of [00:31:40] Speaker B: Jesus. [00:31:43] Speaker D: What can make [00:31:46] Speaker X: me whole again? [00:31:50] Speaker D: Nothing but the blood of [00:31:54] Speaker B: Jesus. [00:31:57] Speaker C: Oh, [00:31:59] Speaker D: precious [00:32:01] Speaker C: is the flow [00:32:04] Speaker D: that makes me white as snow. [00:32:12] Speaker C: No other. [00:32:19] Speaker Y: Nothing but the blood [00:32:21] Speaker C: of [00:32:22] Speaker B: Jesus. [00:32:30] Speaker D: Glory to God forever. Glory to God [00:32:39] Speaker C: forever. [00:32:45] Speaker D: Glory to God [00:32:46] Speaker C: forever. [00:32:51] Speaker D: Glory to God [00:32:53] Speaker C: forever. [00:33:02] Speaker A: All praise all. Glory to you, Jesus. You can be seated. And as you're seated, we move now to Southeast Asia, in the country called Laos. [00:33:19] Speaker J: They prohibited us from gathering to worship together, and they didn't allow us to build a church. They made us sign a document saying that if we worshiped the Lord, they would confiscate our [00:33:32] Speaker Z: animals and our land and destroy our house. [00:33:49] Speaker AA: Lid is a Christian convert and teacher from southern Laos. He faces opposition from his local community who accuse him of following a foreign religion. [00:34:06] Speaker Z: There were many children in the village, but they were illiterate and didn't know the Lao language. So my brother and I bought some books so that the children could attend classes and start learning. I began teaching the children the basics of the Lao Alphabet. My brother, who had attended [00:34:27] Speaker O: Bible classes, helped me to teach them about the Bible, how the Lord created the earth and humans. Not long afterwards, the villagers found out that we were teaching the children about the Bible. They said, you're spreading the story of God. This is not right. It's bad. This led to persecution. Later, they started throwing stones at our house [00:34:54] Speaker Z: where we held the classes. [00:35:01] Speaker J: In June 2024, [00:35:03] Speaker Z: we [00:35:03] Speaker J: were [00:35:03] Speaker Z: forced to [00:35:04] Speaker J: move to [00:35:05] Speaker Z: a farm. [00:35:07] Speaker J: It wasn't an official [00:35:08] Speaker Z: expulsion, but the stoning never [00:35:11] Speaker J: stopped. [00:35:12] Speaker Z: They told us, if you can stand it, we'll keep stoning. If not, we know you'll choose to leave your. [00:35:22] Speaker J: We feared for the children's safety as they often played around the community. Adults could get struck too. But it's out of fear for the children that we decided to move to the farm. [00:35:35] Speaker Z: Now that we live on the farm, I continue teaching the children because they are illiterate and don't know the Lao language. I feel compassion for them, so I keep teaching. [00:35:50] Speaker AA: Through local partners, open doors provided the believers with school supplies and helped them to build a new house. Lid now teaches about a dozen children the Lao language and maths, as well as stories from the Bible. [00:36:10] Speaker O: There were Christian brothers and [00:36:11] Speaker Z: sisters [00:36:12] Speaker O: who supported us to be able to conduct the teaching. They [00:36:16] Speaker J: provided the equipment [00:36:17] Speaker Z: so [00:36:17] Speaker J: that we could continue [00:36:18] Speaker Z: doing [00:36:19] Speaker J: the [00:36:19] Speaker Z: classes. [00:36:20] Speaker O: They [00:36:20] Speaker Z: provided books, pencils, and a board. [00:36:25] Speaker O: May the [00:36:26] Speaker Z: Lord bless everyone who has the heart to support [00:36:29] Speaker O: us. [00:36:33] Speaker A: And that's certainly us today. Thank you for engaging. Y' all doing okay. Okay, we got two countries left. Laos, Southeast Asia. There's about 7.8 million people that live there. Mostly they are Buddhist. It has 184 people groups and 142 of them have never heard the gospel. Laos, as you saw in the video, ranks number 28among the most persecuted nations for Christians. So Christians in Laos, they faced intense pressure from two places. Communist rule and then strong ethnic tradition. The government only recognizes three churches. And even if you go, those churches are closely watched. Even if you go to church, like if they you were to go to church like we are today, that church then has to report that meeting to the government. If you are not part of those churches, every other Christian group must meet in secret, unofficially, house churches, whatever that looks like. Generally speaking, authorities of Laos see Christianity as a Western concept, a Western religion, and it's opposed to their ideals, specifically communist ideals. Now, if you live in the country, in a rural village in Laos. Christians are often blamed for what is called upsetting the spirits. So what if you are blamed by locals there for being Christian and you have upset the spirits? What happens to you? Well, several things could happen. You could be stoned like we just saw. You could have your crops destroyed. Local people might destroy your crops. You might be expelled from the village. Let's say you want to bury somebody who has passed away. They can prevent you from doing that. The people who are under the most pressure are church leaders, of course, but also new converts who want to talk about their faith and share their faith. They're the most vulnerable there in Laos. Now, we do have some missionaries in the region, by the way. I love that we're doing that this year, praying for our own missionaries, Rob and Jen Dirksen. They're in the Southeast Asia area, and they gave specific ways right there that we can be praying for. Rob's teaching for aging parents. Can you imagine having to care for aging parents across the globe? That's very hard. And then open doors for them in business and in mission work. So the third way we're going to pray today is the most awkward, but I think it's going to be the most awesome. It's going to be in small groups. Now, if you are a guest today, if you're visiting with us, if this is your first time here or you're newer, you do not have to participate in this Free get out of group prayer card for you. Okay? You can sit and simply observe and listen. And if you feel like you can agree in quiet and prayer. But I'm going to ask you to get in groups of three, four, or five, you can start moving right now. Please go ahead and get in groups. And if you're uncomfortable praying, you don't even have to pray a lot. You can pray one sentence, and that's beautiful. Agreeing is praying, too. So the prayer points are on the screen. You don't have to pray a lot. Pray for Robin, Jen, and for Laos. And I'll come back up here in about three minutes and close us out. Let's do this. Jesus, Listening to these prayers in the room right now, Lord, agreeing with them and realizing most of us in this room have probably never prayed for the country of Laos. What a privilege it is to do that right now. Thank you, Holy Spirit, that you are present, working in the lives of believers in that region. And we pray for great fruit and beautiful things to happen amidst their persecution. Please strengthen them, God. Pray that they would Even feel strengthened today with people from all over the globe praying for them. We pray for the 142 people groups that have never heard about you. We pray that by the spreading of your word, these people would hear about you because you're the best thing. There's nothing like you. Thank you for Rob and Jen, for their courage, for the privilege of being their church God. We love them and pray for their strength. Give them great wisdom on how to care for aging parents from so far away. We pray this in Jesus name, Amen. One more country from Southeast Asia to sub Saharan Africa. Check this out. [00:46:20] Speaker O: First. [00:47:27] Speaker J: It's pretty unbelievable, pretty hard to fathom from the seats that we sit in here, I think. But our last country this morning is Burkina Faso, which is largely governed by military presence, which allows Islamic extremists to control many areas and really form kind of the local government in those areas with very little opposition. So radical religious leaders there, as you just saw, actively stir up hostility and enact hostility toward Christians. Churches are burned. Christian organizations are forced to close. Many believers are driven from their homes. No legal protection. Christians are attacked and killed. Christian converts from Islam face the harshest persecution, often from their own families in their communities. And I'm going to lead us in a prayer for Burkina Faso, for the church there, for our missionary families in that area of the world, the Grice and the Wilsons, many of you know them. We're going to pray that these violent extremists will turn to Jesus. We're going to pray for comfort and hope for the displaced and grieving Christians there. And we're going to pray that God will raise up more missionaries like the Grice and the Wilsons to demonstrate and proclaim the gospel in that part of the world. So I'm going to lead us as a pastoral prayer. And what that means is I'm inviting you to come along with me. I will pray over us and with us. Would you bow your head as we ask our good God to do good work in Burkina Faso? And in us. We are going to worship, repent, request and hope together right now. Our Father in heaven, we worship you. You are so worthy of our worship. You are the Creator of the universe. Let us not forget that this day you are the king above every king. You are the Lord over every nation. There is no one like you. God, whom have we in heaven but you and on earth? Who should we desire beside you? Our flesh and our heart may fail, but you are the strength of our heart and our portion forever. Father, we declare together that you are holy, you are good, you are just in every way. You are faithful to every promise. You are sovereign over everything. God. There is no government, no army, no ruler, no terrorist group, no power on earth that can challenge your authority or stop your saving work. In this world, we believe it. And you have told us in Psalm 46 that you are our refuge and our strength, a very present help in trouble. And you are not distant from the suffering of your people in Burkina Faso and in other places in the world. You see every injustice and you hear every cry and you know every name. And we are so comforted to remember that you will bring justice to this world and you will bring glory to your name. You are the most high God, even as nations rage and people plot in vain. So, Father, we come to you today with gratitude. Gratitude for the freedom that we enjoy in this time in this country. You told us that your church would be persecuted, but we thank you that we have the opportunity in this place, in this age, to gather openly to sing songs to you, to read your word publicly without fear of punishment. Please forgive us for when we take this gift for granted. Forgive us when we become so consumed with our own comfort and our temporary circumstances that we forget brothers and sisters who are suffering and even dying for following Jesus. Help us to remember them and to love them and to pray for them as members of your body. So we do today, Father, we lift up our brothers and sisters. In Burkina Faso, we pray for Christians living in places where extremist groups have taken control, where the government does not protect them. We pray for families who live with a constant fear of violence, for churches that have been burned and forced to close, for believers who have been driven from their homes, for families who have faced this violence and murder. Lord, please protect your people. In Jesus name, be their refuge. Please be to them the peace that surpasses all understanding. Will you guard the homes of Christian families? Will you protect pastors and church leaders who are willing to continue to shepherding their people in these dangerous places? Give them God, wisdom, courage, endurance. When they are afraid, remind them that you are with them. When they are tired, remember. Help them to remember that you are their strength. When they are tempted to despair, and of course they are, remind them that they have been born again into a living hope. We especially pray for those who have turned from Islam to follow Jesus. Father, you know perfectly the cost that some of them have paid. You know, the rejection, the loss of community, the dangers, the loneliness that come with following Christ. There. Help them to believe and to experience that they have gained a family that will not abandon them, that they will be a part of forever. Will you give those people the unspeakable joy of your presence every day? Would you give them courage, God, to remain faithful and please soften the hearts of the people who oppose them? We pray that entire families and communities would come to know the grace of Jesus through the testimony of persecuted Christians in Burkina Faso. Lord, we also ask that you would raise up more missionaries like Grice and the Wilsons. God, would there be many more willing to serve in hard places and share the message of the gospel? Give wisdom and protection, please, to those who serve in these dangerous ways. Father, we also pray for those who carry out this violence. What a thing. We ask you to restrain evil, to hold it back and to bring an end to the terror that has armed, harmed so many communities in Burkina Faso and in so many other places. We pray for those that are in positions of authority that you would enable them to act with justice and wisdom and courage to protect the vulnerable. We pray even for those who persecute your church. You saved Saul of Tarsus. You can save anybody. Will you please turn hearts of hatred towards Christ? Bring repentance where there is sin. Bring salvation where there is hostility. And Father, please. And we know you will not let the suffering of your church be in vain. Jesus said in Matthew 16 that he will build his church and the gates of hell will not prevail against us. That we believe that. We believe that no amount of persecution can stop you from rescuing sinners. We pray that the gospel would advance every day in Burkina Faso, that churches would be planted and disciples would be made, that people would be rescued, and that even in the darkest places, the light of Jesus would shine forth. We also pray, God, that you would make us a more fruitful church as we remember our brothers and sisters today. Give. Give us a deeper love for your people around the world. Please make us less committed to our comfort and more committed to your mission. Teach us to pray with greater faith, with greater generosity. Teach us to live with greater hope. Because we look forward, God, to the day when our faith will be made sight when every injustice in this world will be made right. When death and crying and pain will be no more. And when people from every tribe and tongue and nation will bow before your throne and worship the lamb who was slain. Until then, keep your people faithful, God. Keep your church strong and keep the gospel going forward. We know you will do it. We ask all of this in the powerful name of Jesus. Amen and Amen. Would you stand and let's sing to Jesus. [00:56:32] Speaker P: There is a day coming. When the old will pass away. Every wrong will be made right no darkness, no night the sun will light the way There is a cane coming. The one who conquered death and grave no more pain and no more sorrow this hope for tomorrow is our hope for today. [00:57:26] Speaker C: He who was [00:57:29] Speaker E: he who is he who was [00:57:36] Speaker C: he who is he who is to come? [00:57:44] Speaker W: Christ, the Son of man Riding on the clouds [00:57:49] Speaker E: with the crown of upon his head Every eye will see him with [00:57:56] Speaker AB: the nail scars in his hands [00:57:59] Speaker C: Hallelujah, Hallelujah. [00:58:13] Speaker A: There's only one there's only one [00:58:18] Speaker C: there's only [00:58:18] Speaker Q: one worthy [00:58:24] Speaker E: with all glory and all [00:58:27] Speaker C: praise [00:58:31] Speaker E: all wealth and all honor, strength, wisdom and power to the Lamb that was slain for me who is to come Christ, the Son of man Riding on the clouds with the crown upon his head [00:58:59] Speaker W: Every [00:59:00] Speaker E: eye will see him with the nail scars in his hands Hallelujah, Hallelujah [00:59:11] Speaker C: Hallelujah Hallelujah. [00:59:23] Speaker E: Hallelujah. [00:59:30] Speaker P: He's surely coming. Oh, can you feel it too all this tension Growing stronger Just a sign he's getting closer [00:59:50] Speaker E: he's already on the [00:59:51] Speaker C: moon. [00:59:56] Speaker E: All the story has been written we all know [01:00:03] Speaker C: we all know how it ends [01:00:09] Speaker E: My future has an anchor My eyes are on the Savior he's coming back again he's coming back [01:00:21] Speaker C: again he who is to come Christ, the Son of man Riding on [01:00:32] Speaker W: the clouds with a [01:00:35] Speaker C: crown upon his [01:00:36] Speaker E: head oh, every [01:00:38] Speaker C: eye will see him with [01:00:41] Speaker U: the nail scars in [01:00:42] Speaker E: his hand [01:00:43] Speaker C: Hallelujah, Hallelujah he who is too kind Christ, the Son of man [01:00:58] Speaker AC: Riding [01:00:58] Speaker C: on [01:00:59] Speaker W: the cloud with the crown upon [01:01:02] Speaker C: his head and every eye will see him with [01:01:07] Speaker U: the nail scars in [01:01:08] Speaker C: his hands [01:01:10] Speaker E: Hallelujah, [01:01:13] Speaker C: Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah. Hallelujah. [01:01:34] Speaker A: Close with the one prayer they would make this all right. Sing come lord jesus [01:01:44] Speaker E: come come lord jesus come come lord jesus come come lord jesus come come lord jesus come all the people sing [01:02:11] Speaker Y: come lord [01:02:12] Speaker C: jesus come [01:02:17] Speaker Y: come lord [01:02:19] Speaker E: jesus come [01:02:24] Speaker Y: come lord jesus [01:02:27] Speaker E: come [01:02:31] Speaker Y: come lord jesus come. [01:02:40] Speaker J: Amen. I love asking Jesus to come. I love thinking about the day where that's going to happen. Think about it a lot. Can't wait. Can't wait. Oh, man, you can't wait. It's going to be crazy, guys. That's going to be crazy. And he's. It's a real thing. Unbelievable. Until then, so thankful to be a part of a church that is willing to do uncomfortable things. Last year I was out of town for International Day of Prayer, so I hadn't seen it before till today, and I knew we were going to invite you guys to pray in small groups, and I wasn't sure everyone wouldn't just leave when that happens. So hearing you guys pray together was really beautiful. If you are a guest with us today, you did it. You picked the most unique day you could possibly come here. So. So thank you for also not going straight to Chipotle. In many ways, this is a special pause in our Ephesians series, so we'll pick that up next week. We will be going into Ephesians Chapter three. I get to tell you what is the most significant secret in history. It's the first six verses of Ephesians chapter three. So if you want to read ahead, that will be awesome. We're about to go out into the the world where everything we just talked about and prayed through Israel persecution was promised to us. We live in some of the mildest forms in history. I am grateful, but that is also the reality. So let me read Jesus's words over us as we leave. Would you put out your hands in a posture of receiving? This is from our Savior, the end of John, chapter 16. He said, I have said these things to you that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart, I have overcome the world. We go out those doors right now into Jesus's world in his name. Go in peace. See y' all next week.