Streams of Prayer for 24 January 2023
The Streams of Prayer for 24 January 2023, is a circular from Wycliffe Global Alliance. Wycliffe Caribbean makes this available.
Community and Friendship
Our current theme for Streams of Prayer is Community and Friendship.
Community is the basis for the existence of the Alliance. We are not a community only because of our common goals, though Alliance Organizations do share many common goals. Our participation in God’s mission flows out of our communion with the Triune God and our fellowship within the Body of Christ. We are a community because we joyfully share a common life in Christ. …Our interdependence and interconnectedness creates an environment where all Alliance Organizations generously give and graciously receive. We recognize we are not owners, but only stewards of the gifts God has given us. We affirm each other for who we are and not for what we contribute or for the quantity of the contribution. Our primary goal is to glorify God together. (From the Wycliffe Global Alliance in Community).
We celebrate being on this mission with God as a community. We recognize that although each Alliance organization has its own leadership, board, and staff, all seek to work interdependently and value the Alliance community for friendship, partnership, spiritual encouragement, and other practical forms of mutual support. We pray for all partnerships, and for the ways friendship is demonstrated, both in and through the Alliance.
Mobilizing the church together: Thailand
In 2020 Overseas Missions Fellowship (OMF), SIM International, Operation Mobilisation (OM), and Wycliffe Thai Foundation started to explore working together to mobilize the Thai church. In the beginning of 2022, the leaders of the four organizations decided to run a mobilizing event named “Mission in Action Plus or MIA+” from 2 to 4 December 2023. Wycliffe Thai Foundation will take care of registration and public relations. Praise God for the fundraising event for MIA+ that was held on 26 November 2022. Ask the Lord to unite the four organizations by strengthening their vision to awaken the Thai church for God’s mission. Pray that God will move many people in Thailand to become involved in missions and Bible translation.
The journey ahead: Europe
The theme “Community and friendship” is one major focus of the Wycliffe Europe Area team. The team meets regularly on Zoom to develop community and deepen friendships: spending time together, praying for each other, reflecting together on God’s Word and encouraging each other in their journeys. As they grow in this area, they also pray that through their example Alliance organizations will be inspired to develop community with each other. At the same time, the Europe Area team is looking for innovative ideas to propose to the Alliance organizations that will help them to come closer to each other and “travel” together as a community in the direction that God is leading. Pray for wisdom and creative ideas and also for a spirit of unity as people who belong to God’s community. Another prayer request is that God will bring new people to the Europe Area team/community who will be a blessing to the entire Alliance community. Pray also for the Europe Area community as they come together in January to discuss the journey ahead.
Developing relationships through sharing local language materials: Vanuatu, New Zealand
Craig and Darlene Farrow of Wycliffe New Zealand are grateful for the privilege of serving the Lord in Vanuatu. Darlene coordinates a team of people involved in preparing a digital library of reading books and other resources in both local and national languages. This digital library called Bloom will be distributed on SD cards to every school in Vanuatu by the Education Department. A Bloom training course for education officers on how to use the new digital library was conducted in November. Praise God for the wonderful opportunity to build relationships with school teachers and with people in the Education Department while making both Scriptures and literacy materials more widely available in Vanuatu. Pray for God’s favour and blessing on this project and for good communication among all those involved.
Scriptures through the arts impacting lives: New Zealand
Wycliffe New Zealand’s (WNZ) new and exciting initiative, “Scripture Through the Arts” is progressing well. The initiative was officially launched during WNZ’s event, “The Gathering” in November. Praise the Lord for Jenny Eirena, and her vision and leadership in this initiative, which provides a way for those artistically gifted to serve God and the churches through the power of stories and songs about God at work. Praise the Lord for the impact on people’s lives through the presentations done in churches so far. Pray for Jenny and her team as they continue to work together to nurture and develop this vision. Ask the Lord for his provision and protection for each one. Pray that many more lives will be ministered to and drawn closer to God as well as committing themselves to participate in His mission in Bible translation.
Good collaboration on the mission field: Togo
Thank God for good understanding and collaboration between Wycliffe Togo, the church of Togo, and various specialised ministries. The needs on the mission field in Togo are many, and Wycliffe Togo staff seek to work closely with churches and like-minded organizations. They often organize breakfast meetings, round tables, and training workshops. On these occasions, they share the vision about Bible translation and talk about the mission that God has entrusted to them. In turn, they give churches, ministries, and other organizations the opportunity to share the vision that God has given each of them, such as maintaining the life of the church and bringing it to revival. There are still many substantial challenges to overcome, but together, these partners share a longing to see life transformation and spiritual revival in Togo. Pray that Wycliffe Togo and its partners will find effective ways to continue collaboration as they participate in God’s mission.
Collaborating so children can participate in Bible translation: Americas
Two Alliance organizations, DINAMIS in Colombia and AEL in Peru, have been discussing how to inspire children to develop hearts for Bible translation and to learn ways to become involved. Both organizations have developed mobilisation and teaching materials for children. They have been encouraged to have a dialogue on the subject and to think of a project to share their resources and experiences with other organizations of the Alliance. In addition, they desire to maintain a space for dialogue on how to mobilise the children of the church in the Americas. The first dialogue on the subject will take place in January or February 2023. Pray for this initiative so that many children from the church in the Americas will become involved in Bible translation.
Together for missions: Japan
In November 2022 Wycliffe Japan had the opportunity to participate in two major missions events. Wycliffe Japan staff shared about Bible translation work with young Japanese Christians at the new mission conference for youth called “United 2022”, held on 5 November. Praise the Lord for the clear presentations about how to participate in the work of Bible translation during the conference. Staff also participated in the Japan Overseas Missions Association (JOMA) World Mission Festival, held on 3-5 November 2022. Wycliffe Japan offered an online linguistic lecture for conference participants. Thank God for guidance and insight as the trainers and coordinators planned and prepared for the event. May God use these events to encourage Japanese people, especially young people, to participate in his mission and in Bible translation.
Streams of Prayer is the prayer bulletin of the Wycliffe Global Alliance.
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Valrie McCarthy
Proclaimer Officer
Wycliffe Caribbean
7A South Avenue
Kingston 5
JAMAICA, W. I.
876 754 9334, 908 2970, 582 6592
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