Displaying items by tag: Africa

What makes you angry? I'm not talking about that frustration you feel when you've just missed a train, or your computer crashes - I'm talking about the kind of deep anger that rages against the injustice we see in our fallen world. When I heard about the situation facing our church family in northern Nigeria, that's how I felt - angry and sad. There is a humanitarian crisis in the region, leaving millions on the brink of starvation. This is bad enough in itself. But thousands of Christians, who have already been forced to flee their homes to escape Islamic fundamentalists, are frequently being denied access to the vital aid that they need to survive by local leaders, simply because of their faith in Jesus. Some of our brothers and sisters have been eating leaves - they had nothing else to eat.

Egyptian Christians, as security worsens, are fleeing the increasingly lawless Sinai Peninsula, some with just the clothes on their backs, after several killings and explicit calls by IS to target them. The displacement has reached a scale rarely seen outside natural disasters. Pray for God’s comfort and strength for all experiencing continued death threats, and for those who have fled from their homes and communities. Ex-president Hosni Mubarak was freed last week after six years in custody. His release comes amid an economic crisis after years of political tumult and worsening security. Egyptians complain of empty pockets and rumbling bellies as inflation exceeds 30% and the government tightens its belt in return for loans from the International Monetary Fund. A politician said that the economic crisis and high prices, plus the fear of terrorism, take priority over everything, including politics. See

An outbreak of meningitis has been reported in six Nigerian states, infecting over a thousand and killing 140. Meningitis causes acute inflammation of the brain and spinal cord. The current outbreak is the worst since 2009, when over 150 people died. The disease is spreading; it could become out of control if refugee camps, prisons and police cells become affected through crowds. Vaccination is a way of preventing meningitis. However a new strain imported from a neighbouring country is now prevalent and requires a different vaccine. The outbreak, attributed to cold nights / dusty winds / dry weather, is aggravated by traditional beliefs, poor hygiene, and overpopulation.

The UN warns of genocide, officials accuse the government of war crime atrocities, and Bishop Santo Doggale of Juba denounced President Kiir’s ‘National Day of Prayer’ as a ‘political prayer’. The president had called the nationwide day of prayer for peace and forgiveness on 10 March. They repented and prayed to forgive each other for problems they might have committed to each other. But the bishop told Voice of America, ‘Why should I go to pray where there is no holiness, where there is no forgiveness? It is a joke to hear the president of the country calling for prayers while soldiers are hunting people across South Sudan.’ In February, Kiir called on groups fighting his government to lay down their arms and focus on developing South Sudan but added, ‘If they don't listen to the call for peace, I will declare war against them. I don't think there is any one of you who will blame me.’

South Sudan’s Catholic bishops have issued a pastoral letter condemning the civil war and labelling the famine ‘man-made’. The document responds to reports from all seven dioceses. They denounce government and opposition violence against civilians. ‘The killing, torturing and raping of civilians is a war crime. We want the world to hear the true situation in which our people find themselves. Our country is gripped by a humanitarian crisis - famine, economic hardship, and insecurity. Our people are struggling simply to survive.’ The bishops tell how people have been herded into their houses which were then set on fire, and recount atrocities of bodies dumped in sewage-filled septic tanks. They said, ‘People live in fear. While food shortages are partly related to poor rains, it is violence and a plummeting economy that are pushing the population over the edge into famine’.

It's a volatile neighbourhood with conflicts, terrorism, and food shortages on all sides. With Libya to its north, Sudan to its east, Central African Republic and Cameroon to its south, and Nigeria to its west, Chad continually attracts the masses seeking refuge when trouble occurs across this region. But there is little refuge to be found, only inadequate infrastructure, instability, conflict, immense poverty, notorious governmental corruption and threats of terrorism. The people of Chad have urgent physical needs. But there is an even greater tragedy that affects eternity: there are more unreached people groups in Chad than in any other nation on earth. The good news is that the number of Muslims turning to Christ is steadily growing. Efforts to reach the unreached are seeing fruit! The door in Chad remains miraculously open to the Gospel.

From March to May intercessors will be praying for healing for the 'heart' of South Africa, focusing on reconciliation and deep-rooted pain and animosity harboured there. Since January, intercessors have prayed for the deep-seated emotions harboured against others, stemming from events in the past. In March many will continue to go to God with expectant hearts, asking Him to reveal any form of sin that affects others. Also, from 18 to 20 March, teens and youth leaders will unite in a dynamic programme of talks, worship, multi-media platforms, spiritual-encounter stations, workshops, discussions, counselling, fellowship and fun. The event is called #imagine and aims to see radical change by placing those who will lead in twenty years' time on the right spiritual path now. Three events,with the same content, will take place simultaneously in the Western Cape, Gauteng and the Eastern Cape. We can join the intercessors: see

As previously reported (see Prayer Alert 17 February), Gambia's new president Adama Barrow has announced that the country will no longer officially be called an Islamic republic, reversing the decision made by his predecessor. Christians have been experiencing violence from Islamist mobs attempting to enforce Islamic dress codes. There are now encouraging signs that Barrow, a Muslim, will begin an era of positive relations with the Christian minority (5-8% of the population) - a courageous step away from the Islamist agenda promoted by Gambia’s previous president.

Czechoslovakian aid worker Petr Jašek, who had been sentenced to 24 years in a Sudanese prison, was released when 400,000+ people signed a petition for his release. However, pastor Hassan Abduelraheem Kodi and student Abdulmonem Abdumawla are still serving their twelve years behind bars. Christian Solidarity Worldwide said Jašek's release was good news, but the others are Sudanese nationals and are not represented in the same way.

In a recent operation in Ghana, 24 young boys were rescued from slavery and finally set free. The boys, the youngest only 7-years-old, had been forced to work on fishing boats on Lake Volta, diving into the deep water to untangle nets for their masters. The dangerous and exhausting work was made worse by violent abuse, starvation and sleep deprivation. IJM and the Ghanaian authorities worked together to free the boys and arrest 16 suspected boat masters. The boys received urgent medical attention, with three needing to go to hospital to be treated for malaria. IJM staff are now working to settle the boys into aftercare homes and start the journey of healing. Find out more here.

• Praise God for the successful rescue of the boys and arrest of the slave owners, and pray that this would be the first of many more, with God’s favour for our investigative team as they seek to find more boys to be rescued.
• Pray for continued healing for the boys - both physically from their injuries and emotionally from the abuse they have suffered. Pray that they would know God’s love and comfort as they move into aftercare homes.
• Pray that IJM’s relationship with the Ghanaian authorities would continue to strengthen and develop, as we work together to stop child slavery in Ghana.
• Pray for our legal teams as they begin legal proceedings against the 16 suspects. Pray that God’s justice would be done and that those who freely abuse and exploit young boys would no longer be able to continue.

Source: International Justice Mission