Displaying items by tag: Global

Thursday, 17 August 2023 20:47

Global: IJM praise and prayer needs

International Justice Mission (IJM) supported 14-year-old Hana to testify against a serving army officer who sexually assaulted her. Braving a military courtroom and facing the intimidation of officers dressed in army green uniform, Hana won her case. He was jailed for 14 years. Pray that this sentence sends a strong message to the community that abusing children is a crime. Pray for Hana’s healing. Bolivia’s Global Survivor Network uses shadow theatre, songs and presentations to raise awareness about violence against women and children and the problem of victim-blaming. Pray that God can work in the hearts of the people who attended the events so that this crime decreases in Bolivia. In Guatemala, IJM trained 43 judges on trauma-informed and victim-centred approaches that ensure survivors are treated with compassion and dignity. Pray that as justice system providers learn how to interact with and serve victims better, investigations and prosecutions will be more efficient.

Published in Worldwide
Thursday, 20 July 2023 18:03

Global: severe heat waves

The southern United States is in its third week of an extreme, stubborn heat wave that refuses to budge. 100 million Americans remain under heat alerts from South Florida to northern Nevada as record breaking temperatures hit 128°F (53° C) in Death Valley. Above-normal temperatures and sauna-like humidity have made things intolerable, with triple-digit temperatures continuing for days.  Sardinia has approached 117° (47° C), and Rome 108° (42° C) - which would eclipse the all-time record by 3°. Iran’s international airport posted a suffocating heat of 152° (67° C). Pray for the people who have problems regulating their body temperature, such as the elderly, pregnant, babies, children, and those with chronic or mental health conditions. Pray for those without air-conditioning to recognise symptoms of heat stroke or heat exhaustion and go to a place which is air-conditioned. The heat is also worsening wildfires. Pray for the safety of firefighters, and the protection of homes and businesses.

Published in Worldwide
Friday, 09 June 2023 09:51

Global: climate change

Every year countries pledge to cut their greenhouse gas emissions to curb the impacts of climate change. But still temperatures keep rising. Last month scientists announced that the average rise in global temperatures would likely pass the 1.5C threshold in the next five years. With temperatures rising we will see more heatwaves, wildfires and floods. From 5 to 15 June countries’ leaders are meeting at the Bonn climate conference to discuss, among other things, local communities and indigenous peoples, pre-2020 ambition and implementation, science, and oceans. They will review their pledges as they look ahead to November’s COP28. Even a small increase in average temperatures makes a big difference as the whole distribution of daily temperatures shifts to warmer levels, making hotter days more likely and more extreme. See

Published in Worldwide

Dr Jason Hubbard, the director of International Prayer Connect, invites us to Pentecost 2023 - a Global Day of Prayer for Jerusalem and the nations. On 27 and 28 May, a coalition of believers in Israel and elsewhere, along with mission and prayer organisations, is calling Christians everywhere to set aside an hour to pray for Jerusalem and the Jewish people. Different groups from Israel and the nations will lead a 26-hour broadcast, with different key partners leading prayer from their part of the world. This will see several high points, including a broadcast from the southern steps of the Temple in Jerusalem. You are invited to join over 110 million other believers around the world exalting Jesus, proclaiming His name over Jerusalem and the nations, praying for the peace of Jerusalem, and for the gospel to reach the ends of the earth. For info about joining the event, go to  See also

Published in Worldwide
Thursday, 25 May 2023 23:24

Global: Tearfund action in Paris

Next week Tearfund staff and campaigners from communities most affected by plastic pollution will be in Paris for the second round of negotiations on a UN global plastics treaty. The talks - known as INC-2 (Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee) - will run from 29 May to 2 June and mark a significant moment in a rubbish campaign. Tearfund is asking Christians to pray for the negotiations. Recent research showed that across the world 218 million people (equivalent to the populations of the UK, France and Germany combined) are at risk of flooding made worse by plastic pollution. At the talks, Tearfund will be calling for an ambitious and binding treaty that fully addresses plastic pollution and the impact it has on people living in poverty. It believes every person God created has value and should have the opportunity to live a full life, free of rubbish

Published in Worldwide

500+ churches across Texas have left the United Methodist denomination, feeling it necessary for moving forward after it adopted an LGBTQ-friendly ideology, shown for example by the election of a second openly gay bishop in November 2022. A Houston pastor said, ‘I believe what scripture clearly teaches that human sexuality is a gift from God, reserved for a man and a woman in a monogamous marriage. That belief is not being upheld.’ Over 1,800 US churches have left since 2019 and joined the new theologically conservative Global Methodist denomination launched in 2022. Methodist churches in Bulgaria and Slovakia have also voted to do so. They have begun operations of an annual conference in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Philippines. Also the United Methodists permit other beliefs about Jesus, allowing pastors to proclaim that Jesus might not be the only way of salvation.

Published in Worldwide

Violence against Christian women and girls continues to rise everywhere. Christian women are abducted and used as sex slaves. The 'honour' culture is used to shame and stigmatise victims of sexual or physical abuse, so victims are silent. Men attack with impunity because victims keep quiet for fear of dishonour to their family or community, so wrongdoing often goes punished. This, in turn, makes women and girls increasingly vulnerable to psychological violence. Rape victims are often viewed as sexually impure, making them vulnerable to rejection and limiting their future prospects. In many cultures, women do not hold the same value as men. This undergirds much of the persecution faced by our sisters. And in many cases, being a Christian means they are regarded as having even less worth. Open Doors’ vision is that every woman who is persecuted for her faith and gender is seen, valued, and empowered to reach her God-given potential.

Published in Worldwide
Friday, 21 April 2023 09:48

GAFCON chairman: ‘Welby must repent’

The chairman of the Global Anglican Future Conference, GAFCON, used his presidential address at its meeting in Kigali, Rwanda, to repeat calls for Justin Welby to repent. Archbishop Foley Beach of the Anglican Church in North America said, ‘Sadly, with broken hearts, we must say that unless the Archbishop of Canterbury repents, we can no longer recognise him as the “first among equals” and the spiritual leader of the Anglican Communion.’ His address referred to the General Synod vote earlier this year to agree to bless same sex unions. Archbishop Beach described the Kigali meeting of over 1,300 people from 53 nations as potentially one of the most important church gatherings in our time. He emphasised the importance of believers addressing sin - personal, provincial or church sin - and called on the Anglican Church to prioritise 'repentance, revival, renewal and moving forward'. The Church cannot be reconciled to God without repentance.

Published in Worldwide
Thursday, 13 April 2023 21:24

Pray for Muslims’ salvation

Most Muslims fall into one of two camps - Sunni or Shia. The term Sunni means laws and comes from the word ‘sunnah,’ which means ‘way of life’. This refers to the way of life of the Prophet Mohammad. 90% of Muslims around the world are Sunni. A movement of the Gospel among Sunni Muslims could impact nearly the entire Muslim world. Today, God is doing just that. He is drawing unprecedented numbers of Sunni Muslims to Himself in every region of the world. More Muslims have turned to follow Jesus in the past fifteen years than in the previous 1,400 years combined. But there are still 1.8 billion Muslims living without a saving relationship with Jesus Christ. Ramadan ends on April 21. During Ramadan, Muslims have been intentionally seeking God through prayer and fasting. Pray for an incredible number of Muslims to encounter their Saviour Jesus.

Published in Worldwide
Thursday, 06 April 2023 21:41

Global: objections to COP28 president

Sultan Al Jaber, the CEO of the UAE’s national oil company, Adnoc, has been controversially appointed president of the UN’s COP28 summit in December; campaigners say this makes a mockery of the summit. Adnoc, the world’s 11th biggest oil and gas producer, delivered over a billion barrels of oil equivalent (BBOE) in 2021. Time is running out to end the climate crisis, yet Sultan Al Jaber is overseeing expansion to produce extra oil and gas, equivalent to 7.5bn barrels of oil, the fifth largest increase in the world. 90% would have to remain in the ground to meet the net zero scenario of the International Energy Agency. The UAE has the third largest plans for oil and gas expansion in the world, surpassed only by Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Published in Worldwide