Prayer Focus: December 2014
1 Mon. Trinidad – Reaching Goals
During the latter part of last year and well into this year, we experienced numerous strikes and closures of Government offices. God has answered prayer in that, despite the difficulties, most days we were able to accomplish our goals. We have fallen short slightly in the Port of Spain branch (in comparison to last year) but we trust that we will be able to reach our sales targets by the end of the year. Please pray with us for protection, good sales and, most importantly, that we will remember the reason for the season!
2 Tue. Mozambique – Home Leave
Claudia Middendorf, the missionary who oversees the CLC bookshop in Beira, will be on home leave in Germany from December. Please pray that she will have a restful and refreshing time with family and friends, and also pray for Jose Sacramento who works in the bookshop and will miss Claudia’s support for a few months.
3 Wed. Sierra Leone - Makeni
Earlier this year, CLC in Sierra Leone opened a bookshop in the northern city of Makeni and the early days have been challenging. This is partly due to the shop location, a small room on the outskirts of the city as rent is too high in the centre, and because of the effect that the Ebola virus has had on the whole nation this year. Alie Kamara, who left the CLC team in Freetown to run the bookshop, has been relying on visiting offices and workplaces to promote CLC’s material but, although this is normal practice in business here, this year offices are, understandably, not so open to visitors.
4 Thu. A Sign of Improvement!
It is important that our bookshops are noticed by passers by! Praise the Lord that, after two or three years of waiting, we have finally been given permission to have external CLC bookshop signs outside our shops in the Ceaderbrook Plaza, Philadelphia (USA) and on the Bible School complex in Beira (Mozambique). Please pray that this will bring in many new customers, even if they are just curious to know what CLC is all about. We would be happy to explain our purpose!
5 Fri. Barbados – Christmas Event and Greetings
“CLC Barbados has been invited, once again, to have a book table at an event for ladies - the Stonecroft International Christmas Lunch. Please pray for good sales and for life-changes as a result of the purchases. We would also like to take this opportunity to wish a blessed Christmas to all CLC staff and prayer supporters everywhere.” Marion Manning for CLC Barbados
6-7 Sat/Sun. UK – Christmas Prayer for the Shops
Christmas can be a lonely time for some. ‘Lord, despite the busyness and the pressures of each day, keep us sensitive to You. May our shops be places of fellowship, prayer and solace for those genuinely in need. May our words minister life and hope, comfort and assurance. In Jesus’ name, Amen.’
8 Mon. Philippines – Publications
Please pray for our CLC Publications department. We rely on our own CLC publications for maintaining stock levels during the periods in the year when we have no shipments of imported books. Please pray for wisdom in choosing new titles to publish and for favour from existing publisher partners when we request permission to reprint some of our best selling titles.
9 Tue. Italy – Refugees Arriving in Italy
Please pray for the growing number of refugees coming to Sicily and Italy from various parts of the world – many of whom have experienced the horrors of war and persecution. They are kept, for up to a year, in specific refugee reception centres where they are not allowed to leave or to work while they wait for a response regarding their asylum request. In some of these camps, local Christians are providing comfort, practical help and are sharing the gospel. CLC, in cooperation with other mission organisations, is providing literature in the languages of these refugees.
10 Wed. Longer Opening Hours
Please pray for CLC staff and volunteer helpers as many of them are working extra hours this month in the lead up to Christmas. Pray that they will keep well, serve well and finish well at the close of this year. Pray too that they will not miss out on quality time with family, friends and their church congregations and, most importantly, to have time to focus on what Jesus’ birth means to them.
11 Thu. Ecuador – New Software
“We value your prayer for us as we are putting a new software system in place in all our CLC departments. It is already up and running in the warehouse (Quito) and the bookshops in Manta and Cuenca. Now it will be implemented in the two bookshops in Guayaquil and the main bookshop in Quito. We trust that this will be a great help in serving our customers well and in our stock control.” Carlos Marin, National Director
12 Fri. Indonesia – Sales at Christmas
Last year sales at Christmas were not as good as expected; we are noticing a decline in Christmas card sales particularly as many people now use Facebook or text messaging etc. to send greetings. We are also concerned for the Christian bookshop in the shopping mall that we took over at the beginning of the year, sales here dropped during September. Please pray for a turnaround in this situation, and for wisdom and creativity to present and promote the good books we have to offer.
13-14 Sat/Sun. UK – Partnership Scheme
We give thanks that the CLC UK ‘Partnership Scheme’ has given us the opportunity to get resources from our bookshops into churches and Christian organisations at attractive prices and to involve us in their initiatives and programmes. Pray for more sign-ups by churches and groups within reach of our shops so that we might equip the saints for ministry and better fulfil our Mission.
15 Mon. Thailand – Outreach in & out of the Shop
CLC Thailand’s ministry in Chiang Mai extends beyond the bookshop. One of the shop team is assisting Christians from the hill tribes who need help and support in their specific situation. The church in these mountainous and forested regions is growing, but with this comes social and religious antagonism as a former way of life is changed dramatically, and accusations are made against them. While we are happy to be able to serve these people in practical ways, the bookshop work is causing concern with declining sales and this needs to be addressed too. Pray that ways and means will be found to bring effective ministry and business together directly through the bookshop.
16 Tue. CA2 – Customer Testimony
We had the privilege of seeing one lady accept Christ through the bookshop ministry last year and since then she has been to the shop many times for different books. She told a staff member, “Everything I’ve learned is from the books at this store”. Please pray for this lady as she grows in her relationship with Jesus.
17 Wed. Venezuela – Youth Congress in Merida
We praise God for the opportunity we had earlier this year to participate in the Annual Youth Congress in Mérida. Young people from all across the country attended the event and they were able to make good use of our CLC stand. Pray that the books and Bibles they bought will be a blessing in their lives.
18 Thu. Last Minute Ideas
As many people will still be looking for Christmas gifts, we hope they will find good gift ideas in our bookshops. Even if they don’t normally go into a Christian bookshop, may they be attracted by the books and gifts on display in our shop windows and be prompted to go inside for a closer look. Pray that our staff, although very busy, will have time to welcome visitors and be available to help new customers.
19 Fri. Swaziland – A Better Position
Praise God for a small loan to help with building up the work in Swaziland. Please pray that it will be used in a productive way and that
the ministry will be able to pay it back within the terms and conditions. CLC workers Petra Nemansky and Liz Patten, who moved from the UK to Mozambique in October, will now be in a better position to oversee the work as Swaziland is only a few hours drive away from their base in Maputo.
20-21 Sat/Sun. UK – New Staff in Scotland
Please pray for our two new Scottish teams - in Aberdeen, Melanie Gardiner (Manager) and Sophie Scholle and in Dundee, Rosemary Maclean (Manager) and Mark Buchanan. Pray for them as they learn the procedures involved in running a bookshop and also as they reach out into the community to communicate what the shops have to offer.”
22 Mon. French West Africa - Travels
Martine Foto (Ivory Coast) and Emmanuel Ladeyo (Benin) visited France for the first time last month, to attend the Christian Publishers’ Exhibition in Lognes, and also to strengthen links with CLC France and Livr’Afrique - a project to get affordable new and second hand books from France to French speaking west African countries. As23 Tue. CLC in Africa
Several of our ministries in Africa have supplier debts but our team leaders are making efforts to overcome this. Please pray for wisdom in business planning and also for good sales in order to help meet the commitments of repayment plans. We praise God especially for those ministries that are debt-free, and want to see more added to that list!
24 Wed. Family Celebrations
Christmas is a time when families and friends get together to celebrate and our CLC staff will be no exception. However, as often happens, there will be sadness too. Please pray for the CLC team in Spain; they have gone through very difficult times, major structural changes to the ministry and staff from each of the three bookshops have lost close family members this year. May God bless and comfort them.
25 Thu. Christmas Day
“Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.” Luke 2:10. Praise God for the privilege of being involved in sharing good news with many people around the world, good news that brings joy and casts out fear. Hallelujah!
26 Fri. Boxing Day
December 26th has many different names around the world. In the UK it is known as Boxing Day. It is based on the centuries old tradition of giving gifts, in boxes, to the less fortunate members in society; a tradition that is not generally followed now. Pray for ministries, including CLC, that provide books as gifts, or at very low cost, to people who do not have the means to buy books at the regular prices.
27-28 Sat/Sun. UK – Take Note
CLC UK’s Take Note is a quarterly promotional magazine recommending a great selection of books and Bibles to the public. With each edition we also send out, on a sale or return basis, two copies of each book highlighted in the magazine to the CLC UK bookshops and about 50 independent bookshops. This is proving to be a great resource. Please pray for Sarah Williams, who joined the CLC UK Wholesale team last January, as she takes over the responsibility for producing this information.
Starting from December 29th we will be including Prayer Focus into CLC World Magazine 2015, Issue 1.
We will be doing the prayer points in a weekly themed layout that we hope you will find informative and enjoyable.
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