Prayer Focus 2017 - October
Monday (2nd) – Chile:
Please pray for the Stay Firm book tour with author Sally Burke, who also heads up Moms in Prayer, an international women’s ministry. Please pray that there will be a good attendance at the events for women, held in Viña del Mar, Concepción, Santiago and Punta Arenas from October 2nd - 5th. Please pray for good health for the touring team and that the women attending would leave encouraged in their faith to ‘stay firm’.
Tuesday (3rd) – Switzerland:
Over the next few months, we are planning to visit a different church in our area each Sunday to strengthen our relationships with them. We hope that by spending time with them we can find ways to better support their ministry and improve our partnership in spreading the gospel in our region. We are also hoping that they will be open to us having a book table or giving a presentation about our ministry.
In November, we are once again attending the annual Open Doors conference and providing a book table. Please pray that the attendance will be even greater than last year and that the participants will now recognise our ministry, and benefit from it.
Wednesday (4th) – Antigua:
We are very excited to be partnering with the Logos Hope ship that will be coming to Antigua October 5th - 15th. Please pray for us as we make arrangements for their arrival so that their visit is as beneficial as possible. Please also pray for unity, clear communication and great outreach.
Thursday (5th) – United Kingdom:
From October 17th - 19th, Daryl Wearring, our Marketing Director, is organising a CLC book stand for the Christian Resources Exhibition—a very important UK event! As well as book sales, we trust that this will be a useful platform for promoting the work of CLC in the UK and around the world. Please pray for all those involved.
Friday (6th) – France:
From October 11th to 13th, National Director Hervé Lessous and Regional Director Gary Chamberlin will once again be attending the annual International Book Fair in Frankfurt (Germany). Please pray that they will feel God’s presence and direction as they meet with the representatives from publishers around the world.
The Weekend (7th/8th) – Mexico:
Please pray for us as we are planning two Bible Seminars: The Peshitta Bible Seminar in October and the Thompson Bible Seminar in November. May the Lord bless us with good attendance and bring new insight and understanding during these seminars for church leaders.
October 9th - 15th
Monday (9th) – Hurricanes & Tropical Storms:
Please continue to pray for the Caribbean islands and the southern parts of the USA, as during September they had a number of catastrophic hurricanes (Harvey, Irma and Jose) back-to-back. May God continue to provide the comfort and resources they need to get back on their feet!
Tuesday (10th) – Rainy Season:
The Philippines have their rainy season from June until October and quite often there are typhoons. At the time of writing, the team were preparing for the large Manila International Book Fair while a storm was fast approaching, which had already led to schools in the region being cancelled. Please pray for the protection of our team during this season. Pray that those who attended the Book Fair would be blessed and touched by the books we sold, and pray also for the new contacts made, and relationships built, at this event.
Wednesday (11th) – Benin:
Our country’s economic situation continues to struggle, creating many challenges for the CLC Benin team and ministry. They continue to pray that one-day CLC will own a property and no longer be required to pay rent or face the possibility of being forced to change premises. Please pray for the LORD’s provision - thank you for standing with us!
Thursday (12th) – Venezuela:
Please continue to pray for CLC Venezuela as they face such uncertainty with the country’s internal crisis. With an inflation rate of nearly 700% a year, the price for an economic Bible could be a week’s salary; therefore, people are only buying what is strictly necessary. Although we do not yet know how to deal with the situation, we are thankful for the gifts from CLC Chile and CLC UK. The Venezuelan staff continue to suffer under the pressure of lack of food, security and economic stability. We give thanks that no bookstore has had to close and that, even in the midst of these struggles, we are still seeing a few sales. Please continue to pray for our country, and for protection and provision for each member of our team.
Friday (13th) – Bolivia:
The Padilla’s were sent as missionaries from Venezuela to begin and direct the ministry in Bolivia. Unfortunately, due to Venezuela’s economic situation, they are unable to receive support from their native country. For this reason, we continue to depend on the generosity of the other CLC countries to help support their work. Please pray that Lord will provide for their needs.
The Weekend (14th/15th) – Indonesia:
In the midst of economic difficulties, we continue to praise God that our customers are making it a priority to visit our shops, even if only to browse. May our time together be a real encouragement to both customers and staff. Praise God for His continued provision.
Monday (16th) – Central Asia (CA2):
We give thanks to our Almighty Father for saving the life of our former Director’s young son when he fell from a second story window during the team’s annual conference. Please continue to pray for his recovery and also for his family and the rest of the team as they recover from this traumatic event.
Tuesday (17th) – Antigua:
We are giving God thanks for His goodness towards us during the passing of hurricanes Irma and Jose. Antigua, thankfully, had no serious loss or injury, only a few trees. It could have been so much worse but, by God’s grace, and the prayers of His saints, we are here today. Please do remember our sister island of Barbuda which has suffered greatly, as nearly 90% of their buildings were damaged and they did have one death.
Wednesday (18th) – Mexico:
We thank God for His faithfulness and for the opportunities we have each day to convey his message. We also praise the Lord for the variety of ways that new customers are finding us and reaching out to learn about our ministry. (Facebook, calls, WhatsApp, web page, emails, events, magazines, etc.) May the Lord continue to direct those who are seeking Him and the helpful resources we can provide.
Thursday (19th) – United Kingdom:
Praise the Lord for the launch of the new retail website in August. This involved a huge amount of work by the team. The period leading up to Christmas is vital as we seek to get the website established and known by our customers. It is specifically designed for our bookshop customers so that they have more options of when and how they want to buy.
Friday (20th) – Romania:
We praise the Lord for the opportunity to participate at the National Conference for Youth of the Romanian Brethren Union, with a book table. About a thousand young Christians from all over the country met together at this conference for three days. We also praise the Lord for the good sales we had at the Conference, which provided us with the resources for the renovation of the bookshop in Brasov.
The Weekend (21st/22nd) – Mozambique:
We are happy that this year we could take on a second worker in our bookshop in Maputo. At the time of writing, Johane Armando has just finished his six months’ work experience with us is now on contract. As our team has grown, we are already able to do more, with longer opening hours and more book tables at various events. We have also started to reach out to Bible Schools by visiting their libraries to see how we can offer to resource them better.
Monday (23rd) – Mudslides:
As previously mentioned on page 10, Sierra Leone suffered from a horrific mudslide in August that greatly devastated their country. We thank the Lord for His mercy in keeping our CLC team and property safe, but the team are in mourning with friends and family who have lost so much, including loved ones. Please pray that our team will be able to reach out in faith and assist those in their region still recovering from this catastrophe.
Tuesday (24th) – Upcoming Elections:
We are fast approaching the March 2018 Presidential and Parliamentary elections. Please pray that everything will work out in accordance to His will and purpose at the end of the day. Currently, we have a God-fearing leader that we believe will lead this nation into righteousness.
Wednesday (25th) – Economic Situation:
Please continue to pray for the economic situation in our country, as things are getting worse. Prices are increasing and salaries are low, leading to many of our youth and young people being without work. As a result, this situation is also creating a negative impact on our sales.
Thursday (26th) – Print-on-Demand (POD):
Please continue to pray for the Sierra Leone POD team as, currently, we have printed samples of 65 titles by Sierra Leonean authors and out of those samples we have printed two hundred copies of two different titles. Hopefully, by the time you read this, we will have begun printing 3,000 copies of Scripture Union’s Daily Devotional guide. Please pray for wisdom in determining what to print and that we will further develop our publishing skills to provide the best possible service.
Friday (27th) – Thank You, Father:
We give God praise for His continuous grace in our lives; we are experiencing the tremendous hand of God in the individual staff members and families of CLC Sierra Leone. Amidst the many challenges, especially since the mudslide in August, our God continues to protect us and bless us with unimaginable health and strength.
The Weekend (28th/29th) – Celebrations Continue:
Despite the current situation, we are so thankful to be celebrating CLC Sierra Leone’s 50th Anniversary in February 2018! Please pray that we will continue to plan successful events that allow us to share the incredible testimonies of God’s goodness to us throughout the last 50 years! Especially at this time when so many need to hear this reminder of God’s love and provision.
Monday (30th) – United Kingdom:
CLC UK is supporting the Mozambique Bible Project. 10,000 low priced Bibles will be produced with the intention of raising sufficient funds when they are sold for an ongoing supply. Please pray that the funds will be available as we meet the various stage payments for the initial supply. The project is being promoted through our UK bookshops. Praise God for the opportunity to participate in making the Word of God available in this way.
Tuesday (31st) – Mozambique:
Along with the Mozambique Bible Project, we hope to produce a Christmas tract this year. We have also started to visit Bible Schools to see how we can help to resource their libraries and thereby make a good contribution to the training of future pastors, evangelists and leaders.