100 People Network

[from 30-days.net]

Pray the Night of Power. Suggestions and ideas for personal and group prayer.

These are some creative prayer ideas and tips on how to use the 30-Days Muslim World Prayer Guide materials in a group or for your personal prayer time.

Organizing group prayers

You can use these materials to pray creatively by yourself in your own prayer times, and also to join with groups of others to pray together. We would encourage you to find creative ways to involve as many people as possible with you in this prayer focus. Jesus gave some special promises of blessing for Christians who come together to pray and agree as a group.

You could organise some weekly or twice weekly meetings over the 30 day Ramadan period with your church, your youth group, your committee or leaders’ meetings, your women’s meetings, home Bible studies, cell groups, children’s groups; in fact, any occasion when your Christian friends and associates meet together.

A Social Occasion

Take a social occasion and turn it into a prayer event as well. Have others join with you in a special meal using the prayer topic for that day. Find out all you can about that particular culture – including food and dress, music, sports, etc.

Facilitator

It is helpful if one person is chosen as the leader/facilitator of the group for that time of prayer. This person can give direction and cohesion to the prayer time, and assist the group in using the following guidelines.

Focus

As you pray through the Prayer Guide that are suggested for each day, ask and expect the Holy Spirit to lead you in prayer, revealing certain areas of detail and specific focus for you to pay particular attention to (Romans 8:26).

Take notes and keep a journal of your prayer times. Particularly note any Scriptures that God may prompt you to read concerning that day’s topic.

It is helpful if the group focuses its prayers for one subject area at a time, rather than chopping and changing all over the place. Each person should wait before moving on to a different topic, until every person has been able to pray out their prayers over the current subject area (1Corinthians 14:40). Make sure that all have an opportunity to pray for that area or need if they want to.

Be Creative

Look for ways to make your times of prayer varied and interesting. God is infinitely creative, and has made us in His image, so we can expect creative ideas and prayers to flow as we seek Him. For example, using a map or reading out a short article on a particular country or need related to the day’s prayer theme can add interest and spark new ideas of needs to pray for. Photographs and pictures, maps or even radio, television and video documentaries can do the same.

Day 27

“The Night of Power” on Day 27 is a strategic night of prayer. Consider setting aside this night for an all night prayer time with your church or mission group. ["Day 27" can be confusing. The reason is night precedes day in the Islamic Calendar so the 27th night occurs in the evening of the 26th Day. We stick with "Day 27" since it is easier and technically correct.]

Believe

Let us believe God for an outpouring of His Spirit on our Muslim neighbours worldwide. Let us pray and believe for the fulfilment of Revelation 7:9, that every group, including the peoples of Islam, will be represented before the throne of God on that final day.

A Different Prayer Meeting – Specific for “The Night of Power” or Day 27

During Ramadan our mission committee floated the idea of holding a prayer night on the Muslim “night of power” when God often works in miraculous ways throughout the Muslim world. (‘Night of Power’ prayer nights can be used throughout the year!)

[from The Gospel Coalition]

This fall, the Desiring God national conference will call on the church to “Finish the Mission: For the Joy of All Peoples” by bringing the Good News of Jesus Christ to the unreached and unengaged. Plenary speakers for the event—September 23 to 25 at the Minneapolis Convention Center—include Louie Giglio, David Platt, Michael Ramsden, Michael Oh, and Ed Stetzer. Space is limited - if you register today, you can attend for the price of $170.

Previewing this important event, John Piper and I corresponded about the progress and problems of an ever-changing global church. Jesus Christ’s commitment to build his church gives us utmost confidence that he will finish the mission. Yet he grants us the privilege of carrying out this high calling to introduce him to all people for their eternal joy.

What’s the most encouraging development you see today as Christians trust God to “finish the mission”?

Today, and every day, the most encouraging development is the never-ending endurance of God’s sovereign will and promise: “This gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations and then the end will come” (Matt. 24:14). The mission will be finished. We should be encouraged no matter what is happening in the world. God is always doing 10,000 things we can’t see.

But if we look to the world through the lens of the word, even there the evidences of God’s faithfulness to finish the mission are many. The Global Network of Missionary Structures reports that “there are over 4,000 known evangelical mission agencies sending out 250,000 missionaries from over 200 countries. This is up from 1,800 known mission agencies and 70,000 missionaries in 1980.”

In many places the fruit of this growth is remarkable. Just to give a few examples, theGNMS points out:

• The last 40 years have seen more Muslims, Buddhists and Hindus come to know Christ than in all previous centuries combined.
• In Cambodia the church exploded from just a handful of believers 20 years ago to more than 400,000 today.
• In Mongolia, the church grew from a few isolated believers, to more than 50,000 in 200 established fellowships in the same period.
• The Koreans alone, who are becoming increasingly frontier mission focused, have a plan to send out 100,000 missionaries in the next 20 years. The Philippine church and the Chinese church both have similar goals.

The ongoing strategic efforts of mission agencies and churches is another hope-filled sign. According to the GNMS:

The Finishing the Task network, which was launched in the year 2003, is focusing on those unreached groups over 100,000 in population which are unengaged. At the time the network was launched, there were 639 groups in this category. By the year 2010, all but 95 had been engaged. The network is now expanding its efforts to those unengaged peoples which are 50,000 in population or greater.

The sharing of information today via the internet means that no one has to work in the dark about what is happening. Strategies of closure (finishing the mission) are increasingly feasible. But in the end the sovereignty of God and the power of the gospel of Jesus, not the feasibility of our human plans, is the rock of hope and encouragement.

With the growth of the church in the Majority World, what’s the most strategic way Western churches can serve these spiritual brothers and sisters?

The Christian church is undergoing dramatic demographic shifts that will increasingly marginalize people who are not eager to be a part of something more diverse and less white.

Philip Jenkins, professor of history and religious studies at Pennsylvania State University, has clarified this development perhaps more than anyone else. The new terminology that has been introduced into our vocabulary is the term Global South, a reference to the astonishing growth of the Christian church in Africa, Latin America, and Asia while the formerly dominant centers of Christian influence in Europe are weakening. For example:

• At the beginning of the 20th century, Europeans dominated the world church, with approximately 70.6 percent of the world’s Christian population. By the end of the 20th century, the European percentage of world Christianity had shrunk to 28 percent of the total; Latin America and Africa combined provided 43 percent of the world’s Christians.
• In 1900, Africa had 10 million Christians representing about 10 percent of the population; by 2000, this figure had grown to 360 million, representing about half the population. Quantitatively, this may well be the largest shift in religious affiliation that had ever occurred, anywhere.

Since we are talking about finishing the mission, I would tweak the question: Not: How can we serve the exploding church of the Global South? But: How can we be faithful, fruitful partners in serving the global mission of Jesus to proclaim the gospel of salvation to all the unreached peoples of the world?

Among the many answers to that question would be:

1. wake up to the existence of the global church;
2. don’t think that sending them money to do the mission can replace God’s call on Western Christians to go;
3. don’t assume we can do the mission better or alone, and don’t assume they can either;
4. listen to each other for the distinctive strengths each brings;
5. be informed of the work of others among any group or area you feel called to go;
6. pray for biblically faithful fruitfulness of all missions;
7. be humble and ready to be last—who will one day be first.

In your extensive global travels to speak in venues such as Lausanne last year, what most concerns you about the global church’s commitment to finishing the mission?

My travels are not very extensive, and so my answers always bear some measure of parochialism. The main concerns I feel are:

1. that many younger churches (both globally and in America) feel so focused on their local challenges that global, cross-cultural outreach to unreached peoples (missions) seems impossible;
2. that churches and missions sometimes stray from the purity of the gospel and thus undermine the very aim of the mission: biblically faithful, Christ-exalting, multiplying churches;
3. that worldliness choke the Word and the passion for missions;
4. that the belief in eternal suffering for those without Christ will be lost, and with it zeal to reach them;
5. and that the name of Christ will continue to be unknown and unhallowed for decades to come.

May the Lord of the harvest be manifestly jealous for his name today, and merciful toward the perishing, and may he send millions of workers into field, which is the world.

Collin Hansen serves as editorial director for The Gospel Coalition. He is the co-author of A God-Sized Vision: Revival Stories That Stretch and Stir. You can follow him on Twitter.

[from 30-days.net]

Muslims are supposed to pray five times a day at specific times while facing the direction of Mecca in Saudi Arabia. Muslim prayer is formal and ritualistic yet many Muslims do make every effort to be sincere and upright in performing their prayers. Muslim prayer is characterised by rules of respect and attitudes of politeness toward Allah. (Please note that all Arab speakers use this word for God – whether Christian or Muslim, though their ideas of God are significantly different.

“Praying correctly and at the appropriate time is one of the greatest indications of (Muslim) faith and a great sign of true religion”. Prayer is to be done with heart and body cleanliness, with cleanness of clothing and in a ceremonially clean place. The washing of the hands, nose, face, forearms, ears, and feet in preparation for Muslim prayer is important.

The Words

Muslims place very strong emphasis on the exact postures and the words of their prayers (which are always in Arabic). Almost all Muslim prayer is concerned with reciting specific phrases from memory. In the course of the five regular prayer times a Muslim will prostrate himself before Allah a total of 34 times and he will repeat the following phrases:

“Allah is greater”

“Praised be my mighty Lord”

“Allah hears the one who praises him”

He will also recite the “Al-Fatiha” or another text from the Qur’an 17 times, the “Shadada” (Islamic creed), and the greeting of peace to all Muslims.

Answered Prayer

Muslims can make requests to God privately after they finish their ritual prayers. However, this is not done as often as Christians typically make requests. Muslims do not believe that God binds himself to his people through covenants. This is a key concept for understanding their attitudes toward answers to prayer and their lack assurance of God’s steadfast love towards them. In addition, because of the fatalism of Islam, Muslims generally have little faith that their requests will alter their circumstances. They generally believe that Allah’s desires (for good or ill) will always be done despite their activities or requests. Trusting in God for specific responses to prayer in the Christian sense is not practised among Muslims. This is a huge difference between Muslim and Christian religious experience.

When Christians speak of prayer they mean direct two-way communication with God. Muslims never expect God to speak back to them directly at any moment and certainly not during prayer. The vast majority of Muslims will say that God only speaks through the Qur’an. Even Mohammed is said only to have heard from God indirectly through an angel. Christian prayer, on the other hand, is a combination of requests, thanksgiving and praise. The Bible says that we should “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and bless (praise) his name” (Psalm 100:4).

Let us Pray…

* Muslims need to come to know the Christ of Christian prayer. Pray that Muslims would come to believe that God Himself wants to communicate directly with them. Pray this specifically for any Muslims that you may know personally. Pray for the Muslims in your city, region and nation.

* Pray for newly-converted Muslims, that they may develop real confidence in God as one who keeps His covenants, makes promises and who hears and answers prayer.

* Christians need to share their prayer experience with Muslims in humility. Pray that God will give us wisdom when describing our Christian prayer experience so that God would be glorified and Muslims could understand Him better.

Prayer Intro from DanStevers.com on Vimeo.

[from Transforming Eden]

The latest world value survey reveals many values of Turkey today.

Importance of Religion

92% Religion Important

81% Devout

Meaning of Religion

64% follow the rules and traditions

36% do good to others

This life or the next?

79% more meaningful after death

21% more meaningful in this life

Religious Practice and Beliefs

87% keep the Ramadan fast

70% pray

57% sacrificed an animal in the last Feast of the Sacrifice

97% believe in Hell

77% believe religion over science if there is a disagreement between the two

79% belive theirs it the only true religion

63% think books that attack religion or religious values should be banned.

58% think Alevi Cemevis should be allowed

Sin

61% Woman wearing a bathing suit

44% Keepoing a restaurant open during Ramadan

Male Female Roles

74% Man head of household

23% Say a man can have more than one wife (double 2009 survey, 19% of women agree)

71% Men make better political leaders (up 7% from 2009)

30% Some women deserve to be beaten (27% women agree)

62% Wifes should always obey their husbands (67% men, 57% women agree)

7%  Approve a woman having a baby out of wedlock (compared to 47% in Europe)

Other

57% thought that older people had too much political power

17% do not feel safe in their own neighborhood

8% carry a gun or knife for self-protection

68% have anxietiesa about getting a new job if they lost their present job

15% did not have enough food in the past year

Source: Translated from http://www.bahcesehir.edu.tr/habergoster/index/hid/658

[from our friends at Sojourn International]

Throughout this year Sojourn has been working through the Old Testament. Recently Pastor Daniel preached a sermon from the book of Ezekiel.

The book of Ezekiel is not one of the first books one turns to when developing a biblical theology of mission. Nevertheless, Ezekiel should not be ignored. In his article,”Ezekiel’s Contribution to a Biblical Theology of Mission,” Elmer A. Martens argues that the book makes two key contributions to a biblical theology of mission.

First, the book’s repetition of the phrase  “and you/they will know that I am Yahweh” reveals that one of the objectives of missions is the universal acknowledgment of Yahweh. Second, the numerous visions of the glory of God found in the book demonstrate that God is incomparable, thus providing a challenge to the claims of nonbiblical religions.

Martens’ article can be found here.

Why I Work with Muslims from International Teams on Vimeo.

[from Verge Network]

This is Discipling from The Foursquare Church.

“What would it look like if, as leaders, we focused less on the things that make our churches entertaining and more on making disciples?” This video challenges and reminds us that we are a sent people, called to take the gospel to the world. The grace that Jesus has shown us by coming after us frees us to then seek others. It’s time to rethink how we are making disciples.

[from desiringgod.org]

I have a friend who works in a country where Islamic law governs life. The small house church he had established was in the hands of national leadership, and he was not present when the religious police broke in and arrested the entire church, sentencing all of the men to prison.

One day soon after, an angry mob assembled at the local mosque and marched toward my friend’s home. He gathered his wife and children together, locked the doors, shuttered the windows, and went upstairs. His wife shook in fear as they prayed together, asking for deliverance and praying for those who were marching down the street toward them. The shouts and insults against Christians grew as the mob drew closer to their home.

To his amazement, the crowd passed by and continued down the street. He then came to the realization that they had never intended to visit him that day. They were unaware of his involvement with the small, persecuted house church.

As we consider Islam and its reach into our own country this story helps me understand where many of our hearts might be. The news is filled with angry mobs and it appears that they are headed our way. How should we think about this?

It is easy for us to assume, like my friend did, that they are coming for us. But we are not the reason for their anger.

Paul wrote, "Many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ" (Philippians 3:18). The dangerous anger of Islam does not burn foremost because of our culture, our freedoms, or our "way of life." It is an attack on the cross first and foremost. Our response should be based on this fact.

Watching the news one might be led to conclude that anger is the best response to Islam. Another response might be fear, such as that felt by my friend (an understandable, human response).

For many evangelicals, the threat of Islam—both real and perceived—has sometimes distracted from obedience to the demands of the gospel. While radical Islam certainly has a political agenda that should not be minimized, we should, in obedience, follow Jesus' command to love them.

Jesus taught another response. "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor, and hate your enemy.' But I tell you: love your enemies …" (Matthew 5:43, 44).

How best should we love Muslims? We can pray, we can show them tangible acts of love, and we can send emissaries to them. While it is very disconcerting to see Islam grow within the borders of the USA, our hearts should break more over the fact that 1.2 to 1.5 billion people don’t know Jesus and will never experience the joy it is to know him. Most will never meet a disciple of Christ unless some of us go.

That is why Pioneers, the organization I serve with, exists.

Ted Esler is Executive Vice President for Pioneers-USA. You can connect with him at twitter.com/tedstur and connect with Pioneers at pioneers.org,twitter.com/pioneersusa or http://www.facebook.com/pioneersusa to find out more about engaging Muslims with the gospel.

[from gmi.org]

You can also download this article here:

 Four Reasons I Don't Pray

Reason 1—I'm Overwhelmed:

With so much pain and suffering in the world, I have trouble thinking about the challenges that people are facing. It is easier not to think about it and definitely easier not to pray about it.

God's Response:

"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus" (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

Reason 2—I'm too Busy:

Praying for the world always seems to get left out of my day. I pray once or twice a day and those times are usually focused on my immediate situation, family, friends and church. I tend to think about global issues during the day when I see the news or am interacting with coworkers. But I struggle to stop and pray at those moments.

God's Response:

"And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints" (Ephesians 6:18).

Reason 3—I Struggle to Believe God Will Answer:

Praying for places that are so far away from my everyday life seems pointless. I know I need to invest the time, but sometimes I wonder if those prayers do any good. I can't see the people in those countries and so how will I know if my prayers are being answered?

God's Response:

"This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us - whatever we ask - we know that we have what we asked of him" (1 John 5:14-15).

Reason 4—I Don't Know Enough:

The problems and opportunities that the people of the world face are so complex. I don't even know where to start many times. I feel that my prayers are just platitudes without any real substance.

God's Response:
"In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express" (Romans 8:26).

[from 30-days.net]

Every Muslim is unique and wonderful in God’s eyes and we should be careful not to generalise or presume that all Muslims are the same. Still, there are some issues regarding praying for Muslims to help us pray more effectively.

Every Muslim is someone whom God loves. Some Christians do not pray for Muslims because of prejudices or fears. Let us pray by asking God to give us a heart filled with love and compassion towards Muslims. We also need to pray in faith and confidence that God will hear us and will move powerfully in answer to our prayers of love and compassion. (John 14: 12-14)

Praying for Muslims: God’s Character

Muslims believe in the uniqueness of an all powerful and supreme Allah. Similar to Christians and Jews, Muslims believe that Allah is creative and eternal. Muslims also believe that Allah is unknowable and that it is impossible to ever really know him or have a relationship with him as a personal saviour. According to Islam, Allah holds himself apart from mankind. When praying for Muslims, pray that they will have a full revelation of the true God and His loving character. (Hebrews 8:8-9)

Praying for Muslims: Against Fear

The Muslim worldview is strongly influenced by an awareness of the supernatural and the presence of good and evil spirits known as jinn. Jinn are greatly feared and are often thought to be responsible for illnesses and misfortune. Superstitions control many aspects of a Muslim’s everyday life and often result in them living in constant fear. This fear reveals a heart cry and desperate need that can only be met in the person and authority of the Lord Jesus Christ. Pray against the fear that influences many Muslims. (1 John 4:18)

Praying for Muslims: The Relationship with God

Galatians 4:22-25 tells us that Ishmael was born as a result of works resulting in slavery. Islam means submission and a Muslim understands that he is a servant of Allah. While this is also a Biblical aspect of our relationship with God, it is incomplete. As Christians, through Jesus, we know that we move from being servants to becoming sons and daughters. Pray that Muslims will also understand that God desires for everyone to know Him as children and not as slaves. (Galatians 4:7) (Matthew 18:3)

Praying for Muslims: Assurance of Salvation

Islam teaches that a person must do enough good deeds to outweigh the bad deeds in order to make it to paradise. Even then, there is no guarantee for a Muslim of salvation. As a result of this belief, it is difficult for many Muslims to fully understand the basis of forgiveness of sins. It is also difficult for Muslims to understand repentance. When we pray for Muslim’s to get saved, we are really praying that they will be convicted of sin and know true repentance. We are also praying that they would experience God’s total forgiveness and thus be able to forgive others. And, we are also praying that they would know the assurance of salvation through Jesus, something Islam can never offer them. (Ephesians 2:8-9.) (1 Peter 5:6) (Matthew 6:14-15)

Praying for Muslims: The Work of the Holy Spirit

Never underestimate the work of the Holy Spirit as you pray for Muslims. Allow God to teach you how to pray and to share His heart with you concerning them. Vast numbers of Muslims have come to Christ as a result of supernatural encounters. Many have dreams and visions of Jesus. It is only God who can open blind eyes and soften hearts. Only God can bring true conviction of sin and create new life. (Romans 8:26) (John 16:8)