Prayer Alert News: UK, Europe, and Worldwide

A was 19 when Jesus spoke to her in a dream. She dreamt that she walked into a Christian’s home and heard a magnificent voice. ‘I have never heard anything like it before or since,’ she said. ‘Later, I was very unwell for two days. I asked my friends to take me to church and there I wrote a prayer request on a piece of paper and asked the pastor to pray for me. All signs of illness disappeared. I knew Jesus was the truth and I committed my life to Him.’ A was forced to leave her family as the Christian faith is ‘Haram’ deserving death. She fled into the woods and prayed, ‘If the men in my family find me now, they will kill me. You know how angry they are at me. You know the community expects them to punish me. Show me the way.’ She was taken in by a pastor’s family and now attends a twice-weekly Bible study.

Praise: God for the miraculous ways he speaks to us, restores us and leads us. (Genesis 28:15a)
More: www.opendoorsuk.org/news/stories/horn-africa-180621/

IS terrorists have mounted a number of attacks on churches in Egypt in the last two years, but on 11 August tight security foiled an attempted suicide attack on a church in Mostorod, north of Cairo. Security guards stopped the attacker from entering the church grounds to target worshippers. The bomber then detonated his explosives about 250 metres from the church, killing himself and a passer-by. Egyptian security services subsequently made seven arrests in relation to the attack. At the time of writing, no organisation has claimed responsibility. Please pray for the friends and relatives of the deceased.

Praise: God for protecting the people and ask Him to continue to watch over His persecuted Church. (Psalm 121:5)
More: barnabasfund.org/en/news/suicide-attack-on-egyptian-church-foiled-by-tight-security#

Children play online casino-type games that allow them to gamble (without money). At the same time, whether on tablets or phones, children are bombarded with ads which make gambling sound harmless fun. The combined effect of these two factors is that children are being conditioned to gamble. It is legal because of a legislation loophole that allows such games because they do not offer monetary prizes. Meanwhile illegal online gambling for under 18s has been made possible by the creation of virtual items called ‘skins’, modified weapons or costumes that players can win or buy in video games. Parent Zone, an advice service for parents and schools, is demanding action to close the loophole that allows skins to serve as a digital currency that can be gambled and cashed out on roulette wheel spins or other games of chance. There are 6bn skins in circulation, worth an estimated £10bn – potentially fuelling the rise in addictive gaming among teenagers. See

Pray: for laws to end skin gambling. (Proverbs 21:15)
More: www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2018/08/17/britain-facing-generational-time-bomb-children-conditioned-think/

Church buildings house congregations with a variety of physical, mental and spiritual needs. We need flexible and creative approaches when planning a service, so that adults and children with disabilities are not overlooked. Reading isn’t easy for those with learning disabilities, poor eyesight or declining comprehension.Pray for churches to explore fresh Bible translations like the Easy to Read Version for those with lower reading skills and comprehension, braille, or versions designed to help the dyslexic. Our churches can sometimes be loud during praise and worship for those with autism who could experience sensory overload. The teaching can be boring or confusing for those with moderate or profound learning disabilities. Pray for more personalised services that tell God’s story creatively just for them. Pray for congregations to help with the range of needs without splitting church families into types, abilities or tastes. See

Pray: for everyone to understand and grow from God’s Word. (Psalm 119:27 – Easy To Read Version)
More: www.eauk.org/idea/making-church-more-accessible.cfm

When MPs return from their summer recess, parliamentary battles on the road to Brexit will be held on the following key dates:20 September: EU leaders discuss Brexit, possibly at a full summit. 17-18 October: EU summit deadline for agreement setting out the ‘divorce’ terms of the withdrawal agreement.A political declaration on the future relationship between the UK and the EU is also expected at this point. November: there is speculation that an emergency EU summit on Brexit might be held if a withdrawal agreement is not reached in October. 13-14 December: EU summit. If a deal has not been done by October, this is the fall-back option if the two sides still want to reach an agreement. 2019: withdrawal agreement approved by UK and the EU.

Pray: for God to give his counsel to the delegates and bring his plans to fruition through them. (Psalm 33:10)
More: www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-44374613

Five of England’s leading letting agents are discriminating against tenants on housing benefit, a report by Shelter and the National Housing Federation has found. Stephen Tyler, who uses a wheelchair, said he was forced to sleep in his car because of such discrimination. In an undercover investigation carried out by Mystery Shoppers Ltd. 149 regional letting agent branches were called by researchers posing as prospective tenants. One in ten had a branch policy not to let to anyone on housing benefit, regardless of whether they could afford the rent. The worst offender out of the six big brands investigated was Haart, with an outright ban on housing benefit tenants in a third of the branches called (8 out of 25). The research also exposes the uphill struggle faced by housing benefit tenants. Almost half of the letting agents said they had no suitable homes or landlords willing to let to someone on housing benefit.

Pray: for landlords’ attitudes to change, and for laws that prevent discrimination. (Psalm 10:12)
More: www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/business-45271196/i-was-forced-to-sleep-in-my-car

Chaplains at Pentonville, one of London’s biggest prisons, were forced to run for their lives after a fight erupted at a worship service. A new report by the Independent Monitoring Board stated, ‘There has been an increase in gang-related incidents during gatherings for prayer. On one occasion, a fight erupted and ministers had to run for cover. On another occasion, a prisoner was knifed as he entered.’ Thirty staff were assaulted in just two months at the prison. The report warned that drug trafficking, violence against staff, declining job training and ‘inhumane conditions’ are major problems. Although Pentonville had many energetic and committed staff there were too few officers for most of the year. Wings were shut down for three or four half-days a week, activities and association time were restricted, and some prisoners went weeks without exercise in the fresh air. See

Pray: for more investment in overcrowded, understaffed, crumbling prisons. (Job 19:7,25)
More: www.premier.org.uk/News/UK/Chaplains-forced-to-flee-London-prison-as-gang-fight-breaks-out-during-worship-service

PC Claire Boddie will face a misconduct hearing for shooting Judah Adunbi, a race relations adviser, in the face with a stun gun. Boddie did not warn Adunbi before she fired and his hands were by his sides at the time. In footage shown in court, Boddie is heard telling Adunbi: ‘You look familiar.’ Adunbi refused to say who he is, telling the officers: ‘I’m an African black individual living in my own city’. He fell to the ground after he was shot and told them: ‘I’m nearly 70 – here’s my **** ID.’The notice claims Boddie’s actions constitute a breach of the standards of professional behaviour for the use of force. Adunbi, also known as Ras Judah, has sat on Bristol’s independent advisory group, which forges links between the police and the community, and has worked with the Crown Prosecution Service’s local community involvement panel. Footage filmed by a passerby was widely shared on social media, making headlines around the world.

Pray: for an end to excessive stop and search tactics involving African black people. (Exodus 12:49)
More: www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/aug/23/police-misconduct-hearing-stun-gun-shooting-race-relations-adviser-bristol

While the country convulses itself about Islamic face veils, a truly disturbing event affecting our freedom and our future goes almost unobserved. Christian nurse Sarah Kuteh was sacked for daring to suggest that a patient she was treating might like to go to church, and ‘inappropriately gave a Bible to a patient’. Her abilities as a nurse were not questioned, but she was only allowed to work again after reflecting on NHS professional boundaries, agreeing not to express her personal beliefs and letting her employers know in writing the steps she has taken to address ‘deficiencies highlighted in her practice and how she would act differently in the future’. In other words, she had to ‘confess’ her thought-crime and promise not to repeat it. Unemployment is being used to threaten people into keeping their deepest, beloved beliefs a personal secret while they are on NHS premises.

Pray: for God to strengthen the experienced and competent who are persecuted for their beliefs. (John 15:20)
More: www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-6050819/PETER-HITCHENS-Forget-burkas-Christianitys-faith-really-siege.html

On 17 August, Friday prayers from Intercessors for Israel stated: ‘There has been much spoken and written about the possibility of a ceasefire agreement being made between Hamas and Israel. Only the Lord knows for sure whether it is the right time for such a deal. Lord, we want Your plans to be put in place rather than any plans of men. Isaiah 55:8 says, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways, says the Lord”.’ Their prayers asked God to ‘invade’ the meetings of Israel’s leaders – Netanyahu, Liberman and Eizenkott – so that they might know God’s wisdom. They also asked God to reveal any deception in these negotiations according to Proverbs 26:26: ‘The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect.’

Pray: for the leaders of Hamas (and Israel) to experience the fear of God, and recognise the one true God. (Jeremiah 10:10a)
More: www.ifi.org.il/en/prayer/2018-08-17

Monsoon flood waters have receded in Kerala after the worst monsoon rains in a century, allowing authorities to retrieve the bodies of victims and enabling residents to start assessing the damage to their homes. But it is feared that thousands of people are still trapped in the worst-hit areas. Pray for regular supplies of clean drinking water and electricity to be distributed quickly and fairly to the state’s 33 million residents. Pray for the thousands of army, navy and air force personnel still searching for survivors and delivering food, medicine and water to those stranded in remote, hilly areas cut off by damaged roads and bridges. Pray for the 1,028,000 people sheltering in 3,274 relief camps. Disinfectants in adequate quantities are needed to prevent water-borne diseases. Pray for more paramedics to be available to advise and give medical aid. The government said it needs hundreds of thousands of electricians, plumbers and carpenters to bring Kerala back to normality. See

Pray: for people with technical abilities to be available to rebuild destroyed communities. (1 Chronicles 22:15)
More: www.theguardian.com/world/2018/aug/20/kerala-floods-fears-thousands-still-trapped-as-waters-recede

All across the vast land, intercessors unite under the umbrella of ‘Ears to Hear’ as they pray for Canada via conference calls, skype and emails. We can join them as they intercede for the summer to bring an unprecedented spiritual harvest. Pray that the nation will grow deeply hungry for God, and that the Church will use every opportunity to share the Good News of Jesus boldly. Keep lifting up all the summer camps and outreaches. The Lord has been speaking to Canada’s Prophetic Council through a vision of a church bell being rung in these days. The vision represents what He desires to do with the prophetic. May the gift of prophecy ring out in new and freshly restored ways. Pray that it is clear, pure and centred on Jesus. Across Canada, the Lord has been strongly emphasising that it’s time for reconciliation. Pray that even long-estranged relationships will be restored. Pray for grace, humility and forgiveness to grow in the Body of Christ. Believe for miraculous reconciliations.

Pray: for God’s kingdom, power and glory to be expressed through extravagant praise and a turning from temporal values to the eternal. (Psalm 103:17)
More: www.ears2hear.ca/prayer

The oldest and thickest sea ice in the Arctic has started breaking up, opening waters north of Greenland that are normally frozen, even in summer. This phenomenon, never previously recorded, is due to warm winds and a climate-change driven heatwave. One meteorologist described the loss of ice as ‘scary’. Others said it could force scientists to revise their theories about which part of the Arctic will withstand warming the longest. ‘I think that solar heating of the water column will increase during this opening (of the ice) and this will delay freeze-up and ice formation,’ said an expert at the Danish Meteorological Institute. Freakish Arctic temperatures have alarmed climate scientists since the beginning of the year. There are concerns that the polar vortex may be eroding.

Pray: for governments to acknowledge weather changes and seek ways to turn it back to how God intended. (Psalm 24:1,2)
More: www.theguardian.com/world/2018/aug/21/arctics-strongest-sea-ice-breaks-up-for-first-time-on-record

Donald Trump’s former personal attorney and ‘fixer’ pleaded guilty to eight felony counts, including two that implicate President Trump and Paul Manafort, President Trump’s former campaign chairman who was found guilty on eight counts in a separate case. Meanwhile Trump is tweeting repeatedly that the campaign finance regulations Michael Cohen pleaded guilty to are not crimes. We can pray for America’s president and all who hold positions of authority and influence in government to be men and women who walk in righteousness, integrity, wisdom and truth. May any who are dishonest or irrational be removed from their positions of power. See

Pray: that the truth about all the accusations currently being investigated will come out. (Psalm 140:8)
More: edition.cnn.com/2018/08/22/politics/donald-trump-michael-cohen-paul-manafort/index.html

On 22 August Venezuela’s northern coast was rocked by a 7.3 magnitude earthquake felt across the Caribbean and hundreds of kilometres away in Caracas where political leaders were celebrating their new economic plan to rescue the crumbling economy from rampant hyperinflation. They drastically removed five zeros from the bolivar and pegged it to a cryptocurrency (digital currency operating independently of a central bank) while raising the minimum wage by 3,000%. Economists fear this will worsen the financial crisis that has driven over 500,000 Venezuelans overseas this year, and warn that inflation rates could go even higher. The financial crunch and earthquake are symbolised by social media photographs showing ‘the Tower of David’, a notorious and symbolic abandoned skyscraper, now a horizontal slum, that was severely damaged by the quake. The proven oil reserves in Venezuela, recognised as the largest in the world (297 billion barrels), have been corruptly mismanaged. See also

Pray: for financial shaking to remove the corruption from commerce and politics. (Leviticus 19:36)
More: www.theguardian.com/world/2018/aug/20/venezuela-prepares-to-devalue-currency-amid-fears-it-may-worsen-crisis-bolivar

Facebook has identified and banned groups and pages engaged in misleading political behaviour and removed 652 pages, groups, and accounts linked to Russia and Iran, for ‘coordinated inauthentic behaviour’ that included the sharing of political material. Facebook significantly stepped up policing its platform after acknowledging that Russian agents successfully ran political influence operations on its platform aimed at influencing the 2016 US presidential election. Other social media networks have done likewise, and continue to turn up fresh evidence of political disinformation campaigns.

Pray: for even more detections, disclosures and deletion of internet disinformation. (Proverbs 6:14,15)
More: www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/aug/21/facebook-says-takes-down-russian-iranian-linked-ac/

On 24 August, after a bitter row that has thrust the country’s political landscape into turmoil, Australia’s Liberal party named finance minister Scott Morrison as the country’s new leader, after he emerged victorious from a three-way race with former home affairs minister Peter Dutton and foreign minister Julie Bishop. The ugly fight for power comes just nine months before a May 2019 deadline for a new general election, and continues a torrid period of instability for Australian leadership – Mr Morrison will be the country’s sixth prime minister in less than ten years. Mr Turnbull, who called the leadership vote after losing the majority support of the party, opted not to contest it. The crisis for the Liberal party is far from over, however. Mr Turnbull intends to resign from parliament, leaving the new government facing a by-election for his Sydney seat that could see it lose its one-seat majority. It is reported that Ms Bishop, having been defeated in the leadership ballot, would likely also resign from politics.

Pray: that Mr Morrison will be given wisdom as he turns his attention to issues of national importance, and that internal party politics will come to an end. (2 Chronicles 1:10)
More: uk.news.yahoo.com/scott-morrison-named-australian-prime-035100625.html