30 Days of Prayer for Global Awakening
Verses for contemplation: 1 John 4
Greek missionaries from the Byzantine Empire introduced Christianity to Kievan Rus in the 9th century, and the Russian Orthodox Church is now the most prevalent religion of North Asia. Notable growth occurred among Protestants after World War I, when Russian prisoners came to Christ through the ministry of German missionaries, and then returned home to share the Good News.
The Stalinist repression in the 1930s closed Protestant churches and arrested believers. But after World War II, with more than 26 million Russians dead, cities reduced to rubble, and famine, sickness, homelessness and crime prevalent, a Great Awakening arose. Reports of 250,000 baptisms in 1946 surged to 540,000 in 1958. Many more conversions were not recorded because severe persecution by the USSR’s Communist regime drove Christianity underground. Authorities shut down churches and arrested believers, sending them to mental hospitals or prisons, where many were tortured to renounce their faith.
Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, today’s Russia is close to 59% Christian, with 185 distinct people groups, 116 of those unreached with the Gospel. (Notice that number has changed since this recent map was created below.)
These days, Russia is daily in the news because of war with Ukraine. (See our Pray for Ukraine and Russia page.)
Prayer points to consider:
- 116 unreached peoples
- War with Ukraine
- Oppressive government
- Excessive force against protesters
- Censorship of internet, media
- Labor and sex trafficking
- Forced labor of North Koreans
- Travel restrictions
- Effects of war (such as PTSD, grief, vast numbers of households left fatherless)
Prayer starter:
Lord, please have mercy on the oppressed, especially victims of sex and labor trafficking who are routinely detained, deported, and prosecuted for activity they were forced to participate in. Be near to them in their time of need. Speak to them and draw them to Yourself. Heal their hearts and lead both them and their abusers to salvation. Protect those in harm’s way and open the path for their escape. Bring Christians to help them along the way. Bless believers so abundantly, they will abundantly bless those around them. Protect them from harm and empower them to share Your truth. Make a way for Your Gospel to reach into every language so all will have the chance to be saved. Steal into every home and heart, exposing Yourself in intimate ways, and lighting up their darkness. As the things people have placed their hope and trust in crumble, step in and show them Your love in personal ways. Invade their darkness with Your light. Give them a hunger to know You so fervent they will search for You with all their hearts and find You. When they reach for the bottle, may they grab a Bible instead. When they lash out at others, may they find Your grace. When they seek truth, may they hear testimonies of Your goodness. Raise up leaders who love You. May those who have trusted in their country place their hope now in the Kingdom that never passes away. Bring Christian counselors to help those devastated by war and trauma to healing. Wipe away their tears with the joy of salvation, and send away their fears with the power of Your love. Even now, Lord, prepare the way for post-war Russia to rise up with yet another Great Awakening. Yes, Lord, please stop the war, rescue the peoples of that nation from evil, and awaken all of Russia to You.
Parallel Prayer: Our 30 Days of Prayer for Global Awakening coincides with Ramadan. March 23-April 21, Muslims throughout the world are fasting and seeking God right now. Let’s pray they find Him!
Of the 116 unreached people groups in Russia, 65 are Muslim, most of whom have never heard Your Good News. Lord, have mercy, please. Make a way where there seems to be no way for them to know You. Meet them in their dreams. Get the Bible translated into their many languages. Call out people to pray for them and take them Your Good News in a way they can easily understand. Grow within them a craving for You so strong, they will travel far and wide to find someone to tell them about Jesus. Then satisfy them with Your love and salvation. Bring whole villages to faith, and transform whole people groups to have Your name written upon their hearts. Yes, we ask You for a mighty movement of Your Spirit among the Islamic peoples of Russia. May Your Kingdom come to every tribe and heart.
Dinner and a Prayer: Each day during these 30 days, we share with you ideas for special family prayer times, including a suggested menu to go with that day’s prayer theme. Today’s suggestions:
Search the internet to choose recipes from Russia. Research that country and then talk about barriers to the Gospel; then pray together. Menu suggestions: Russian borscht, Russian black bread, Russian tea cakes
You can also go to Joshua Project and click on Russia on the map to discover more about their unreached peoples.
If you would like to plan ahead for international meals, see the “Dinner and a Prayer” section at the bottom of our 30 Days page or in the back of your 30 Days of Prayer for Global Awakening, Vol 2 book.
Don’t Miss a Day of Prayer
To make sure you get the daily prayers each morning in time for your quiet times with God, please subscribe to the Prayer Wall by entering your email address in the space below:
For suggestions on how to have an even fuller experience this month, check out our 30 Days and So You Think You Can’t Fast pages here at the Prayer Wall.
A full-color book, 30 Days of Prayer for Global Awakening, Volume 2, is available in both paperback or pdf format (for Kindle and other devices) at MoreThanAConquerorBooks.com.
For deep devotional Bible studies on overcoming anxiety and trauma. see Delight to Be a Woman of Wonder (the men’s version is Dare to Be a Mighty Warrior, for couples who want to study together) and Delight to Be a Woman of God at MoreThanAConquerorBooks.com.
More books for all ages from MoreThanAConquerorBooks.com:
Mikaela Vincent and her husband are missionaries who live by faith, trusting in God to provide for their needs as they pray for and share Christ with the nations. If you would like to help their ministry through giving a donation, shopping at Mikaela’s online bookstore, praying for them or inviting them to speak at your church, retreat or other event, click the buttons below:
To easily access the daily Prayer Wall posts from your mobile phone screen, go to https://prayerwallforthenationandtheworld.wordpress.com in your browser, then click your browser’s drop-down menu, and press “Add to Homescreen.” (These instructions may differ according to your browser.) You can then place the icon wherever you like on your screen. Press it daily to pray through each new post in your quiet times.
Any proceeds this author receives from the sale of the deep devotional Bible studies and other MoreThanAConquerorBooks.com books mentioned in this post go to shining Christ’s light in the darkness and seeing the nations come to Him.
Thank you for your support! If you have any questions or want to help with this ministry, please contact Mikaela.
PRAYER WALL 