30 Days of Prayer for Global Awakening
Verses for contemplation: Isaiah 55
The Silk Road opened the way in AD 645 for Nestorian Christians to arrive in China, where they sought converts until suppressed 150 years later. In the 16th century, Jesuits brought the next wave of Christian influence to China, while Portuguese Catholics arrived in Japan. A century later, hundreds of Christian missionaries and followers were martyred in Japan and many thousands persecuted severely.
In the 19th century, Protestant missionaries from the West flocked to the East to share the Good News. In fact, some estimates say 50,000 Christians from abroad served God in China from 1807 until the Communist government expelled all Protestant missionaries in 1953.
During the Shandong Revival of 1927-1937, a powerful Awakening spread throughout various locations in China. After decades of Communist repression, a strong underground church persists. And yet, in that vast country of 1.4 billion, at least 443 people groups remain unreached with the Gospel and both Christians and Muslims are persecuted heavily.
In 1907, the preaching and public repentance of a Korean Presbyterian minister, Kil Sun-joo, sparked the Great Pyongyang Revival, with multitudes publicly repenting of their sins. After Communism took hold in North Korea, most Christians fled to South Korea. Today, South Korea has become the second largest missionary-sending country in the world (next to the US), while North Korea holds the rank of most dangerous of all for those who love Christ.
Prayer points to consider:
- Communism (China, North Korea)
- Heavy surveillance
- Churches attacked, forbidden to meet
- Christians imprisoned, tortured
- Unreached peoples (especially in China!!!)
- Animism, Buddhism, atheism
- Extreme poverty (North Korea)
Prayer starter:
Lord God, far too many years has North Korea been at the top of the list of most dangerous countries in the world for Christians. The situation there is so extreme that parents keep their faith secret from their children and spouse. If a Christian is discovered, his whole family could go to jail. Please tear down the walls of Communism and atheism in North Korea and China. Set the people free to seek You. Bring about a Great Awakening in the heart of every person in East Asia. Make a way for Your Good News to reach into every unreached people group, and for the Bible to be translated into every language and made available in a way each person can easily understand. Give the lost such a hunger for You they will seek You with all their heart and find You. Lord, millions in this region still bow to idols and give offerings and sacrifices to appease ancestors and evil spirits. They pay shamans and mediums to foretell their future or heal the sick. They don’t know about the God who loves them and wants to set them free from fear and death. Come quickly now and show Yourself strong on behalf of every person all throughout East Asia. Rise up and show them that You alone are God. Protect every Christian. Multiply their resources so they can abundantly bless others. You have performed so many miracles in this region before. Please do it again. Walk Christians out of prison unharmed and preaching the Good News. Heal the lame and the sick. Make the dead rise again. You’ve done it before. Please do it again. Transform hearts so dramatically all will know You alone are God and run to behold You.
Parallel Prayer: Our 30 Days of Prayer for Global Awakening coincides with Ramadan. March 11-April 9, Muslims throughout the world are fasting and seeking God right now. Let’s pray they find Him!
Lord, several unreached people groups in East Asia are Muslim. Please place a deep hunger in the hearts of the Ainu, Bonan, Dongxiang, Hui, Kangjia, Kaji, Keriya, Khik, Kyrgyz, Alxa Mongol, Nubra, Paxi, Purik, Salar, Tajik, Tatar, Tuerke, Utsat, Uyghur, Dungan, Uzbek, and Kazakh peoples of China and Mongolia; the Malay and Turkish peoples of Korea; and the Persian, Bengali and Punjabi peoples of Japan. Open their eyes to see that You are the One they long for. As they go to the mosques to pray, meet them there, Jesus, with visions of Your love and a clear presentation of Your Gospel. Many of these peoples are persecuted in China, especially the Uyghurs. Meet them in the labor camps. When they cry out to God, comfort them, speak to them, give them strength and make the way for their escape. Do it in such miraculous ways they will know it is You. Meet them in their dreams and give them visions to story them through the Gospel message and bring them to Christ. Make a way for every Muslim in East Asia to hear or read Your Word in their heart language, and prepare their hearts to receive Your truth. Give them courage to lay down their religious traditions and surrender to the One who died so they can live. Awaken the Muslim peoples of East Asia to You, O God. May Your kingdom come to every tribe, tongue, language, village, home and heart. In Your name. Amen.
Dinner and a Prayer: Each day during these 30 days, we will 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 China, Taiwan, Mongolia, Republic of Korea, North Korea, and/or Japan. You can also invite family members to research some of these countries looking for barriers to the Gospel, and then share those with the family for prayer. Menu suggestions: Stir-fried chicken and broccoli, Korean corn cheese, potato korokke (Japan), Taiwanese pineapple shortcake
You can also go to Joshua Project to discover unreached peoples, and Open Doors and Voice of the Martyrs to see where and how Christians are persecuted.
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
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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 a deep devotional workbook in Chinese and English to use in individual or group Bible study see A Strong and Courageous Life at MoreThanAConquerorBooks.com. For pastors, missionaries, teams, ministers and even parents, you’ll find Dare to Become a Kingdom Culture Leader deep in the Word and packed with power to bring unity even cross-culturally (only available in English).
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:
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