Please carry us in your prayers in preparation during this time. Trust with us that these leaders’ hearts will be ignited with Hope and Passion to bring radical change wherever they go. That we will see a harvest of kingdom citizens come in to glorify Jesus.
Here is information from Operation World's website (http://www.operationworld.org/).
Thank you for your prayers!
Cambodia
Kingdom of Cambodia
Asia
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Geography
Area: 181,035 sq kmFertile, forest-covered state of southwest Indo-China on the Mekong River.
Population: 15,053,112 Annual Growth: 1.66%
Capital: Phnom Penh
Urbanites: 22.8%
HDI Rank: 137 of 182 (UN Human Development Reports 2009)
Peoples
Peoples: 42 (71% unreached) All peoplesUnreached Peoples Prayer Card
Official language: Khmer Languages: 25 All languages
Religion
Largest Religion: Buddhist| Religion | Pop % | Ann Gr | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Christians | 471,162 | 3.13 | 8.4 |
| Evangelicals | 240,196 | 1.6 | 8.8 |
| Buddhist | 12,545,264 | 83.34 |
Challenges for Prayer
Pray for the less-reached. The window of opportunity that now sees many enter the Kingdom may not stay open for much longer; the opportunities must be urgently seized. Pray for:a) The Buddhist majority. Buddhism has lost some of its monopolistic grip on the people, but reactionary forces are moving against the clearly noticeable growth of the Church.
b) The Cham, almost entirely Muslim. The majority practice folk Islam, which incorporates animistic practices into more orthodox Islamic practices; within this is a strong strain of Fojihed Islam, which is rife with pre-Islamic magic and superstitions. There are a few Christians; pray for them to be gathered into fellowship together. Khmer Christians have not yet met this evangelistic challenge; pray also for wisdom for those already reaching out to the Cham.
c) The tribal peoples. Only among the Mnong, Jarai, Krueng and Stieng have significant numbers come to Christ. A further 18 Southeast Asian peoples can be considered unevangelized; pray for loving and appropriate witness to these peoples.
d) The six Chinese language groups constitute nearly 600,000 people who have largely assimilated into Cambodian society, but who are mostly unreached. Pray for Chinese believers from abroad to come as apostles to these people.
Christian ministries have diversified in recent years. Pray specifically for:
a) Literature. CMA has translated a range of materials, especially for church planting training. The Bible Society and others provide Khmer Bibles, NTs and Scripture portions. A new Khmer Bible was completed in 1998. Lifewords tracts and literature are widely appreciated.
b) Fount of Wisdom is a joint effort of CMA, EFC, AoG and OMF that trains Cambodian Christian writers, encourages production of indigenous materials for the Church and translates useful Christian literature from other languages. Pray for its positive impact on the Church and on the nation.
c) The JESUS film is being used in Khmer, Chinese, Vietnamese and other tongues. Father’s Hope is another film being used by The Book of Hope team to reach out to Cambodians.
d) Audio and video resources. GRN provides audio resources in 18 languages. God’s Story and Megavoice both have material in Khmer.
e) Christian radio. Over 300 hours per week, many in Khmer and on FM, can be heard. FEBC broadcasts 115 hours per week on local FM radio with notable response. TWR, GFA, World Harvest Radio and Lutheran Hour also broadcast in Khmer or various minority languages.
Thailand
Kingdom of Thailand
Asia
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Geography
Area: 513,115 sq kmA fertile and well-watered land bordering on Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Malaysia.
Population: 68,139,238 Annual Growth: 0.66%
Capital: Bangkok
Urbanites: 34%
HDI Rank: 87 of 182 (UN Human Development Reports 2009)
Peoples
Peoples: 114 (67% unreached) All peoplesUnreached Peoples Prayer Card
Official language: Thai Languages: 85 All languages
Religion
Largest Religion: Buddhist| Religion | Pop % | Ann Gr | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Christians | 749,532 | 1.10 | 2.8 |
| Evangelicals | 307,305 | 0.5 | 3.6 |
| Buddhist | 58,136,398 | 85.32 |
Answer to Prayer
Challenge for Prayer
The extensive sex trade, focused in Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket and Hat Yai, is profoundly embedded in Thai society. Millions derive income from this “industry”. Estimates – none of which can be verified – range up to 2.8 million who engage in sex work. Some claim 10% of all tourist money is spent on the sex industry. Pray for:a) The girls involved (and the much smaller numbers of men). They are usually from poor, rural backgrounds and mostly from Isaan/the northeast, from ethnic minorities or from neighbouring countries, especially Myanmar. They are often sold into the sex trade by family members needing money or fewer mouths to feed. Their introduction into the trade can be brutal. Leaving can be nearly impossible due to “debts” owed to traffickers. Many others enter willingly, seeking an income higher than any other job would offer or the prospect of a rich foreign boyfriend or husband. All are at high risk of mistreatment and disease; all are in need of the redemption and unconditional love that Christ offers.
b) Those who profit from the trade. Those who exploit others for their own gain must be brought to task. Pray for corrupt police and officials, the traffickers, the Chinese-Thai mafia, owners of the establishments where the trade occurs, relatives who sell the girls into indentured sexual servitude. Pray for moral conviction to fall upon them. Pray for this wicked flesh trade to be brought to an end.
c) The users. Westerners and East Asians in their hundreds of thousands arrive in the country specifically or in part for sex tourism. Thai men who pay for sex outnumber both of these groups by far. Pray for blind eyes to be opened, and pray for the freedom these men also need from this vile practice.
d) The government, which officially states opposition to sex tourism, but does very little to discourage it. Billions are tied up in the trade, and there is little willpower in the government to disperse the tangled web of the sex trade and the billions it generates, directly and indirectly.
e) Agencies seeking to minister to those caught in the trade. Ministries such as Rahab and Nightlight work with prostitutes, providing care, counselling and vocational training for those wanting out. Many other groups work in anti-trafficking. It is a valuable and honourable battle, but a difficult one that cannot ultimately be won solely by “rescuing” girls or closing individual brothels.
Vietnam
Socialist Republic of Vietnam
Asia
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Geography
Area: 331,653 sq kmLong, narrow country occupying the entire eastern and southern coastline of Indochina.
Population: 89,028,741 Annual Growth: 1.15%
Capital: Hanoi
Urbanites: 28.8%
HDI Rank: 116 of 182 (UN Human Development Reports 2009)
Peoples
Peoples: 114 (56% unreached) All peoplesUnreached Peoples Prayer Card
Official language: Vietnamese Languages: 106 All languages
Religion
Largest Religion: Buddhist| Religion | Pop % | Ann Gr | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Christians | 8,395,410 | 9.43 | 2.3 |
| Evangelicals | 1,576,889 | 1.8 | 2.6 |
| Buddhist | 46,722,283 | 52.48 |
Challenges for Prayer
Leaders’ development and theological training are the most urgent needs of the Vietnamese church. As numbers increase, so does the potential for false teaching and error. Opportunities for training are still highly restricted and piecemeal. The Catholics have reopened several seminaries, all monitored by the government. The only legal Protestant training institute is run exclusively for the ECVN(S). Some other registered churches are allowed to train their pastors on a case by case basis. There are informal study programmes and unofficial Bible schools in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Danang and elsewhere, but a standardized curriculum would be a boon. Expatriates often quietly enter the country to do leadership seminars and modular training, but their low profile limits the impact. Beyond theology, training in other leadership skills such as management, finance, accounting and vocational training is crucial. Many pastors are already responsible for multiple congregations and have no time or money for full-time training. Pray for creative, sustainable and effective means of developing a new generation of Christian leaders.The Vietnamese Diaspora has two elements: those who fled the Communists, mostly in the 1970s, and those who more recently travelled abroad as guest workers in other Asian countries. Over three million live around the globe, where they are more accessible to ministry. Hundreds of thousands (including many from minority ethnic groups) are labouring abroad as migrant workers and have encountered the gospel in Malaysia, South Korea or other transit points, often through the evangelistic work of Vietnamese living abroad. Many overseas Vietnamese are returning to their homeland with a spiritual burden for their country; pray for fruitful and sensitive ministry to flourish as a result.
