Weekly Prayer Focus: Gomer (Accra)

Here is a newsletter with a list of items you can lift up for Gomer W who is serving in Accra, Ghana:

I once again must start by thanking each of you for your prayers and support.  God is at work here and your prayers mean so much to many.  I praise God for you all.

Praise God for the friendships that are growing here each and everyday.  Today Mitch* and I took a young Seminary teacher to the Accra market where we buy blank cassettes.  While on the way we passed by the area where Mike* sells suits by the road side.  We stopped to greet him and while there he told of his new life praising God as a Christian!!  He said he wanted to sing hymns to our God and sing praise to his Savior!!

While in the market, we were going about greeting some of the other Songhai we have been sharing the cassettes with.  We were given a warm welcome everywhere and then we passed into the lower area where the second hand clothes are brought in to be distributed.  As we were walking down one of the alleyways, a fellow in one of the shops yelled out, "Anasara, Matu gaham?" ("White man, how are you?")  As I turned to look he yelled out, "Did you bring us a cassette?"  Wow, we once again were treated to the surprise of them knowing us before we knew of them.  God is working!  They told us we were talked about and that many knew we were here as Christians looking to minister to them!  Praise God.

After we returned from the market this afternoon I was walking to the area they call the "37 market," when I came upon a fellow carrying cloth. I greeted him with the Songhai greeting and he broke into a big smile, then went on to tell me that he had gotten one of the cassettes and listened to it. It was wonderful to hear him tell what he had heard and that he was listening to it again and again and that he thought it was good and true!!!  The Gospel speaks to people and reveals the truth!!

Please continue to pray for the albasan (onion) guys. In the last few days, they have had a couple bad experiences.  Two of them got shook-down and slapped around pretty good, then a few of them got chased off from an area they usually work selling along the road.  Please pray for their safety.  Some of these guys are young and small, and with the human trafficking that takes place in countries like Ghana I worry about these guys.  I worry about them all working along the road selling, chasing cars to make a sale, running in and out of traffic, but it is what they have to do until something better comes along.  They live daily, meal by meal.

Pray for our community relations.  The English classes have gotten off to a rough start.  The first night, as we were starting to gather, a house in Nima just below where we were meeting caught fire and burned. Two little children were burned to death & no one was in the mood then to go learn English. The next two times we were to meet, the electricity was out, and then the last time a "church" showed up with a set of loud speakers and started singing to the top of their lungs. It was loud!!! Needless to say, some thought we had set them up & used the draw of "English class" to entice them and tricked them into coming to Christian church!  It took a couple of days but we are back on track and starting over this week.

Pray for the folks who are volunteering to come here and be a part of the Mission Ministry here in Accra.  First Baptist New Orleans is sending another team at the end of the year.  They are to arrive December the 28th and we are going to minister to the Songhai in several different areas.  Pray as they prepare and make ready.  Pray that God will work through them and we will see many accepting Jesus as their Savior.

Pray for Mitch and me as we look and pray about taking a couple of trips in the next few weeks. Many Songhai are in these areas and we want to make that initial contact with them and greet them in the name of the Lord.  Pray for us as we make ready to travel and as we go.

God is doing much here, I am still awed each day as I watch what He is doing and I am blessed to be a small part of His great workings.

Praise God for the friendships and relationships He is building here.

Praise God for touching the heart of Mike. Thank God for this wonderful young man that has found a love in God that has him overjoyed and wanting to sing God's praise.  Lift Mike up in prayer.  It is tough on Muslims who accept Jesus as their Savior.

Pray for the cassettes we have given out and the ones we are planning to give out that God will work through the Holy Spirit to touch the lives of any and all who hear the gospel through them.

Pray for safety and health for all the Songhai.

Pray that our community relations will grow, but most importantly that through these relationships, we will have the opportunity to share Jesus and that many will respond by accepting Him as their Savior.

Pray for the team from First Baptist New Orleans as they prepare to come share Jesus and His birth with the Songhai in December. Praise God for them also, they have each come once before and are following God here for the second time this year!

Pray for Mitch and me as we prepare to travel to new areas to meet other Songhai.  Our prayer is to be obedient and follow God into areas as He directs.

Please be in prayer for me on Sunday.  I am guest speaker at a local church that morning.  I look forward to sharing with them.  I have gotten to be good friends with the pastor there.  He is a wonderful man who loves the Lord and lives to serve Him.


Once again, thank you for standing in the gap!  Your prayers are cherished.  You are cherished!


*Names changed for security reasons

thanks for your prayer

When we petition your prayers I hope to get back with you about how they were answered.  That is what this post is about. 

I went to Karma yesterday and was praying the whole way there (as I've been praying all week) that the scene would be different.  We pulled up and there was Henry* smiling and waiting for us again.  He said he'd tried to find all the "believers" and all that he spoke to told him not to come back and talk to them ever again.  Needless to say, I was more than a little disappointed.  If I'm honest, I even had one of those "come on God, this is about your Name here.  How many people faithfully prayed all week and nothing's changed."  The Holy Spirit quickly prompted me to realize the many errors in my thinking but that was the raw emotion.

After our meeting, Henry said he'd like for us to visit some friends of his who were a little outside of town.  We loaded up and drove several kilometers to Bangawi ("the hippo killing" - cool name, eh) but which is technically still Karma.  There we met four older men who said they were ready to hear about Jesus, the Christ.  Not only that, several of the elders of the village were hanging around trying to hear what we were saying.  I thought to myself, "these will be the ones to squelch whatever we start here." 

One pulled me to the side to ask what we were doing.  I braced myself for a conversation I've had countless times.  I was sure he'd either tell me the people here didn't want to listen to this or that they would listen but only if we gave them gifts.  However, after I told him what we were doing he said "that's very good.  Bring your message and we will listen.  Our people need to hear your message."

After I picked my jaw off the ground I stumbled through some final good-byes and got back in the truck floored by God's grace and mercy. 

I just wanted you to know that God responded to your faithful prayers!  Please pray as we go back to Bangawi next Sunday!


*name changed for safety concerns

attention:

Due to increased security measures, we will no longer be posting the real names of our contacts in this country. Unfortunately, our world is not as safe as it used to be! As our supervisor put it wisely: "I do not have a problem when a person receives persecution for the sake of the gospel, but when they receive persecution because WE are not smart - that is a different case." So we are being smart from here on out!

Weekly Prayer Focus: Brazilian Colleagues

Please pray for our Brazilian colleagues. They have recently packed up their entire belongings & moved from their home in Dargol to the capital city. With one year left in their term, they are searching for a new place of ministry in Niger. Please pray for them as they look for a new village. Pray that God would grant them wisdom & discernment. Pray that God would show them a "person of peace" (someone who is open to the Gospel & open to them being in the village). Pray that many would be receptive to the Truth of the Gospel & many would come to know Jesus as their Lord & Savior through the testimonies of the Brazilians. And please pray for their safety & protection.

pray

We know that our ministry in Ayorou would not have been possible without your prayers.  We are so grateful for praying people.  And so to our prayer warriors, please take these requests.

Karma is a village we just re-entered last year.  Many have come to faith in this village and we've begun meeting there on a weekly basis.  However, this village, more than any of our other current work, sums up the statement 'where God is at work, so is the enemy.'  Let it be noted that this is widely known as one of the darkest villages in all Niger. There is a deep tie to the demonic in this village and a demon possessed man even threatened to stone our team one day (holding a very large rock he was pretty convincing). 

I went to this village Sunday hoping to meet with a group of believers and especially two men who recently prayed to receive Christ.  I took a national partner with me who has been a part of the work there.  When we arrived, no one was waiting so we decided to walk through the market and try to find Henry* who is the most faithful to come.  It seemed we couldn't walk 50 feet without the national partner pointing out someone and saying "you see him, he prayed to receive Christ a few months ago."  And yet, person after person either refused to even greet us (an unthinkable act in this hospitable country) or make up some lame excuse about why he has not been coming.  One guy even stopped dead in his tracks when he saw us and turned to run the other way!

We returned back to our truck discouraged and ready to head home when we found Henry waiting for us smiling as he always does.  We spent some time praying for these men and Henry explained to us that the level of persecution has been raised over the past few months.  People are too scared to be associated with the Christians for fear of the consequences.  One guy even told Henry that if he came to his house again to invite him for our Bible study he would beat him up!

Yet Henry has remained strong in his faith.  Even though it appears he is the only one in his entire village who is following Jesus, even though all the persecution is now directly on him, even though his wife, his wife's parents, his own parents curse him now, he has stayed strong.

So pray for Karma and pray for Henry.  Whatever level of disappointment we feel in the people of Karma, his is ten times that.  He so desperately wants a true brother in the faith to walk with him.  Pray for this former stronghold of Satan that as it slowly slips away from his grasp through the powerful name of Jesus, he does not relinquish control without a fight.

Also pray for David* of Ayorou.  David is a young man who prayed to receive Christ in 2008.  He has remained very faithful and is always eager to learn more.  He is the only believer in his entire family.  I have seen him on every visit to Ayorou until this past one.  I asked about him and I heard that a family member came from Niamey to physically remove him from Ayorou and send him to a Koranic school in Tillaberri.  Our hearts break at the thought of David being forced to recite the Koran all day long and go into the streets to beg for money.  Please pray for David to remain strong.

Finally, pray for our country.  It is increasingly an unsafe place.  It seems that the areas of greatest need and lostness are the areas that are becoming closed to our access.  Our Brazilian partners had to move from their village because of security concerns.  The entire country of Mali (where so many Songhai live) is completely closed.  The area of work for one of our partnering churches has just this week (2 weeks before their trip) become more hostile.

This is a long post just to say please pray for the Songhai.  God is moving in their hearts, they are responding to the Gospel like never before.  Areas where Satan has had full reign for literally centuries are being plucked right out of his hands.  The powerful name of Jesus is going forward but there is a real fight, a real battle going on.  Thank you for your prayers.


*names changed for security reasons

october 10

Here is a copy of the newest prayer newsletter for the Songhai Team. If you, or anyone you know, would like to be added to the email list that sends these out each month, please let us know! Email us at thephillips@pobox.com.

a message from the Songhai