Wednesday July 1: June 8-20, the Mhlambi Baptist Church held revival services. Recently the main leader left to find employment in South Africa. Imphilo Mamba currently is leading the church. Pray for the Mhlambi Baptist Church under the leadership of Imphilo Mamba to grow spiritually and reach its community for the Lord.
Thursday July 2: Continue to pray for Hunter and Brinkley Johnson serving in Swaziland until the 8th of July. Since their arrival on the 9th of June they have led children and youth Bible studies, the National Youth Retreat and served with other mission organizations. Hunter and Brinkley led a children’s Bible study at a new work area, Lesibovu on two Saturdays with approximately 125 children.
Friday July 3: Thank you for remembering the Warren Family as they began homeschooling last month. They praise the Lord for His direction in this change and how He is granting them precious time teaching the children and opening new doors of ministry. Bert has also been teaching the children’s Bible class each morning, sharing the foundations of faith and God is blessing this time. Please continue to pray for guidance and strength as Bert and Lisa seek to teach the children academically and spiritually.
Saturday July 4: Independence Day!
Today the executive committee of the Baptist Convention of Swaziland meets. Pray this meeting will reflect the desire to glorify the Lord in all that is said and done. Pray for good attendance of those on the executive committee.
Sunday July 5: Continue to pray for all Swazi Baptist churches without pastoral leadership. Pray these churches will remain one body and faithful in serving one another as they patiently wait on the Lord to provide the right person to lead these churches.
Monday July 6: Thank you for praying for the National Youth Leader’s Retreat June 26-27. Pray the youth leaders will share everything they learned with their churches and youth. Pray the youth leaders will stay faithful and strong as they serve the Lord in the Swazi Baptist churches.
Tuesday July 7: Steve Allen returns tomorrow from an archeological dig in Israel with Southeastern Theological Seminary. Pray for Steve to have an enjoyable return journey and even more enjoyable reuniting with Monica, Lacie and Nathan.
Wednesday July 8: Today the Myers, Hunter and Brinkley Johnson leave for Jo’burg for the girls to catch their returning flight to the States. Pray their flight will be uneventful. Pray Hunter and Brinkley will remember the many wonderful blessings received from their time of ministry in Swaziland.
Thursday July 9: For the past six months a group from the Nyamane area has been attending Nhlangano Baptist Church. The Nyamane area is approximately 7 kilometers from Nhlangano and the lack of transportation has made it difficult for regular attendance. There is a desire for the group to organize and begin meeting regularly on Sunday morning. Please pray the Lord will provide His leader to meet with this group on a regular basis. Pray this group will one day be a strong Baptist church.
Friday July 10: The Warrens praise the Lord for volunteers, Rev. Steve Willis and Jeremy Allen from West Virginia that came to serve in June. Church Leadership sessions were held for our pastors and church leaders in the Lubumbo region. Many were able attend this time of teaching and were able to gain more knowledge. Join Bert and Lisa in praying for future teams and field personnel that are praying and seeking the Lord’s will about serving Him in Swaziland.
Saturday July 11: Pray for the Allen family to have strength and wisdom as Steve and Monica balance family and ministry each day. Pray for their walk with the Lord to grow more and more and specifically direction for their family as they teach Lace and Nathan to love the Lord Jesus with all their hearts. Since the weekly church services are conducted in siSwati it is difficult for the children to understand what is being said. Pray Steve and Monica will continue to find ways to make weekly worship at home positive and meaningful for the children, especially Lacie.
Sunday July 12: Pray for the Manzini and Sithwethweni Baptist Churches as they continue to meet concerning the possibility of merging the two congregations. Currently they are working on a joint constitution. Please pray the two churches will be in agreement on a possible leader after the merger. This is the major issue regarding the coming together of the two congregations.
Monday July 13: Thank you for continuing to pray for Lisa’s parents as her dad continues to recover from his stroke. Please pray for strength, patience and comfort as he continues therapy and is now struggling with kidney stones. Praise the Lord that his therapy is going well. He can now move his hand to his face for a short period and is re-learning some basing “living skills.”
Tuesday July 14: Pray for the Swazi Team as they prayerfully work on personnel requests for workers to minister in Swaziland. Even now, pray for the people God wants to send to work with the Swazi Team and Swazi people to further His kingdom.
Wednesday July 15: Monica’s mom, Polly Trice has spent several weeks with the Allen family. The Allens are blessed that she was able to visit with Steve, Monica, Lacie and Nathan and see how God is working in Swaziland. Polly leaves on the 17th to return to the USA. Pray for safe travels to her home in Florida.
Thursday July 16: Because of the concern of charismatic tendencies and practices displayed at the National Easter Services, teaching was scheduled by the Baptist Convention of Swaziland May 22nd-23rd of May. This weekend (July 17th-18th) a follow-up time of teaching is scheduled. Please pray for Wayne Myers and Steven Allen as they prepare for a time of additional information sharing and a question and answer time. Pray for a better understanding of those attending concerning Baptist beliefs. Pray members from our Baptist churches will commit to making their churches stronger in Baptist beliefs as well as Christian beliefs.
Friday July 17: Pray for Lisa Warren today on her birthday!! J
Praise the Lord for this next year that He is allowing Lisa to serve Him in Swaziland. Pray she will remain dependent on Him in every area of life and will be able to manage her responsibilities so she can renew herself emotionally, spiritually and physically each day and be a usable vessel for Him.
Saturday July 18: Recently Bert Warren was given an opportunity to meet with the “phalala” (group of HIV/AIDS sufferers seeking to minister in their community) in Mafucala. Please pray for wisdom and direction as Bert and Pastor Masuku explore avenues to minister to those suffering from this deadly disease in Swaziland. Pray they will walk daily with the Lord, listening for His voice to know which steps to take. Also pray for future partnerships with other mission organizations that will help many Swazis come to Jesus as their Lord.
Sunday July 19: Pray for the new outreach group at Lesibovu, south of Manzini where Steven Allen started a Bible study in February. He is averaging about 50 people each Saturday afternoon and the group is already asking when Sunday services can begin. Pray for God’s wisdom in guiding each step for the Allens with this new group. Even now, pray for leaders that will rise within the group to be trained in the near future. Recently 28 people accepted Jesus Christ during one of the Bible studies.
Monday July 20: Pray for wisdom concerning the next step the Lord wants Steven Allen to take in establishing a new work area. After much prayer and seeing other established evangelical work in the Nkhaba area, God had closed the doors for the Allens to continue the outreach Bible study.
Tuesday July 21: Throughout King Mabusa’s (father of the present King of Swaziland) reign, Muslims were not allowed to own or operate businesses in the country. Unfortunately, the present King does not follow this principle and the Muslim influence is growing in Swaziland. Please pray the number of Muslim followers will not continue to grow. Pray Swazi Christians will take a stand for their faith and their country. Pray Christianity will touch the hearts of the King of Swaziland, his wives and children.
Wednesday July 22: May 22nd Wayne Myers lost his brother and June 14th his sister. Presently his brother Terry is in remission from stage 4 cancer. Please pray for the Myers family as they continue to deal with their losses. Pray Terry will continue to do well.
Thursday July 23: In the last few months members of Swazi Baptist churches in the Shiselweni region not officially married but living with someone have requested Christian weddings. Through the Lord’s conviction, these have seen the need to change their present situations and follow the Lord’s guide for a Christian home. Please pray for many other homes that need to follow these examples and have a Christian wedding. Pray for the youth of Swaziland to say no to tradition and yes to Christ and His way of life.
Friday July 24: Pray for several churches currently trying to obtain plots for building new churches or shifting existing churches. Hawane finally had their plot marked by the community council and will prepare to build very soon. Victory Baptist plans to move a bit closer to the main road and use most of the existing church materials. Ntsintsa Baptist has met in a Red Cross building since it was started in the 1990s and desires to have its own structure. Mphembekati Baptist has to move their existing building due to being too close to a school. Peniel Baptist recently lost their church meeting place and is seeking a new temporary place until they can build their own church structure.
Saturday July 25: Pray for the Swazi Team as “we” search for ways to effectively fight the HIV/AIDS pandemic that is taking the lives of so many Swazis.
Sunday July 26: Tomorrow the Swazi Team will gather in Nhlangano for their quarterly meeting. Pray for a wonderful time of fellowship and business.
Monday July 27: Pray for Bert and Lisa Warren today on their anniversary!! J
Bert and Lisa praise the Lord for another wonderful year together and how He has blessed them through the years. Pray Bert and Lisa will continue to grow closer to the Lord and to each other with passing day.
Tuesday July 28: Pray for the National Youth Camp August 27-30 for all the youth of the Swazi Baptist churches. The venue has not been finalized. Pray for all the logistics to be completed and for the youth to make plans to attend this important event.
Wednesday July 29: Please pray with the help of God’s Word, Swazi youth will understand the True Love Waits message and the impact it could have on the entire country, especially in view of the AIDS pandemic.
Thursday July 30: Time is fast approaching for the Myers’ fourth stateside assignment (Sept. 24th-Dec. 30th). Pray all preparations for their departure from Swaziland and arrival in Kentucky will go well. Pray a vehicle will be secured for traveling in the states.
Friday July 31: “Learning About the Bible” is the theme for the 2009 Shiselweni Children’s Camps. The first camp is scheduled August 14-17 and the second camp August 31-Sept. 2. As preparation continues, please pray the Lord will guide and direct each decision made. Pray the children will begin to look forward to this time of learning and having fun!
Check these special Swazi sites:
www.swaziprayerbytes.blogspot.com
www.swazimissions.org.
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