Mission Opportunities Prayer List - SEP 2019

Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may run swiftly and be glorified, just as it is with you...

2 Thessalonians 3:1 (NKJV)

Nepal – Pastor Raju and his family were recently evicted from their apartment for singing hymns and having prayers in their home during a birthday celebration with a few of the youth from the congregation. Pray that the Holy Spirit will work faith in the heart of the landlord through the Word of God that he has heard from Raju.

Nepal – Pray that the Lord will provide a suitable and affordable piece of land to build or an existing building to purchase that will serve as a worship facility, seminary, library, and office for the HCLCN and the Bible Institute. 

India – Persecution of Christians in India continues to increase. Pray that the Lord will protect His children and that He will use this persecution to strengthen and increase His flock in India. Pray for those who carry out this persecution as well, that they will be led by the Holy Spirit to repent and rejoice in the forgiveness they have through Jesus Christ.

Bangladesh – Pastor Monotosh, continues to travel throughout the districts of BLCM to teach the lessons from the Online Theological Studies course titled “An Introduction to Lutheran Theology and the CLC.” Pray that this effort to proclaim the truth and train faithful leaders will continue to be successful.  

Pastor Monotosh teaching "An Introduction to Lutheran Doctrine and the CLC"

Bangladesh – As Pastor Monotosh continues Online Theological Studies with our missionary, plans are also being made for an official colloquy in early 2020. Our visiting missionary and a representative of the CLC appointed by President Eichstadt will travel together to Bangladesh to conduct the colloquy. Pray that the Lord will bless this important next step. 

Togo – Pastor Kossi, the main leader of the MELC, was recently involved in a motorcycle accident. He was spared from major injuries but will require some downtime to rest and recover. Pray that the Lord will grant him a quick and complete recovery. 

Togo – With a resident missionary now in place, Pastor Kossi is excited as they begin planning and conducting five evangelism campaigns throughout Togo over the next year. A CLC-MDF grant was recently approved to provide funding for this effort to preach the truth of God’s saving word in Togo, Ghana, and Benin. Pray for the Lord’s blessing on this effort. 

Liberia - Pastor Joseph continues to reach out with the Gospel in Monrovia and Bopolu. He is currently leading classes in both areas. Visiting Missionary John Hein is planning his trip to Liberia in November 2019. Pray that the Lord will bless the preparations necessary for Pastor Hein’s visit.

Tanzania – The newly established Wartburg Lutheran Seminary of the CLC-Tanzania with six students in attendance will conclude their second semester of classes soon. The students will return to their home congregations to begin a four-month practicum as they assist in the ministry. They will return to classes in late February. Pray that the Lord will continue to bless this effort with all the resources necessary to train these men to be faithful preachers and teachers of God’s saving word.

Tanzania -- Over the past several months seminary facilities have been built and improved. The CLC Board of Missions recently approved a small Mission Development Fund grant to assist with roofing the church building that is being used as the seminary classroom. They are currently conducting classes under a lean-to that has been constructed within the walls of the church building. This is necessary because of the hot sun and heavy rains. Pray that the Lord will continue to bless and provide for more necessary improvements to the seminary facilities.

Church Building/Classroom ready for a roof

Newly constructed student dormitory

Newly constructed (temporary) dining and study area for the students

Student laundry and washing facility behind the dormitory

Student toilet and washroom

Newly constructed seminary teachers' office and library

Zambia – Much progress has been made on the repairs and renovations of the building recently purchased in Livingstone. The work is not yet complete, but enough progress has been made to allow for the first session of pastoral training classes to begin at the end of September. Ten students/pastors from four districts of Zambia are scheduled to attend. This project is being funded through offerings to the CLC Mission Development Fund (MDF). Pray that the Lord will provide for the completion of the facility and will bless all the preparations that need to take place before classes can begin.

CLC-Zambia Building before Repairs and Renovations

Demolition work on the back of the building

Construction begins on the classroom/chapel addition

Preparing to build roof trusses for the classroom addition

The Democratic Republic of Congo – Work continues on the construction of a multipurpose facility that will serve as seminary classrooms, offices, library, chapel, and dormitory for the CCLC and the Holy Trinity Lutheran Seminary. This project was partially funded through offerings to the CLC Mission Development Fund (MDF). Thank the Lord for opening the hearts of His children to support His work of training more men to preach and teach His saving word in DRC.

The Democratic Republic of Congo – Due to political unrest during the recent presidential elections, our missionary was been denied a visa to visit for the past two years. Our visiting missionary will be applying for a visa again soon so that he can make a much-needed visit in November. Pray that the Lord will clear the way for a visit to take place.

Missionary Evensen in Togo – Missionary Peter Evensen continues to settle into his apartment and work in Lomé. He recently received a “Stay Card” which will allow him to stay in Togo for longer periods of time and will also allow him to more easily travel throughout West Africa. This is a big deal and the Lord was clearly behind the scenes making this happen. Pray that the Lord will continue to bless this transition to Togo and the work he is doing to assist in training men to be faithful preachers and teachers of God’s saving word. You can read his blog at http://evensen.lutheranmissions.org/

Visiting Foreign Missionary – Missionary Ohlmann has completed his medical treatments but has a few more weeks of recovery time before he can travel. He is making plans for a late October visit to the West African countries of Togo, Nigeria, and DRC. He is also preparing lessons, travel plans, and schedules for visits to Tanzania, Zambia, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Bangladesh in early 2020. Pray that the Lord will provide all that is necessary for these plans. You can read his blog at www.romans10v14-17.org

CLC Online Theological Studies – continue to pray for individuals in the following countries around the world who are studying God’s word through email correspondence courses as they continue to train to be faithful preachers and teachers of God’s saving word:

1.    Burundi, East Africa
2.    Senegal, West Africa
3.    D. R. Congo, Central Africa
4.    Liberia, West Africa
5.    Bangladesh, South East Asia
6.    Zimbabwe, Africa
7.    Myanmar, South East Asia
8.    Kenya, East Africa
9.    Uganda, East Africa
10.  Congo-Brazzaville, Central Africa