Prayer notes for November 6, 2007

1. Give thanks to God for our safe return and the many improvements we have noted since our departure. Pray that these changes may continue, so that the whole country may eventually be transformed. Pray too for the new president and governors, and others who are in leadership positions, that they may exercise true servant-leadership. Corruption filters down to the lowest rungs of the civil service, and even in the church we note leaders who use their office for self-aggrandizement. Please pray for leaders with integrity to prevail in spite of the challenges.

2. Pray for our safety as we travel both within the city and outside of it. In spite of some changes, there are still many dangers on the roads here, especially drivers who display a fatalistic attitude to life. Pray also for God’s protection for us at home, where most robberies occur. We have heard of numerous recent robberies, some perpetrated by known characters (some are or were Unijos students). Pray with us that they may be caught. God is our only real protection.

3. Pray for us too as we take up our work at the university and other schools. Pray that we may complete the unfinished courses well, and for strength as we begin new ones. Pray for students who have asked us to supervise them, yet are faced with various obstacles to full admission. Pray for removal of whatever is holding the situation back. And pray too that God may use our students, so that his church may grow and his kingdom increase.

4. Thank God with us for Adrian’s mother who turned 87 this month. Although lonely after the death of Adrian's father last February, she has moved into a new home in Ottawa, and we pray that this home will also provide better care than was available in her own condo. Please pray for her too as she thus begins a new way of life. And pray for Adrian's siblings who are much involved in caring for her needs.


5. Please remember also our children in your prayers. This year both Sharon and David are living in Toronto. Please pray with us that aside from a good place to live, David may find the job which will allow him to take some courses while he is awaiting a possible return to the Middle East. Pauline and her husband Greg and their children (Gracie and Chris) remain in the Boston area. Thank God with us that Pauline is well on the way to recovery after the severe intestinal infection from which she suffered earlier this year. (The photo was taken this past summer at a cottage, which marked the first time in five years that all of us were able to get together).