Gary McDowell (Arklow Vacancy)
– Pray for continuity in Arklow’s services during this time of the vacancy and that the congregation will continue to grow and thrive.
– Pray for God to prepare the right person to come and minister among his family in Arklow.
– Pray that all the administrative tasks will be completed without any difficulty.
David Boyd (Irish Mission, Dublin)
– Pray that as David meets people in the course of his work that he will have good opportunities to share the gospel and that the people will be open to the message he shares with them.
– David’s discipleship group will recommence after the summer break. Pray for real growth in faith and in spiritual maturity in the members.
– Pray for the Friday night International Café which opens again on 28 September. Pray for the leaders, the team, and that many new students would come along as well as those from last year who are still in Dublin.
Stephen Rea (Athy and Carlow)
– Pray for the two congregations at the start of this autumn season.
– Pray for more volunteers to help with the youth work in Carlow.
– Pray for the congregations as they seek to have a vision and engage in evangelism.
Union Theological College
– Pray for the Principal, Stafford Carson, and all the teaching staff as they prepare for the new semester.
– Pray also for the Bursar, Ken Brown, and all the administrative staff, as they put everything in place for new and returning students.
– Pray for continued effective cooperation with Queen’s University.
Persecuted Church in China
Christian persecution in China has risen significantly since the implementation of newly revised Religious Affairs Regulations on 1 February 2018. In the past six months the pattern of religious freedom violations by the authorities has continued and even intensified across several provinces…. The violations range from the demolition of church buildings… confiscation of religious material and church closures to children being prevented from attending services and Christians being taking into custody.
In Henan Province alone, more than twenty churches have been demolished … and hundreds of arrests have been made since February 2018. In one city more than twenty churches have been closed this year and many other churches are being forced to register to avoid closure. According to Church in Chains partner Bob Fu of China Aid, the persecution of Christians in China is now at the highest level since the Cultural Revolution.
