Prayer Request |
How God Is Answering |
1. Please pray for the poor around the world. The global financial crisis will likely cause increased economic hardship and slower economic growth worldwide, putting the poor at greater economic risk. |
This is an ongoing request. |
2. Please pray that God would sanctify all of us here at the Chalmers Center so that our own sin would not prevent God from using us to extend His kingdom, to strengthen His church, and to glorify His name. Please do not read anything into this request. There are no scandals here. We are just very aware that we are sinners who need God to continue to shape and to mold us so that He can use us to accomplish His work. |
God continues to work and shape each one of us here both individually and as a team. Please continue to pray that we will love, support, and encourage one another. |
| 3. Please pray for the Chalmers Center's Global Fellowship of Trainers (GFT). The GFT consists of people from around the world who are training or preparing to train using the Chalmers Center's materials. Please pray that God would help these people to master the content of the materials and to have opportunities to train churches to minister to low-income people around the world. |
We continue to receive encouraging reports from GFT members and the number of GFT members is expanding. Last month we were able to invite 4 new GFT members. We rejoice that 5 GFT members were able to help us conduct the recent Christian Economic Development Institute in the Ivory Coast. Please continue to pray that God will strengthen this team to do His work. |
4. Please pray that God will provide the funds that we need to continue His work. |
This is an ongoing request. |
5. Please pray for Mark Bowers of the Chalmers Center as he works on a major project to integrate biblical worldview messages into technical curricula in the areas of small business training, household financial management, and health. |
Please continue to pray for this project. We are so encouraged to see all that God is doing thus far. We are currently having the material contextualized and field tested in Latin America, Rwanda, and Kenya. We now will press on in India and China. |
6. Please pray that God will use the new book by Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert to equip His church to minister more effectively to the poor. The book is called When Helping Hurts: Alleviating Poverty Without Hurting the Poor...and Yourself, Moody Publishers. |
Praise God that the book has been published along with self-study materials to go with it. Over 22,000 copies of the book have been sold so far. Continue to pray that God would use this book to build His kingdom and help the poor around the world. |
| 7. Please pray for the variety of distance learning and self-study courses being offered between now and the end of the year. |
This is an ongoing request. Please read the current issue of the Mandate newsletter to hear more details concerning the impact of Distance Learning in the Church. |
| 8. Please pray for the development of franchising training businesses around the world as a model for disseminating our training. |
This is a new request. |
| 9. Please ask God to give us wisdom as we explore new ideas for increasing the scale of our training. Ask God to prevent us from making mistakes and to keep His glory as our primary aim. |
This is an ongoing request. God has introduced us to both new people and institutions who could increase our scale of training this month. Please continue to pray as we explore these possibilities further. |
| 10. Please ask God to help us with our new Individual Development Accounts (IDAs) pilot program in North America. We need churches to move ahead with this initiative. |
This is an ongoing request. God has led a person with a deep interest in IDAs to assist us in the strategy and staffing of this program. We are so thankful and encouraged, but we still need additional funds to get the IDA Program moving. |
| 11. Please ask God to help Brian Fikkert and Russell Mask, Chalmers staff members, to complete a new book on church-centered microfinance and microenterprise development. |
This is an ongoing request. Pray for Brian and Russell as they continue their work on this. |
| 12. Pray for recruitment of an IDA Pilot Project Manager. Pray for wisdom and that God would bring us the right person for the job. |
This is an ongoing request. |
| 13. Please pray for Brian Fikkert and Steve Corbett as they try and handle many speaking requests and radio interviews related to their book, When Helping Hurts. Please ask God to give them health, strength, and safe travel. Please ask God to use their speaking opportunities to extend His kingdom, to strengthen His church, and to bring glory to His name alone. |
This is an ongoing request. |
| 14. Please pray for a Christian Economic Development Institute (CEDI) that will be held in Chaing Mai, Thailand on January 4th through the 13th, 2010. Pray for safe travels and that God would use this time to equip people in this region in powerful way. |
This is a new request. |
