Pray for Madagascar

Your prayers made a definite difference. Thank you. Organizer Margaret Hill writes, "This workshop was so much better than the previous one. All the 30 who returned had put into practice what they had learned by teaching the trauma healing lessons to small groups of people. We heard some remarkable stories, including one group that met in the central prison! Most of the participants this time seemed to follow everything and were very engaged. We were meeting in a much better centre.  Now we are waiting to hear about further funding for training there. Please pray this will work out."

During 2012, a course was offered in Burundi, showing people how to facilitate small groups in trauma healing for those recovering from the wounds of war or other catastrophic events. An advanced course will take place in Bujumbura, the capital, from February 17-24, to further train people who have actually used what they learned. Participants will include people from Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Madagascar and Rwanda. Please pray for 1) maximum benefit for them; 2) brilliance and strength for the leaders; and 3) long-range plans being formed for Burundi that include trauma healing.

Madagascar, Sue Arthur: “After watching the Jesus Film, a Bara ombiasa (priest) couldn’t sleep. He was particularly impressed by the sight of Jesus casting demons out of a man and into a herd of pigs. Realising that Jesus had far more power than he did, the ombiasa went to a pastor to find out more. Eventually he believed and was baptised—and his household! (Acts 16:31) Pray that more Bara people will believe in Jesus. A handful of Christian workers are trying to reach many isolated villages in a wide area. (jesusfilm.org)

A Bara "ombiasa" (traditional priest) couldn’t sleep after watching the JESUS Film. He was particularly impressed by the section based on Luke 8:26-39, where Jesus casts demons out of a man and into a herd of pigs, which plunge into a lake and drown.  Realizing that Jesus had far more power than he did, the ombiasa went to a pastor to find out more. Eventually he and all his family were baptized as believers. Pray that other Bara people will believe in Jesus. Pray for the very few pastors and workers who try to minister over a wide area with many isolated villages.

"Who wrote this?" the man asked the F* translation team. "It sounds like something that really happened!" The man was a history and geography teacher, and had always thought that Jesus was like a god and one couldn’t know where he lived. So he was amazed to see on a world map the physical place where Jesus actually lived. Hearing the message so clearly in his own language made him realize that God is closer than he ever thought. Pray that one day all the F* people will know this truth about Emmanuel—God is with us.

*F is a pseudonym