Latest Prayers by IFES

Praise God that at the very end of February, the opening event of the newest student group of BCSU (IFES movement in Bulgaria) was held in the city of Burgas. To everyone's surprise, there were 10 students at the very first event, two of whom were attending a Christian event for the first time, one BCSU worker, and one graduate student who offered to host the group. Ask God to bless these students as they seek to grow in Christ and share his love with their course mates.

Due to its proximity to Central American countries such as Mexico and Guatemala, Belize is known as a transit point for illegal drug trafficking. Numerous incidents of drug discovery in schools in the south of the country involving students have been recorded. Many university students have expressed feelings of hopelessness and being stuck due to government corruption and nepotism. The pandemic saw the IS/ IVCF (IFES movement in Belize) ministry contract, but new shoots are emerging. Pray for students, staff and volunteers seeking to share Christ’s hope in schools, colleges and universities.

Pray with IFES movements across Europe for the students who will be attending the Revive Conference at New Year to be equipped and inspired to share their faith with classmates. Pray that the teaching and testimonies they hear from peers across the continent will show them that God can use them to reach out and to achieve more in His power than they could believe!

Student Lelea asks us to pray for Christian student ministry in her university: “We want to follow Jesus in all aspects of our lives, every day of the week - that God might use us to draw others to himself. The majority of New Zealanders, and most of our friends, identify as having no religion. Our university lecturers can be scathing about Christianity. There’s lots of pressure to shrink back and fit in. At the same time, however, general “spirituality” is becoming more attractive to young people; there are gospel opportunities with that!”

Praise God for work in a Caribbean country for ministry to Hindu students, which has seen one student from a Hindu background and eight from atheist backgrounds to commit to follow Christ. Pray for the staff and student leaders in the IFES movement there as they disciple these new believers and pray that training for students would help them feel more confident to reach out to Hindu classmates.

Laurent from GBEUH Haiti shares: “Our country has been going through a multidimensional crisis for many years, and recently the situation has worsened. Pray that the [student movement] board members, staff, students and friends of the movement would be renewed in their faith in Jesus Christ, relying on his divine and wonderful help. Despite the struggles, they do allow us to live and share our faith in Jesus Christ without risk, which can be a powerful testimony. Pray that people would notice and turn to Jesus themselves.”

We want to follow Jesus in all aspects of our lives, every day of the week - that God might use us to draw others to himself. The majority of New Zealanders, and most of our friends, identify as having no religion. Our university lecturers can be scathing about Christianity. There’s a lot of pressure to shrink back and fit in. At the same time, however, general “spirituality” is becoming more attractive to young people; there are gospel opportunities with that!” Please pray for students in New Zealand to stand out and to take opportunities to share their faith.

As the end of the academic year draws nearer across the South Pacific, pray for God to build up student ministry in a challenging season. The pandemic has hit IFES movements in the region hard, and there is a need for significant rebuilding of ministry. Praise God for work in northern Fiji, and in the francophone institutions in Vanuatu, and pray for groups across the region to restart and grow in numbers, in love for God and in desire to share Christ with course mates.

Praise God that IFES students from across the Middle East and North Africa gathered at the end of August for their first regional student conference since before the pandemic. Pray for students to be equipped by the teaching and inspired as they share their experiences of how God has used them to reach other students with the gospel. Pray for all who attend and for God to use the event to grow faith and servant hearts in students and graduates.