TEARFUND PRAYER DIARY MARCH 2014
NEIGHBOURS ACROSS NATIONS: 2–8 MARCH
Connected Church is Tearfund’s way of linking churches in the UK with projects and churches overseas. Through this closer connection, we have found that giving and praying can become more enriching for churches as they journey together with a project. This week, we have invited churches and partners connected through the initiative to share their prayers.
SUNDAY 2 MARCH
‘Dear Lord, as we begin our relationship with the Sahaara project in Mumbai, help us to enter into their joys and struggles with open hearts. May we learn to show Christ’s love in our own community from their example. Keep us faithful in prayer, that we may rejoice together in lives set free,’ prays Alison Dennis from Orpington Baptist Church.
MONDAY 3 MARCH
‘Dear Lord, you are a God who created us for relationship - with you and with each other! Thank you for joining our hearts with Orpington Baptist Church as we together seek to see your power bring people who are trapped and in darkness into freedom and your light!’ asks Max Fernand (CEO) from the Sahaara project, Mumbai.
TUESDAY 4 MARCH
A group from Rothley Parish Church, Leicestershire, are trekking Mount Kenya and visiting their Connected Church partner, Anglican Development Services of Mount Kenya East (ADSMKE), this summer. They ask, ‘Pray for a shared sense of purpose amongst us, that as we prepare for our trip, we will grow closer to one another and to Jesus. Pray that our trip will deepen our connection.’
WEDNESDAY 5 MARCH
‘I thank God for the partnership of Rothley Parish and other Connected Churches in the UK. Their support and prayers have taken us a long way in reaching the communities. I pray that more Kenyans will participate in the trek to Mount Kenya and this will be an opportunity for bonding and praying for one another,’ prays Catherine Mwangi from ADSMKE.
THURSDAY 6 MARCH
Heavenly Father, we thank you for the opportunity to visit our brothers and sisters in Christ in Kigezi, Uganda, last October. We pray that the link we have established between Kitooma Primary School and our own church school, Churchill CE Primary School in Westerham, will flourish and lead to greater understanding,’ asks Bruce Nuttal from St Mary’s Westerham.
FRIDAY 7 MARCH
‘We thank God for our wonderful relationship with St Mary’s Westerham. We thank him for the time we spent when they visited and saw the work God has been doing through us. Please pray that St Mary’s engage their community with our work and vision,’ prays Kenneth Twinamatsiko from the Diocese of Kigezi, Uganda.
SATURDAY 8 MARCH
Political instability, intolerance of Christians or sensitive work means that some of our partners cannot share their stories in the same way our Connected Church partners featured this week can. Please pray for these partners - that God will bless and protect them in all that they do.
Welcome to the weekend – what you can do
If you have been inspired to connect your church with a Tearfund project, or if you’d like to know more, visit or email or call 0845 521 0021. We’d love to hear from you.
PROGRESS IN HAITI: 9–15 MARCH
Haiti rose to international prominence following the 2010 earthquake, but our work there began 30 years ago and is still going strong today as we help people prepare for disasters and overcome poverty for good.
SUNDAY 9 MARCH
For Tearfund partner World Relief, vulnerable children are a priority. To help children build for their future, they provide assistance with school fees, enabling them to complete their education, and offer them vocational training. Pray for children to get the education and opportunities they need to break free from poverty.
MONDAY 10 MARCH
Tearfund partner World Relief’s work with vulnerable children includes offering emotional and psychological support to those from difficult home backgrounds. They recently took a group of 53 young people for a fun day out, with games, music and drama - a welcome break from a harsh normality. Praise God for hope and light streaming into troubled lives.
TUESDAY 11 MARCH
Together with our partners, we want to see families in Haiti become able to provide for themselves and stand against poverty without outside help. To this end, we’re working to equip local churches to learn how to empower communities and become agents of permanent change. Please pray that the hearts of church leaders will be receptive.
WEDNESDAY 12 MARCH
Infant mortality rates are high in Haiti, with around seven in every 100 children dying before their fifth birthday. World Relief’s health project is addressing this through health education programmes and mobile clinics. Please pray for this vital work, improving survival rates for Haiti’s children.
THURSDAY 13 MARCH
The 2010 earthquake killed 200,000 people and affected millions more. A widowed mother-of-four, Carole lost her home and was living in a makeshift shelter until Tearfund’s partner enabled her to move into a safe and solid house. Praise God for Carole, who says, ‘I thank God for having used Tearfund partner World Relief as a vehicle to help me.’
FRIDAY 14 MARCH
To help people prepare for future disasters, Tearfund’s partners have been giving classes in schools to tell children how to stay safe in emergencies, as well as holding awareness-raising events in churches and communities. Pray for and give thanks for this important and life-saving work.
SATURDAY 15 MARCH
Dear God, we pray for the nation of Haiti. You know its people, its leaders and its problems better than anyone. Please work in hearts and minds and through churches and organisations to bring about lasting transformation in this country where so many people live in poverty. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Welcome to the weekend – what you can do
If you feel called to give regularly to support Tearfund’s work in disaster-prone countries such as Haiti, visit to find out more. Every gift, no matter what the amount, will make a huge difference. Thank you.
MOVING MOUNTAINS IN UGANDA: 16–22 MARCH
Last year, Olympic rowers Richard and Peter Chambers visited Uganda with Tearfund, where they met sisters Doreen and Jouvllet who face a daily walk up a mountain to fetch water, and discovered how Tearfund’s partner is bringing about change.
SUNDAY 16 MARCH
Doreen, 13, and Jouvllet, 11, live in the mountainous region of south-west Uganda. Like many girls there, they face a daily 3 km walk up a mountain just to collect the water they need to live. Pray that the future for them and their children will be different.
MONDAY 17 MARCH
The daily trek the girls undertake is so hard that even the Olympic rowers struggled. ‘The walk was on a par with some of our toughest training sessions,’ said Richard. Pray for strength and safety for the girls for whom this is a present reality.
TUESDAY 18 MARCH
Tearfund partner Diocese of Kigezi is working through local churches to address the challenge of water and sanitation. Ask God to bless staff members with wisdom and health as they work. Pray particularly for Reuben, the water and sanitation programme coordinator, and his team.
WEDNESDAY 19 MARCH
‘In the communities where we work someone will come and say, ‘Now I realise what the church is’,’ says Reuben. Praise God for working through the project to make his name known. Pray for spiritual growth and maturity for the 512 people who have come to faith in Jesus through the work of our partner.
THURSDAY 20 MARCH
Reverend Agglay, the leader of Doreen and Jouvllet’s church, has a vision to see the community unite to overcome poverty, for example starting savings groups which will eventually help people start small businesses. Pray that the community will catch the vision and that this dream will come to fruition.
FRIDAY 21 MARCH
‘We choose to do what we do - to row every day and to compete at the Olympics,’ Richard says, ‘but these girls need to do what they do every day just to stay alive. It’s wrong.’ Pray for an end to the injustice that nearly 900 million people like Doreen and Jouvllet don’t have access to safe water.
SATURDAY 22 MARCH
A prayer for World Water Day:
Father, we thank you that you are the source of all life, and we thank you for every way in which you have provided for us on the earth you created.
We lift up to you those to you who struggle to access clean water on a daily basis. We ask that you will change this, and use us to help. Please bless the work of the Diocese of Kigezi.
We praise you for the progress they have made, and we ask in your name that many more will be helped and will come to know you. Amen.
Welcome to the weekend – what you can do
Meet Doreen, Jouvllet and the rowers and find out more about what you and your church can do to help people like these sisters by visiting
SEEDS OF HOPE IN NICARAGUA: 23-29 MARCH
Nicaragua is the second-poorest country in the Western hemisphere, with 1.5 million of its people classified as undernourished. Tearfund is working with four inspirational partners to bring lasting change to vulnerable families and a deeper understanding of mission to church leaders.
SUNDAY 23 MARCH
Inequality is one of the most pressing problems in Nicaragua, with land ownership dominated by the wealthy elite. Tearfund partner AMC is helping poor families to purchase plots of their own through interest-free mortgages. Praise God for farmers such as Francisco, who was delighted to move from earning a meagre 60 cents a day as a farm labourer to cultivating his own land.
MONDAY 24 MARCH
Devastated by Hurricane Mitch in 1998, Nicaragua remains one of the most disaster-prone countries in Latin America. Our partner, AMC, is running a radio education project on topics such as what to do in a disaster situation and biblical reflections on environmental protection. Please pray that the people of Nicaragua will be kept safe from natural hazards.
TUESDAY 25 MARCH
Before working with Tearfund partner CIEETS, María saw her faith in purely spiritual terms. Now, after attending training on integral mission, she leads community groups providing practical help to those in need. ‘We now know that the church’s mission goes beyond the walls of the church!’ she says. Thank God for Christians such as María who are reaching out to their communities.
WEDNESDAY 26 MARCH
‘We started to be free from domestic violence following a literacy programme,’ says Aura, who has worked with CIEETS on issues such as gender inequality. Learning to read helped the women in Aura’s community to gain self-esteem and confidence to overcome ineqality. Please pray that more women will come to know the freedom Aura is experiencing.
THURSDAY 27 MARCH
Tearfund partner Prodad is helping vulnerable families gain access to land and providing them with seeds and agricultural training. One participant, Oscar, says, ‘I love farming my land, as now I am in control of my livelihood and have more security.’ Praise God for the difference Prodad’s projects are making, and pray that God will bless their work.
FRIDAY 28 MARCH
‘Please pray for fairer governance in our communities, because many of the poverty problems facing the people of Nicaragua are connected with corruption,’ says Country Representative Alexis Pacheco. Join Alexis in praying for a just and fair society for all Nicaraguans.
SATURDAY 29 MARCH
Our partner, Cecnic, is helping Nicaraguan students to learn about HIV prevention and how to create healthy relationships. Jenny, 20, says, ‘I learned the importance of building positive relationships, loving myself and being guided by our Lord Jesus.’ Please pray that many more young people in Nicaragua will gain these insights.
Welcome to the weekend – creative prayer idea
As we’ve read, many of the poorest people in Nicaragua depend on agriculture to survive and often have limited access to land. This weekend, plant some vegetable or herb seeds in a pot indoors. (Radishes, thyme, basil or sage work well.) As your crop grows, pray that poor Nicaraguan families will flourish.
CHANGING POLICIES CHANGES LIVES: 30 MARCH – 5 APRIL
Tearfund staff have been involved in lobbying for policy change since the 1960s, and we launched our first-ever public campaign in the 1990s. We’ve seen amazing things happen as a result of policies changed. ... Let’s give thanks.
SUNDAY 30 MARCH
It was a Tearfund staff member who came up with the idea for Jubilee 2000, a campaign to cancel the debts of developing countries, which grew into one of the biggest campaigns ever. A phenomenal 24,100,000 people added their name to the cause! Praise God for blessing us with ideas and a voice to bring about change.
MONDAY 31 MARCH
Jubilee 2000 transformed many lives. For example, in Tanzania $3 billion in debt relief resulted in poverty reduction funding increasing by 130 per cent. And in Uganda, debt relief resulted in 3.5 million children in school for the first time. In a world where the news is often bad, thank God for good news.
TUESDAY 1 APRIL
Tearfund was a founding member of 2005’s Make Poverty History campaign. As a result of this campaign, the number of people living with HIV who have access to antiretroviral (ARV) medication went from 1 million in 2005 to 7 million in 2010! Praise God for all those who are alive today thanks to improved access to ARVs.
WEDNESDAY 2 APRIL
Tearfund started a Children at Risk programme in 2000. The results were inspiring: for example, in Colombia the number of children out of school dropped from 3 million in 2002 to 524,000 in 2007! Praise God for young lives made better thanks to Christians speaking out.
THURSDAY 3 APRIL
Disasters such as earthquakes and food crises have catastrophic consequences for individuals and whole nations. In 2003, our research showed that not enough was being done to help communities prepare for disasters. We lobbied the UK government on this, and policy changes were made. Pray for our leaders, that their hearts will be open, and stay open, to calls for justice.
FRIDAY 4 APRIL
As a result of last year’s Unearth the Truth campaign, the European Parliament voted in new laws to clamp down on corruption in the oil, gas and mining industries, with the potential to release billions of pounds to tackle poverty. This is as a result of churches and individuals speaking out together. Praise God for his amazing church.
SATURDAY 5 APRIL
Dear loving God of justice and mercy, we know every good thing is because of you. Thank you for all the amazing progress and transformation we’ve read about this week. And thank you for blessing us with the potential to join with you in building your beautiful and just kingdom here on earth. Amen.
Welcome to the weekend – what you can do
The word ‘justice’ appears in about 1,576 verses in the Old Testament and about 1,379 the New. How many of these verses (complete or partial!) can you think of? Write them down. Then, use the internet (such as ) or a concordance to spend some time reading about justice in the Bible.
Tearfund Prayer Diary March 2014