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 DEVOTIONAL
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Daniel 9, vs. 3Daniel 9, vs. 3 “And I set my face toward the Lord God, to
seek by prayer and holy desires, with fasting, and sackcloth, and
ashes.”
“I set my face toward the Lord”
Daniel set his face
towards the Lord to pray as was his daily practice. We see
that the same word is used in Luke 9 where “Jesus set his
face towards Jerusalem” that is, He would not be distracted
from his destination or purpose. It is the same for us that we
resolve to not let anything or anyone distract us from setting
our hearts, minds and thoughts towards the Lord. In prayer,
we set God before us as “The Lord”, and we see ourselves
as “in his presence”, in the same way that Isaiah was aware
of his sinful state in the presence of the Lord. We must also
remember that in Christ Jesus we have our right standing
before the Lord to enter into His presence.
“to
seek by prayer and holy desires”
The Lord has made
a promise to us in Jeremiah 29:13Jeremiah 29:13 “And you shall seek Me and
find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.” Note that
it is conditional on us fulfi lling our part. We are to seek a
word which means “to search out by any method, but specifically
in worship or prayer”. Again in Isaiah 55, vs. 6Isaiah 55, vs. 6 we read “Seek
The Lord while He may be found; call on Him while He is near.”
Jesus said that He came to “seek and save the lost”. That is to
search out or to look for the lost and we are counselled in the
same way that we are to look for the Lord and to look to the
Lord when we come before Him in prayer.
“To seek with holy desires”, It will be a delight to come into
His presence and meditate on the nature and character of the
Lord and to be granted His holy desires. These are the same
desires that we read about in Psalm 37, vs. 4Psalm 37, vs. 4 “Delight yourself
also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.”
The Lord Himself will put in our hearts not only how to pray
but also what to pray for.
“With fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes”
It is to come
before the Lord in humility, realising our natural state and
that we in ourselves have no right to come before Him. It is
the outward appearance that demonstrates the attitude of the
heart and the attitude of the heart that is revealed. With this
attitude we can boldly approach the throne and
Hebrews 4, vs. 15Hebrews 4, vs. 15 shows us how and why we can approach the throne
“For we do not have a high priest who cannot be touched with
the feelings of our infirmities, but was in all points tempted just
as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us come boldly to the
throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help
in time of need.”
We have no power ourselves to accomplish the things that
we pray about, everything must depend on The Lord. When
we know the Lord’s will and His promises to us, this becomes
the motivation to encourage us in our approaching Him, and
is all the assurance that we need to drive us to prayer.
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COUNTRY IN FOCUS
KENYA
Kenya has an estimated population
of 40 million and the vast majority
of Kenyans consider themselves to be
Christian, with 45 per cent regarding themselves as Protestant
and 33 per cent as Roman Catholic. There is a fairly large Hindu
population in Kenya with Muslims 10 per cent, and indigenous
beliefs 10 per cent being the other major religions. Unfortunately
many of those professing to be Christian do so out of ignorance,
not understanding what a Christian truly is.
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Pr. John Wandera teaching the pastors in class. |
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Challenge commenced a partnership with Peace Makers
Fellowship in 2005 when Carl Carmody met Paul Dondoh at a
R.E.A.P. Conference in South Africa. An agreement was reached
to supply the Challenge paper into Kenya and the initially print
started with 5000 papers bi-monthly. At this time P.M.F. was
a struggling church of 5-10 regular attendees, however since
the commencement of the Challenge paper P.M.F. have now
established an additional 17 churches. The paper has been a great
launch pad into the community and many souls have come to
faith in Jesus Christ through the testimonies of changed lives.
There is still so much to do in Kenya with many people having
limited knowledge of what their commitment to Christ really
means. They are desperate for resources to teach and train not
only the congregation but also the Pastors who are leading these
churches.
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Pr Juma Presenting his gift- a live chicken to Pr. John and Pr. Pau) |
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An initiative of P.M.F. to address this situation has been to
arrange regular training of the Pastors of each of these churches.
This Term’s Training ran from 1st to 13th of August and Pastor
John Wandera headed up the training. “It was a great time of
blessing and help for the leaders who came from the different
P.M.F. churches in Kenya. There was a great challenge to all of us
in attendance when Pastor Juma from the P.M.F. Ronda church
surprised all of us with a thank you gift of live chicken for Pr.
John Wandera. This is all the more significant given the fact that
Pastor Juma does not have enough food or finances to support
his own family yet gave so much out of the little that he has”,
says Paul Dondoh.
The resources that are available to most of these pastors are very
limited or in some instances non-existent. Challenge has made a
commitment to endeavour to raise support for these resources for
each of the 18 churches that make up the P.M.F. group.
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Carl preaching at an open air meeting with an interpreter |
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In July Carl was preaching at an open air meeting in the squatter
township of Rhonda and a man who heard the gospel climbed down
off the roof of a building to give his Heart to the Lord in response to
the message. His whole family came to faith in Christ that very day.
People flocked to receive their own copy of the paper and on every
occasion the demand far outstripped our ability to supply.
Carl also had the opportunity to teach the young Christians what
the gospel is and how to share it. Their response was truly amazing
as these young people soaked in the gospel message. They are now
using this information to go out into the community to share the
message of hope using the Challenge paper. Please pray specifically
for these churches as they reach out into their community doing so
much with so little.
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POINTS TO PONDER
Prayer Points
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Pray for Peace Makers Fellowship in Kenya for the
pastors and leaders who are endeavouring to teach with
limited resources. For the many who are hungry to hear
the gospel and for the many who have given their lives
to the Lord.
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Pray for John Palandri who is looking to join Challenge
Literature fellowship in early 2010 with a view to being
the Missions Co-ordinator increasing the annual mission
trip from 1 to 4 per year being South Africa, India and
Argentina.
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Pray for the Christmas special edition that it will be well
used and well received.
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Crossroads Bible Institute is working in the prisons in
N.S.W. and Qld. using the Challenge paper and are
continuing to increase the numbers of papers used.
Currently C.L.F. are sponsoring the paper and postage
for this ministry however we are seeking someone to
sponsor this needy work.
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The Toyota Van used by P.M.F. in Kenya for distribution
of the Challenge newspaper, needs replacing. We are
endeavouring to help fund a secondhand replacement
vehicle.
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Praise Points
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The new orders that are being placed for the Challenge
paper and the great response that we are hearing about
as churches distribute the paper through stands in I.G.A.
stores and by personal delivery.
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The finances that have come in to support the paper
distribution in many of the overseas countries that we
are working in.
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In 2010 C.L.F. will be commence distribution of the
paper into Nigeria partnering with Ireland Outreach
International. Nigeria has an approximate population of
200 million people which is nearly 25 per cent of the
total African population.
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Thank you to the many who support the international
work of Challenge, your investment in eternity is truly
reaching many for the kingdom.
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Challenge Literature Fellowship Bank Account direct deposit details
BSB: 066162 / Account: 00900455
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Address: PO Box 978, Cloverdale WA 6985,
Phone (08) 9453 3311 or Fax (08) 9453 3006
Email: info@challengenews.org
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My Response
Post to: Challenge Literature Fellowship, PO Box 978, Cloverdale WA 6985; or Fax to: (08) 9453 3006
Name: __________________________________________________________________________________
Address:___________________________________________________________ Post Code: ______
Email: _________________________________________________ Phone: ________________
With God’s help I would like to be a partner in supporting the ministry at Challenge in the
following way(s):
__ Prayer: Please send me updated prayer information.
__ Financial: Please receive my: __ Monthly __ Quarterly __ Yearly __ One time contribution of:
__ $50 __ $75 __ $100 __ $200 __ Other (Please specify): $ _________
Credit Card: __ VisaCard __ MasterCard
Credit Card #: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Expiry Date: __/__
Name on card: _______________________________________
Signature: ____________________________________
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