Prayer Alert‐Nigeria

40‐DAY PRAYER EFFORT: targets ongoing religious tension, Nigerian Christian persecution

WIN EMERGENCY PRAYER ALERT (Courtesy of www.win1040.com)
Christians worldwide are encouraged to ring in the new year by taking part in a 40‐day prayer initiative for Nigeria that will focus on ongoing tension between Muslims and Christians and the persecution that many Christian Believers face in Northern Nigeria.

A call to 40 days prayer and fasting for the kingdom of God in Nigeria is set from Monday, January 1 to Friday, February 9, 2007. After the Global Day of Prayer (GDOP) on June 4, 2006, the National Steering Committee felt led to call the nation of Nigeria to a 40‐day fast, dubbed “40 Days to Move Nigeria Forward in the Right Direction.” This fast focused on praying for the political process and election 2007.

Towards the end of that fast, the National Steering Committee sensed that the Heavenly Father’s burden is not primarily the politics of Nigeria, but the Church in Nigeria and the Kingdom of God in Nigeria.

“It was also impressed on our hearts that another season of prayer be dedicated, primarily to pray for the church in Nigeria,” a GDOP National Steering Committee official said.

“The main focus is repentance and to cry for revival—that the church in Nigeria will be restored to the right relationship with her Master.”

Intercession is especially critical for Nigeria because there is concern over rising religious tensions in Nigeria, where scores of Christians were killed in 2006 following protests against Christians over the publication in mainly European media of the prophet Muhammad.

Christians comprise roughly 40 percent of Nigeria’s nearly 129 million people, according to estimates.

Meanwhile, two Anglican priests in Nigeria were nearly beaten to death in May 2006 by crowds of traditional animists, who destroyed their properties for “making gods angry” with church services.

Chris Adetula and Oladejo Luji “nearly lost their lives” when animists attacked their churches in the Nigerian town of Ode‐Aye town in the southwestern state of Ondo, caused extensive damage, news reports said.

The Anglican bishop of the Diocese on the Coast of the Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, Joshua Ogunele, told Compass Direct that the troubles began in February and continued in March.

He said that followers of native religions attacked the St. Christopher Anglican Church along with othernearby churches and stressed that although the priests were almost lynched by an angry mob, they were no longer in comas, Compass reported.

During their annual Okute festival, animists had imposed a 21‐day ban on Christian worship, especially use of drums.

Prayer Points

Please pray for:

Day 1, January 1
God to mightily pour out a spirit of repentance and godly sorrow upon the Church in Nigeria, beginning with her leaders, which will result in genuine, rending of hearts and returning to Him (Joel 1:13, 2:12, 13; 2 Cor. 7:10).

Day 2, January 2
Your personal walk with God and confess and turn away from personal sins. Be quick to respond to any acts of restitution that the Holy Spirit may lead you into (Prov. 28:13; Rev.2:5).

Day 3, January 3
Confess prevailing sins in your immediate and extended family to God and urge your family to turn away from them. Do the same for those sins prevailing in your local assembly, denomination or ministry/fellowship (Dan. 9:3‐19). Pray for conviction and restoration of backsliders in the Nigerian Church (Joel 1:5).

Day 4, January 4
Confess before God the sins prevailing in the Church in Nigeria such as the lack of genuine love for God and for neighbors, resulting in myriads of other wrongs (Matt. 22:36‐39; Rev 2:5). Confess before God that the Church in Nigeria have largely failed to function as salt and light in the society. Plead for mercy and pray that this situation will change (Matt.5:13‐16; Luke 3:8; James 4:8‐10).

Day 5, January 5
Pray Malachi 3:2‐4 for the Nigerian Church.

Day 6, January 6
Plead for mercy upon leaders of the Nigerian Church and for Christians involved in every area of national life, including but not limited to politics, education, aviation, transport, armed forces, healthcare, finance and banking, oil industry, manufacturing, commerce, media sports and entertainment (2 Chro. 7:14; Luke 3:8).

Day 7, January 7
Pull down all walls erected by men by which they divide the Body of Christ in Nigeria. Pray for
reconciliation between various sections of the Body that have been divided by many issues. For
instance, the Orthodox say the teachings and emphases of the Pentecostal are wrong and the
Pentecostals say the Orthodox are cold and dead.

Day 8, January 8
Pray against the prevailing situation of empire building in the Church in Nigeria. Pray that Nigerian Christians will henceforth release themselves to build the Kingdom of God. Pray that God will have mercy upon the Nigerian church and spare her (Joel 2:17).

Day 9, January 9
Pray for all leaders in the Body of Christ in Nigeria, including archbishops, bishops, general overseers, apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers. Pray that they will fulfil their God‐given role as spelled out in Ephesians 4:10‐16, resulting in all round growth in the Church.

Day 10, January 10
Harmony among Christian leaders, which is essential to growth of the Kingdom in Nigeria. Plead with the Father to foster such harmony (Ps. 133). Pray specifically for unity and cooperation among denominational heads, mission leaders and leaders in the prayer movement.

Day 11, January 11
Ask the Father to envision and enable leaders of the church in Nigeria to raise spiritual men (1 Cor.2:15), whose singular quest in life will be to live like Jesus did (John 5:19, 30).

Day 12, January 12
Pray for emerging leaders that they will be protected from some the errors that have befallen some older leaders in the Nigerian Church. Pray Malachi 3:2‐4 for the Nigerian Church.

Day 13, January 13
Pray for Christians who are leaders in the market place that they will function as salt and light and become instruments in the Father’s hand for transformation.

Day 14, January 14
Up root, destroy and throw down all values, doctrines, practices, etc, in the Church in Nigeria that the Father did not plant (Jer. 1:10; Matt.15:13). Pray Malachi 3:2‐4 for the Church in Nigeria.

Day 15, January 15
Pray for the planting and establishment of Kingdom values, doctrines and practices within the Church in Nigeria (Jer. 1:10; Matt.6:10). Pray Malachi 3:2‐4 for the Church in Nigeria.

Day 16, January 16
Pray for restoration of balanced emphasis on character and charisma‐fruit of the Holy Spirit and His gifts‐in the church in Nigeria (Isa. 42:22; Hab 3:1, 2). Pray Malachi 3:2‐4 for the church in Nigeria.

Day 17, January 17
Pray that the average Nigerian Christian will hunger above all things to bear the image of the Lord Jesus Christ and manifest this in daily life (Romans 8:29). Pray Malachi 3:2‐4 for the church in Nigeria.

Day 18, January 18
Pray for the restoration in the hearts individual Nigerian Christians of the expectation of the Lord’s imminent return (2 Tim 4:8). Pray that each believer will strive to be ready for His return (Luke 12:35).

Day 19, January 19
Pray for the full restoration of biblical discipleship in the Nigerian Church. Pray for the restoration of passion for souls in the heart of the average Nigerian Christian.

Day 20, January 20
There have been pockets of divine visitations in Nigeria, now we need rivers of outpourings. Cry to God for divine visitation upon the nation resulting in genuine national revival, which will effect
transformations at the individual, family, community and national levels (Isa. 44:3; Ps. 85:6, 7).

Day 21, January 21
Nigeria is a nation with a missionary calling. Pray that God will reveal this to all leaders in the Body and cause them to work together to fulfil this divine mandate.

Day 22, January 22.
Ask God to cause His Church in Nigeria to arise and fulfil her missionary destiny. Pray for the successful takeoff and fulfilment of Vision 50:15 (a bold step by the Nigerian Church to let God thrust out from among her numbers 50,000 labourers in the next 15 years to Middle East and North Africa).

Day 23, January 23
Pray that God will raise more credible voices in the nation, people who stand in God’s council, national prophets, who will declare with authority, wisdom and clarity the will of God for the nation, standing against corruption in church and society (Jer. 23:18, 22).

Day 24, January 24
God raises nations at different times for His kingdom purposes. Pray that God will bring in such changes in every sector of the Nigerian nation as are necessary to enable her fulfil divine purpose (Acts 17:26).

Day 25, January 25.
Pray that God will enable the establishment of more 24/7 (Twenty‐four hour, seven days a week, all year round) prayer altars around the country.

Day 26, January 26
Pray for a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon President Olusegun Obasanjo and that he will
continue to increase in intimacy with God. Pray that God will grant him great wisdom in times like this (1 Tim 2:1). Pray the same for all Christians in politics in the nation.

Day 27, January 27
Pray for an unprecedented outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the children and youth of Nigeria (Joel 2:28; Acts 2:39).

Day 28, January 28
Pray Isaiah 44:3‐5 for children and youth in the church in Nigeria. Pray that Nigerian Christian children and youth will excel academically and in all areas of life.

Day 29, January 29
Ask God to grant the children and youth of Nigeria such a love for Him that nothing in all creation will be able to quench.

Day 30, January 30
Pray that God will raise Josephs, Samuels, Deborahs, Davids, Daniels and Pauls out of children and youth of Nigeria. Pray that God will give our children and youths a passion for souls.

Day 31, January 31
Pray for revival in Nigerian schools and universities. Pray that God will give our children and youth an unprecedented burden for prayer.

Day 32, February 1
Thank God for the establishment of more Christian universities in the nation. Pray that God will call and enable more believers to establish schools (primary through tertiary) running on Kingdom principles.

Day 33, February 2
Pray that in Nigeria marriage as God intended‐God glorifying life long union between a man and a woman‐will be preserved by the Church and maintained by government (Heb. 13:4).

Day 34, February 3
Pray the following scriptures for Christian families in Nigeria: Mal. 2:14‐16; Eph. 5:22:6:4; Col. 3:18‐21.
Pray the following scriptures for Nigerian Christian fathers: Deut. 4:9; 6:1‐9. Pray Prov. 31:10‐31 for Nigerian Christian wives.

Day 35, February 4
Pray for a restoration of the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to fathers so that God may come and bless Nigeria (Mal. 4:6). Pray that Christian couples will raise their children in the ways of God (Prov. 22:6).

Day 36, February 5
Some groups are attempting to legalize abortion in Nigeria. Pray Job 5:12 for these groups and their efforts. Pray that Christians in the nation will boldly rise against this and that both the Presidency and the Federal Legislative Houses will reject this attempt.

Day 37, February 6
Pray that only those that God has ordained to lead Nigeria will emerge at all levels through the 2007 general elections.

Day 38, February 7
Pray for Nigerian Christians in Diaspora that God will make them salt and light wherever He has planted them and enable them to fulfil the divine destiny of Nigeria.

Day 39 February 8
Spend today calling down the blessings and favor of God upon Nigeria. Ask God to bless Nigeria.

Day 40, February 9
Praise God for the grace He has given you and other Christian Believers to fast and pray through this prayer season. Thank Him for answers to your petitions; He causes it to happen in and through Nigeria as it is in heaven.

Sources: Global Day of Prayer, BosNewsLife News Center, Compass Direct