Psalm 51 (NIV)

Psalm 51 (New International Version)

Psalm 51

For the director of music. A psalm of David. When the prophet Nathan came to him after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba.

1 Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.

3 For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.

4 Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are proved right when you speak and justified when you judge.

5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.

6 Surely you desire truth in the inner parts [a] ; you teach [b] me wisdom in the inmost place.

7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.

8 Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice.

9 Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity.

10 Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

11 Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.

12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will turn back to you.

14 Save me from bloodguilt, O God, the God who saves me, and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.

15 O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.

16 You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.

17 The sacrifices of God are [c] a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

18 In your good pleasure make Zion prosper; build up the walls of Jerusalem.

19 Then there will be righteous sacrifices, whole burnt offerings to delight you; then bulls will be offered on your altar.

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AFWIS Joins Operation World in Prayer for the United Arab Emirates - Asia

Published on Operation World (http://www.operationworld.org)

Home > Dec 03: United Arab Emirates

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Dec 03: United Arab Emirates

Join the Prayer Movement

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United Arab Emirates

Asia

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Geography

Area: 77,700 sq km
77,700 sq km of desert and mountains on the Arabian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. Seven emirates: Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ras al Khaimah, Ajman, Umm al Qaiwain and Fujairah.
Population: 4,707,307    Annual Growth: 2.86%
Capital: Abu Dhabi
Urbanites: 78%
HDI Rank: 35 of 182 (UN Human Development Reports 2009)

Peoples

Peoples: 43 (60% unreached) All peoples
Unreached Peoples Prayer Card

Official language: Arabic    Languages: 36 All languages

Religion

Largest Religion: Muslim

Religion		Pop %	Ann Gr
Christians	402,475	8.55	2.3
Evangelicals	60,774	1.3	5.5
Muslim	3,184,493	67.65

Challenges for Prayer

Christian ministries:
a) Large numbers of foreign labourers have a much greater opportunity to hear the gospel in the UAE. Their disillusionment with poor employment conditions opens many to hear the good news. Some expatriate Christians have a vision for evangelising within their own ethnic group and beyond, but training is required.
b) Domestic labourers, in particular, have unique access and witness to their Gulf Arab employers, despite frequently enduring difficult conditions. Pray that their humble witness might lead many to Jesus.
c) There are several TEE and broadcast media programmes aimed at training leaders – pray for this vital work.
d) Strategic prayer networks focused on the UAE and Gulf region play a crucial role in preparing the ground for a spiritual harvest.
e) Student ministries and IFES in particular are allowed to establish official campus fellowships in a number of universities, including frequent Muslim-Christian dialogue events.
Medical ministry through a Christian hospital and clinics. These have operated since the “old days” in the 1960s, especially in poorer areas, and have sown many spiritual seeds as well as engendered goodwill from the government with faithful service. Pray for continued useful ministry, for provision of finances and qualified staff, and for visible fruit.
     For an additional 4 Challenges for Prayer see Operation World book, CD-ROM, or DVD-ROM.

More Information

The Operation World book, CD-ROM, and DVD-ROM provide far more information and fuel for prayer for the people of United Arab Emirates.

Pray for Peace and Saftey in and around our Schools

Here's a declaration that some have been using:
 We pray the PEACE, PROTECTION, PROVISION, PURITY AND PRESENCE OF GOD for ______________ school -- over every administrator, teacher, student and the families associated with this school, in Jesus Name.

Ezekiel 40 (NIV)

Ezekiel 40 (New International Version)

Ezekiel 40

The New Temple Area

1 In the twenty-fifth year of our exile, at the beginning of the year, on the tenth of the month, in the fourteenth year after the fall of the city—on that very day the hand of the LORD was upon me and he took me there. 2 In visions of God he took me to the land of Israel and set me on a very high mountain, on whose south side were some buildings that looked like a city. 3 He took me there, and I saw a man whose appearance was like bronze; he was standing in the gateway with a linen cord and a measuring rod in his hand. 4 The man said to me, "Son of man, look with your eyes and hear with your ears and pay attention to everything I am going to show you, for that is why you have been brought here. Tell the house of Israel everything you see."
The East Gate to the Outer Court

5 I saw a wall completely surrounding the temple area. The length of the measuring rod in the man's hand was six long cubits, each of which was a cubit [a] and a handbreadth. [b] He measured the wall; it was one measuring rod thick and one rod high.
6 Then he went to the gate facing east. He climbed its steps and measured the threshold of the gate; it was one rod deep. [c] 7 The alcoves for the guards were one rod long and one rod wide, and the projecting walls between the alcoves were five cubits thick. And the threshold of the gate next to the portico facing the temple was one rod deep.

8 Then he measured the portico of the gateway; 9 it [d] was eight cubits deep and its jambs were two cubits thick. The portico of the gateway faced the temple.

10 Inside the east gate were three alcoves on each side; the three had the same measurements, and the faces of the projecting walls on each side had the same measurements. 11 Then he measured the width of the entrance to the gateway; it was ten cubits and its length was thirteen cubits. 12 In front of each alcove was a wall one cubit high, and the alcoves were six cubits square. 13 Then he measured the gateway from the top of the rear wall of one alcove to the top of the opposite one; the distance was twenty-five cubits from one parapet opening to the opposite one. 14 He measured along the faces of the projecting walls all around the inside of the gateway—sixty cubits. The measurement was up to the portico [e] facing the courtyard. [f] 15 The distance from the entrance of the gateway to the far end of its portico was fifty cubits. 16 The alcoves and the projecting walls inside the gateway were surmounted by narrow parapet openings all around, as was the portico; the openings all around faced inward. The faces of the projecting walls were decorated with palm trees.

The Outer Court

17 Then he brought me into the outer court. There I saw some rooms and a pavement that had been constructed all around the court; there were thirty rooms along the pavement. 18 It abutted the sides of the gateways and was as wide as they were long; this was the lower pavement. 19 Then he measured the distance from the inside of the lower gateway to the outside of the inner court; it was a hundred cubits on the east side as well as on the north.
The North Gate

20 Then he measured the length and width of the gate facing north, leading into the outer court. 21 Its alcoves—three on each side—its projecting walls and its portico had the same measurements as those of the first gateway. It was fifty cubits long and twenty-five cubits wide. 22 Its openings, its portico and its palm tree decorations had the same measurements as those of the gate facing east. Seven steps led up to it, with its portico opposite them. 23 There was a gate to the inner court facing the north gate, just as there was on the east. He measured from one gate to the opposite one; it was a hundred cubits.

For more text press: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?...

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Proverbs 3 (NIV)

Proverbs 3 (New International Version)

Proverbs 3

Further Benefits of Wisdom

1 My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart,
2 for they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity.

3 Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.

4 Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man.

5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;

6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. [a]

7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil.

8 This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.

9 Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops;

10 then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.

11 My son, do not despise the LORD's discipline and do not resent his rebuke,

12 because the LORD disciplines those he loves, as a father [b] the son he delights in.

13 Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gains understanding,

14 for she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold.

15 She is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her.

16 Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor.

17 Her ways are pleasant ways, and all her paths are peace.

18 She is a tree of life to those who embrace her; those who lay hold of her will be blessed.

19 By wisdom the LORD laid the earth's foundations, by understanding he set the heavens in place;

20 by his knowledge the deeps were divided, and the clouds let drop the dew.

21 My son, preserve sound judgment and discernment, do not let them out of your sight;

22 they will be life for you, an ornament to grace your neck.

23 Then you will go on your way in safety, and your foot will not stumble;

24 when you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.

25 Have no fear of sudden disaster or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked,

26 for the LORD will be your confidence and will keep your foot from being snared.

27 Do not withhold good from those who deserve it, when it is in your power to act.

28 Do not say to your neighbor, "Come back later; I'll give it tomorrow"— when you now have it with you.

29 Do not plot harm against your neighbor, who lives trustfully near you.

30 Do not accuse a man for no reason— when he has done you no harm.

31 Do not envy a violent man or choose any of his ways,

32 for the LORD detests a perverse man but takes the upright into his confidence.

33 The LORD's curse is on the house of the wicked, but he blesses the home of the righteous.

34 He mocks proud mockers but gives grace to the humble.

35 The wise inherit honor, but fools he holds up to shame.

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Psalm 50 (NIV)

Psalm 50 (New International Version)

Psalm 50

A psalm of Asaph.

1 The Mighty One, God, the LORD, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to the place where it sets.
2 From Zion, perfect in beauty, God shines forth.

3 Our God comes and will not be silent; a fire devours before him, and around him a tempest rages.

4 He summons the heavens above, and the earth, that he may judge his people:

5 "Gather to me my consecrated ones, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice."

6 And the heavens proclaim his righteousness, for God himself is judge. Selah

7 "Hear, O my people, and I will speak, O Israel, and I will testify against you: I am God, your God.

8 I do not rebuke you for your sacrifices or your burnt offerings, which are ever before me.

9 I have no need of a bull from your stall or of goats from your pens,

10 for every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills.

11 I know every bird in the mountains, and the creatures of the field are mine.

12 If I were hungry I would not tell you, for the world is mine, and all that is in it.

13 Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats?

14 Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High,

15 and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me."

16 But to the wicked, God says: "What right have you to recite my laws or take my covenant on your lips?

17 You hate my instruction and cast my words behind you.

18 When you see a thief, you join with him; you throw in your lot with adulterers.

19 You use your mouth for evil and harness your tongue to deceit.

20 You speak continually against your brother and slander your own mother's son.

21 These things you have done and I kept silent; you thought I was altogether [a] like you. But I will rebuke you and accuse you to your face.

22 "Consider this, you who forget God, or I will tear you to pieces, with none to rescue:

23 He who sacrifices thank offerings honors me, and he prepares the way so that I may show him [b] the salvation of God."

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To Him Who Is Able...

Ezekiel 39 (NIV)

Ezekiel 39 (New International Version)

Ezekiel 39

1 "Son of man, prophesy against Gog and say: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of [a] Meshech and Tubal. 2 I will turn you around and drag you along. I will bring you from the far north and send you against the mountains of Israel. 3 Then I will strike your bow from your left hand and make your arrows drop from your right hand. 4 On the mountains of Israel you will fall, you and all your troops and the nations with you. I will give you as food to all kinds of carrion birds and to the wild animals. 5 You will fall in the open field, for I have spoken, declares the Sovereign LORD. 6 I will send fire on Magog and on those who live in safety in the coastlands, and they will know that I am the LORD.

7 " 'I will make known my holy name among my people Israel. I will no longer let my holy name be profaned, and the nations will know that I the LORD am the Holy One in Israel. 8 It is coming! It will surely take place, declares the Sovereign LORD. This is the day I have spoken of.

9 " 'Then those who live in the towns of Israel will go out and use the weapons for fuel and burn them up—the small and large shields, the bows and arrows, the war clubs and spears. For seven years they will use them for fuel. 10 They will not need to gather wood from the fields or cut it from the forests, because they will use the weapons for fuel. And they will plunder those who plundered them and loot those who looted them, declares the Sovereign LORD.

11 " 'On that day I will give Gog a burial place in Israel, in the valley of those who travel east toward [b] the Sea. [c] It will block the way of travelers, because Gog and all his hordes will be buried there. So it will be called the Valley of Hamon Gog. [d]

12 " 'For seven months the house of Israel will be burying them in order to cleanse the land. 13 All the people of the land will bury them, and the day I am glorified will be a memorable day for them, declares the Sovereign LORD.

14 " 'Men will be regularly employed to cleanse the land. Some will go throughout the land and, in addition to them, others will bury those that remain on the ground. At the end of the seven months they will begin their search. 15 As they go through the land and one of them sees a human bone, he will set up a marker beside it until the gravediggers have buried it in the Valley of Hamon Gog. 16 (Also a town called Hamonah [e] will be there.) And so they will cleanse the land.'

17 "Son of man, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: Call out to every kind of bird and all the wild animals: 'Assemble and come together from all around to the sacrifice I am preparing for you, the great sacrifice on the mountains of Israel. There you will eat flesh and drink blood. 18 You will eat the flesh of mighty men and drink the blood of the princes of the earth as if they were rams and lambs, goats and bulls—all of them fattened animals from Bashan. 19 At the sacrifice I am preparing for you, you will eat fat till you are glutted and drink blood till you are drunk. 20 At my table you will eat your fill of horses and riders, mighty men and soldiers of every kind,' declares the Sovereign LORD.

21 "I will display my glory among the nations, and all the nations will see the punishment I inflict and the hand I lay upon them. 22 From that day forward the house of Israel will know that I am the LORD their God. 23 And the nations will know that the people of Israel went into exile for their sin, because they were unfaithful to me. So I hid my face from them and handed them over to their enemies, and they all fell by the sword. 24 I dealt with them according to their uncleanness and their offenses, and I hid my face from them.

25 "Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will now bring Jacob back from captivity [f] and will have compassion on all the people of Israel, and I will be zealous for my holy name. 26 They will forget their shame and all the unfaithfulness they showed toward me when they lived in safety in their land with no one to make them afraid. 27 When I have brought them back from the nations and have gathered them from the countries of their enemies, I will show myself holy through them in the sight of many nations. 28 Then they will know that I am the LORD their God, for though I sent them into exile among the nations, I will gather them to their own land, not leaving any behind. 29 I will no longer hide my face from them, for I will pour out my Spirit on the house of Israel, declares the Sovereign LORD."

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Proverbs 3 (NIV)

Proverbs 3 (New International Version)

Proverbs 3

Further Benefits of Wisdom

1 My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart,
2 for they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity.

3 Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.

4 Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man.

5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;

6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. [a]

7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil.

8 This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.

9 Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops;

10 then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.

11 My son, do not despise the LORD's discipline and do not resent his rebuke,

12 because the LORD disciplines those he loves, as a father [b] the son he delights in.

13 Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gains understanding,

14 for she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold.

15 She is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her.

16 Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor.

17 Her ways are pleasant ways, and all her paths are peace.

18 She is a tree of life to those who embrace her; those who lay hold of her will be blessed.

19 By wisdom the LORD laid the earth's foundations, by understanding he set the heavens in place;

20 by his knowledge the deeps were divided, and the clouds let drop the dew.

21 My son, preserve sound judgment and discernment, do not let them out of your sight;

22 they will be life for you, an ornament to grace your neck.

23 Then you will go on your way in safety, and your foot will not stumble;

24 when you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.

25 Have no fear of sudden disaster or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked,

26 for the LORD will be your confidence and will keep your foot from being snared.

27 Do not withhold good from those who deserve it, when it is in your power to act.

28 Do not say to your neighbor, "Come back later; I'll give it tomorrow"— when you now have it with you.

29 Do not plot harm against your neighbor, who lives trustfully near you.

30 Do not accuse a man for no reason— when he has done you no harm.

31 Do not envy a violent man or choose any of his ways,

32 for the LORD detests a perverse man but takes the upright into his confidence.

33 The LORD's curse is on the house of the wicked, but he blesses the home of the righteous.

34 He mocks proud mockers but gives grace to the humble.

35 The wise inherit honor, but fools he holds up to shame.

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Proverbs 2 (NIV)

Proverbs 2 (New International Version)

Proverbs 2

Moral Benefits of Wisdom

1 My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you,
2 turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding,

3 and if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding,

4 and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure,

5 then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God.

6 For the LORD gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.

7 He holds victory in store for the upright, he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless,

8 for he guards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones.

9 Then you will understand what is right and just and fair—every good path.

10 For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul.

11 Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you.

12 Wisdom will save you from the ways of wicked men, from men whose words are perverse,

13 who leave the straight paths to walk in dark ways,

14 who delight in doing wrong and rejoice in the perverseness of evil,

15 whose paths are crooked and who are devious in their ways.

16 It will save you also from the adulteress, from the wayward wife with her seductive words,

17 who has left the partner of her youth and ignored the covenant she made before God. [a]

18 For her house leads down to death and her paths to the spirits of the dead.

19 None who go to her return or attain the paths of life.

20 Thus you will walk in the ways of good men and keep to the paths of the righteous.

21 For the upright will live in the land, and the blameless will remain in it;

22 but the wicked will be cut off from the land, and the unfaithful will be torn from it.

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AFWIS Joins with Operation World in Prayer for the Ukraine - Europe

Published on Operation World (http://www.operationworld.org)

Home > Dec 02: Ukraine

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Dec 02: Ukraine

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Ukraine

Ukrayina

Europe

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Geography

Area: 603,700 sq km
A flat, fertile, forested plain with few natural boundaries.
Population: 45,433,415    Annual Growth: -0.65%
Capital: Kyiv (Kiev)
Urbanites: 68%
HDI Rank: 85 of 182 (UN Human Development Reports 2009)

Peoples

Peoples: 66 (33% unreached) All peoples
Unreached Peoples Prayer Card

Official language: Ukrainian, but Russian widely spoken    Languages: 42 All languages

Religion

Largest Religion: Christian

Religion		Pop %	Ann Gr
Christians	35,896,941	79.01	-0.7
Evangelicals	1,737,245	3.8	3.1

Challenges for Prayer

Outreach challenges:
a) Students. CCX(IFES), CCCI, the Navigators and others have active campus ministries and student groups are multiplying. CCX groups meet in 16 different cities, and most student missions have a mix of expatriate and national workers. Youth work (YFC and many others) and summer camps (often held in former Communist Youth facilities) have proved fruitful. Pray for continued responsiveness from students; there are allegedly 300,000 students in Kyiv alone.
b) Children at risk. There are tens of thousands of street children, over 100,000 living in orphanages and many others in precarious living situations. Many of these suffer health complications from Chernobyl. The majority of orphans will become involved in drugs, crime or prostitution unless they can be lovingly reached by Christians. The CoMission for Children at Risk brings together dozens of ministries dedicated to doing just that.
c) Crimea – a region in contrast to the rest of Ukraine. Communist beliefs and a strong Russian connection persist here, and churches have not grown as much as in other parts of the country. More than 250,000 previously exiled Crimean Tatars have been welcomed as well. The vast majority are Muslim (although often nominally) and are being sought by Muslim missionaries from Turkey and the Arab world. Significant numbers of Christians are specifically reaching out to them with substantial fruit (Russian Ministries/River of Joy, Crimean Tatar Partnership, YWAM). The increasing number of Tatar believers are noted for their fiery faith.
d) Ukrainian Jews. Many have emigrated to Israel and the West, and the population continues to plummet by 7% annually. Chosen People Ministries has planted several Messianic synagogues, and a Messianic Bible school has been formed. Ukraine’s Jews are among the most responsive in the world to the gospel.
e) Foreign immigrants, often students - most are from the Middle East and Asia. Many are lonely and subject to hostile or racist attitudes from xenophobic elements in Ukraine. A large number are very open to the gospel, and Ukraine’s evangelistically-minded churches are reaping a harvest.
f) Cults remain a serious issue. From Jehovah’s Witnesses to Hare Krishna to indigenous pagan groups such as RUNVira and the Perunists, churches must realize there are other groups at work in Ukraine. In 2010, the Mormons dedicated their first full temple in the former Soviet Union. Pray for the apologetics and research centres whose goal is to promote greater discernment among Christians and encourage outreach to cult followers.
Christian media ministries:
a) Bible ministries. The Ukrainian Bible Society (UBS) restarted in 1991. A need for biblical truth and the restoration of moral values in society have drawn together partners from across the confessional spectrum – Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant. The ministry has grown greatly in the past decade and now distributes hundreds of thousands of copies of Scripture every year. More could be done with the provision of further finances; pray for their release.
b) Literature, a great need since most Christian literature was destroyed during the Communist occupation. Russian literature is plentiful, but it is a struggle to get good materials published in Ukrainian. EHC has distributed over six million pieces of literature through Ukrainian churches. UBS/FCBH, Bible League, Mission Without Borders and others all work to get the printed Word of God into the hands of Ukrainians, especially children and students.
c) Radio and television are open for Christian programmes. FEBC and TWR broadcast several hours a week in Ukrainian and Russian with good response. HCJB has partnered with CMAssociates to set up recording and radio studios, and has been instrumental in founding Radio Emmanuel, a local Christian station. CBN has a major television network based in Kyiv, and some of the newer, larger churches are developing their own television programmes.
d) The JESUS film is shown in seven major languages in Ukraine – pray for more workers to show the film at Family Festivals throughout the country.
     For an additional 7 Challenges for Prayer see Operation World book, CD-ROM, or DVD-ROM.

More Information

The Operation World book, CD-ROM, and DVD-ROM provide far more information and fuel for prayer for the people of Ukraine.

Psalm 49 NIV

Psalm 49 (New International Version)

Psalm 49

For the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. A psalm.

1 Hear this, all you peoples; listen, all who live in this world,
2 both low and high, rich and poor alike:

3 My mouth will speak words of wisdom; the utterance from my heart will give understanding.

4 I will turn my ear to a proverb; with the harp I will expound my riddle:

5 Why should I fear when evil days come, when wicked deceivers surround me-

6 those who trust in their wealth and boast of their great riches?

7 No man can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for him-

8 the ransom for a life is costly, no payment is ever enough-

9 that he should live on forever and not see decay.

10 For all can see that wise men die; the foolish and the senseless alike perish and leave their wealth to others.

11 Their tombs will remain their houses [a] forever, their dwellings for endless generations, though they had [b] named lands after themselves.

12 But man, despite his riches, does not endure; he is [c] like the beasts that perish.

13 This is the fate of those who trust in themselves, and of their followers, who approve their sayings. Selah

14 Like sheep they are destined for the grave, [d] and death will feed on them. The upright will rule over them in the morning; their forms will decay in the grave, [e] far from their princely mansions.

15 But God will redeem my life [f] from the grave; he will surely take me to himself. Selah

16 Do not be overawed when a man grows rich, when the splendor of his house increases;

17 for he will take nothing with him when he dies, his splendor will not descend with him.

18 Though while he lived he counted himself blessed— and men praise you when you prosper-

19 he will join the generation of his fathers, who will never see the light of life .

20 A man who has riches without understanding is like the beasts that perish.

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AFWIS Joins Operation World in Prayer for Ukraine -Europe

Published on Operation World (http://www.operationworld.org)

Home > Dec 01: Ukraine

---

Dec 01: Ukraine

Join the Prayer Movement

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Ukraine

Ukrayina

Europe

See Prayer Information

Geography

Area: 603,700 sq km
A flat, fertile, forested plain with few natural boundaries.
Population: 45,433,415    Annual Growth: -0.65%
Capital: Kyiv (Kiev)
Urbanites: 68%
HDI Rank: 85 of 182 (UN Human Development Reports 2009)

Peoples

Peoples: 66 (33% unreached) All peoples
Unreached Peoples Prayer Card

Official language: Ukrainian, but Russian widely spoken    Languages: 42 All languages

Religion

Largest Religion: Christian

Religion		Pop %	Ann Gr
Christians	35,896,941	79.01	-0.7
Evangelicals	1,737,245	3.8	3.1

Challenges for Prayer

Expatriate agencies. Light in the East, SGA, SEND, IMB and others faithfully served the persecuted church before 1989 and continue to do so today. More have flocked to the country since then, but all too often with insensitivity to local cultural and financial issues. There is still a place for long-term workers willing to learn the language and culture, most particularly in Bible teaching, leadership training and facilitating/assisting Ukrainians in setting up their own ministries and missions.
Indigenous agencies. A blossoming of agencies followed independence with Ukrainians now working in outreach (evangelism, literature, media), with children (in summer camps and schools), and especially in humanitarian work (with prisoners, hospitals, orphanages and soup kitchens). Pentecostals/charismatics and Baptists minister both within Ukraine and without, sending missionaries to other former Soviet states. Pray for the burgeoning Ukrainian missionary movement – for further growth, provision and fruitful partnership with Western and other agencies.
     For an additional 7 Challenges for Prayer see Operation World book, CD-ROM, or DVD-ROM.

More Information

The Operation World book, CD-ROM, and DVD-ROM provide far more information and fuel for prayer for the people of Ukraine

Ezekiel 40 (NIV)

Ezekiel 40

New International Version (NIV)

The Temple Area Restored

40 In the twenty-fifth year of our exile, at the beginning of the year, on the tenth of the month, in the fourteenth year after the fall of the city—on that very day the hand of the Lord was on me and he took me there. ² In visions of God he took me to the land of Israel and set me on a very high mountain, on whose south side were some buildings that looked like a city. ³ He took me there, and I saw a man whose appearance was like bronze; he was standing in the gateway with a linen cord and a measuring rod in his hand. ⁴ The man said to me, “Son of man, look carefully and listen closely and pay attention to everything I am going to show you, for that is why you have been brought here. Tell the people of Israel everything you see.”

The East Gate to the Outer Court

⁵ I saw a wall completely surrounding the temple area. The length of the measuring rod in the man’s hand was six long cubits,^[a] each of which was a cubit and a handbreadth. He measured the wall; it was one measuring rod thick and one rod high.
⁶ Then he went to the east gate. He climbed its steps and measured the threshold of the gate; it was one rod deep. ⁷ The alcoves for the guards were one rod long and one rod wide, and the projecting walls between the alcoves were five cubits^[b] thick. And the threshold of the gate next to the portico facing the temple was one rod deep.
⁸ Then he measured the portico of the gateway; ⁹ it^[c] was eight cubits^[d] deep and its jambs were two cubits^[e] thick. The portico of the gateway faced the temple.
¹⁰ Inside the east gate were three alcoves on each side; the three had the same measurements, and the faces of the projecting walls on each side had the same measurements. ¹¹ Then he measured the width of the entrance of the gateway; it was ten cubits and its length was thirteen cubits.^{[f] 12} In front of each alcove was a wall one cubit high, and the alcoves were six cubits square. ¹³ Then he measured the gateway from the top of the rear wall of one alcove to the top of the opposite one; the distance was twenty-five cubits^[g] from one parapet opening to the opposite one. ¹⁴ He measured along the faces of the projecting walls all around the inside of the gateway—sixty cubits.^[h] The measurement was up to the portico^[i] facing the courtyard.^{[j] 15} The distance from the entrance of the gateway to the far end of its portico was fifty cubits.^{[k] 16} The alcoves and the projecting walls inside the gateway were surmounted by narrow parapet openings all around, as was the portico; the openings all around faced inward. The faces of the projecting walls were decorated with palm trees.

The Outer Court

¹⁷ Then he brought me into the outer court. There I saw some rooms and a pavement that had been constructed all around the court; there were thirty rooms along the pavement. ¹⁸ It abutted the sides of the gateways and was as wide as they were long; this was the lower pavement. ¹⁹ Then he measured the distance from the inside of the lower gateway to the outside of the inner court; it was a hundred cubits^[l] on the east side as well as on the north.

The North Gate

²⁰ Then he measured the length and width of the north gate, leading into the outer court. ²¹ Its alcoves—three on each side—its projecting walls and its portico had the same measurements as those of the first gateway. It was fifty cubits long and twenty-five cubits wide. ²² Its openings, its portico and its palm tree decorations had the same measurements as those of the gate facing east. Seven steps led up to it, with its portico opposite them. ²³ There was a gate to the inner court facing the north gate, just as there was on the east. He measured from one gate to the opposite one; it was a hundred cubits.

The South Gate

²⁴ Then he led me to the south side and I saw the south gate. He measured its jambs and its portico, and they had the same measurements as the others. ²⁵ The gateway and its portico had narrow openings all around, like the openings of the others. It was fifty cubits long and twenty-five cubits wide. ²⁶ Seven steps led up to it, with its portico opposite them; it had palm tree decorations on the faces of the projecting walls on each side. ²⁷ The inner court also had a gate facing south, and he measured from this gate to the outer gate on the south side; it was a hundred cubits.

The Gates to the Inner Court

²⁸ Then he brought me into the inner court through the south gate, and he measured the south gate; it had the same measurements as the others. ²⁹ Its alcoves, its projecting walls and its portico had the same measurements as the others. The gateway and its portico had openings all around. It was fifty cubits long and twenty-five cubits wide. ³⁰ (The porticoes of the gateways around the inner court were twenty-five cubits wide and five cubits deep.) ³¹ Its portico faced the outer court; palm trees decorated its jambs, and eight steps led up to it.
³² Then he brought me to the inner court on the east side, and he measured the gateway; it had the same measurements as the others. ³³ Its alcoves, its projecting walls and its portico had the same measurements as the others. The gateway and its portico had openings all around. It was fifty cubits long and twenty-five cubits wide. ³⁴ Its portico faced the outer court; palm trees decorated the jambs on either side, and eight steps led up to it.
³⁵ Then he brought me to the north gate and measured it. It had the same measurements as the others, ³⁶ as did its alcoves, its projecting walls and its portico, and it had openings all around. It was fifty cubits long and twenty-five cubits wide. ³⁷ Its portico^[m] faced the outer court; palm trees decorated the jambs on either side, and eight steps led up to it.

The Rooms for Preparing Sacrifices

³⁸ A room with a doorway was by the portico in each of the inner gateways, where the burnt offerings were washed. ³⁹ In the portico of the gateway were two tables on each side, on which the burnt offerings, sin offerings^[n] and guilt offerings were slaughtered. ⁴⁰ By the outside wall of the portico of the gateway, near the steps at the entrance of the north gateway were two tables, and on the other side of the steps were two tables. ⁴¹ So there were four tables on one side of the gateway and four on the other—eight tables in all—on which the sacrifices were slaughtered. ⁴² There were also four tables of dressed stone for the burnt offerings, each a cubit and a half long, a cubit and a half wide and a cubit high.^[o] On them were placed the utensils for slaughtering the burnt offerings and the other sacrifices. ⁴³ And double-pronged hooks, each a handbreadth^[p] long, were attached to the wall all around. The tables were for the flesh of the offerings.

The Rooms for the Priests

⁴⁴ Outside the inner gate, within the inner court, were two rooms, one^[q] at the side of the north gate and facing south, and another at the side of the south^[r] gate and facing north. ⁴⁵ He said to me, “The room facing south is for the priests who guard the temple, ⁴⁶ and the room facing north is for the priests who guard the altar. These are the sons of Zadok, who are the only Levites who may draw near to the Lord to minister before him.”
⁴⁷ Then he measured the court: It was square—a hundred cubits long and a hundred cubits wide. And the altar was in front of the temple.

The New Temple

⁴⁸ He brought me to the portico of the temple and measured the jambs of the portico; they were five cubits wide on either side. The width of the entrance was fourteen cubits^[s] and its projecting walls were^[t] three cubits^[u] wide on either side. ⁴⁹ The portico was twenty cubits^[v] wide, and twelve^[w] cubits^[x] from front to back. It was reached by a flight of stairs,^[y] and there were pillars on each side of the jambs.

Footnotes:

1. Ezekiel 40:5 That is, about 11 feet or about 3.2 meters; also in verse 12. The long cubit of about 21 inches or about 53 centimeters is the basic unit of measurement of length throughout chapters 40–48.
2. Ezekiel 40:7 That is, about 8 3/4 feet or about 2.7 meters; also in verse 48
3. Ezekiel 40:9 Many Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; most Hebrew manuscripts gateway facing the temple; it was one rod deep. ⁹ Then he measured the portico of the gateway; it
4. Ezekiel 40:9 That is, about 14 feet or about 4.2 meters
5. Ezekiel 40:9 That is, about 3 1/2 feet or about 1 meter
6. Ezekiel 40:11 That is, about 18 feet wide and 23 feet long or about 5.3 meters wide and 6.9 meters long
7. Ezekiel 40:13 That is, about 44 feet or about 13 meters; also in verses 21, 25, 29, 30, 33 and 36
8. Ezekiel 40:14 That is, about 105 feet or about 32 meters
9. Ezekiel 40:14 Septuagint; Hebrew projecting wall
10. Ezekiel 40:14 The meaning of the Hebrew for this verse is uncertain.
11. Ezekiel 40:15 That is, about 88 feet or about 27 meters; also in verses 21, 25, 29, 33 and 36
12. Ezekiel 40:19 That is, about 175 feet or about 53 meters; also in verses 23, 27 and 47
13. Ezekiel 40:37 Septuagint (see also verses 31 and 34); Hebrew jambs
14. Ezekiel 40:39 Or purification offerings
15. Ezekiel 40:42 That is, about 2 2/3 feet long and wide and 21 inches high or about 80 centimeters long and wide and 53 centimeters high
16. Ezekiel 40:43 That is, about 3 1/2 inches or about 9 centimeters
17. Ezekiel 40:44 Septuagint; Hebrew were rooms for singers, which were
18. Ezekiel 40:44 Septuagint; Hebrew east
19. Ezekiel 40:48 That is, about 25 feet or about 7.4 meters
20. Ezekiel 40:48 Septuagint; Hebrew entrance was
21. Ezekiel 40:48 That is, about 5 1/4 feet or about 1.6 meters
22. Ezekiel 40:49 That is, about 35 feet or about 11 meters
23. Ezekiel 40:49 Septuagint; Hebrew eleven
24. Ezekiel 40:49 That is, about 21 feet or about 6.4 meters
25. Ezekiel 40:49 Hebrew; Septuagint Ten steps led up to it

Proverbs 1 (NIV)

Proverbs 1 (New International Version)

Proverbs 1

Prologue: Purpose and Theme

1 The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:
2 for attaining wisdom and discipline; for understanding words of insight;

3 for acquiring a disciplined and prudent life, doing what is right and just and fair;

4 for giving prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the young-

5 let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance-

6 for understanding proverbs and parables, the sayings and riddles of the wise.

7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools [a] despise wisdom and discipline.

Exhortations to Embrace Wisdom

Warning Against Enticement

8 Listen, my son, to your father's instruction and do not forsake your mother's teaching.
9 They will be a garland to grace your head and a chain to adorn your neck.

10 My son, if sinners entice you, do not give in to them.

11 If they say, "Come along with us; let's lie in wait for someone's blood, let's waylay some harmless soul;

12 let's swallow them alive, like the grave, [b] and whole, like those who go down to the pit;

13 we will get all sorts of valuable things and fill our houses with plunder;

14 throw in your lot with us, and we will share a common purse"-

15 my son, do not go along with them, do not set foot on their paths;

16 for their feet rush into sin, they are swift to shed blood.

17 How useless to spread a net in full view of all the birds!

18 These men lie in wait for their own blood; they waylay only themselves!

19 Such is the end of all who go after ill-gotten gain; it takes away the lives of those who get it.

Warning Against Rejecting Wisdom

20 Wisdom calls aloud in the street, she raises her voice in the public squares;
21 at the head of the noisy streets [c] she cries out, in the gateways of the city she makes her speech:

22 "How long will you simple ones [d] love your simple ways? How long will mockers delight in mockery and fools hate knowledge?

23 If you had responded to my rebuke, I would have poured out my heart to you and made my thoughts known to you.

24 But since you rejected me when I called and no one gave heed when I stretched out my hand,

25 since you ignored all my advice and would not accept my rebuke,

26 I in turn will laugh at your disaster; I will mock when calamity overtakes you-

27 when calamity overtakes you like a storm, when disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind, when distress and trouble overwhelm you.

28 "Then they will call to me but I will not answer; they will look for me but will not find me.

29 Since they hated knowledge and did not choose to fear the LORD,

30 since they would not accept my advice and spurned my rebuke,

31 they will eat the fruit of their ways and be filled with the fruit of their schemes.

32 For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them;

33 but whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm."

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Psalm 48 (NIV)

Psalm 48 (New International Version)

Psalm 48

A song. A psalm of the Sons of Korah.

1 Great is the LORD, and most worthy of praise, in the city of our God, his holy mountain.
2 It is beautiful in its loftiness, the joy of the whole earth. Like the utmost heights of Zaphon [a] is Mount Zion, the [b] city of the Great King.

3 God is in her citadels; he has shown himself to be her fortress.

4 When the kings joined forces, when they advanced together,

5 they saw her and were astounded; they fled in terror.

6 Trembling seized them there, pain like that of a woman in labor.

7 You destroyed them like ships of Tarshish shattered by an east wind.

8 As we have heard, so have we seen in the city of the LORD Almighty, in the city of our God: God makes her secure forever. Selah

9 Within your temple, O God, we meditate on your unfailing love.

10 Like your name, O God, your praise reaches to the ends of the earth; your right hand is filled with righteousness.

11 Mount Zion rejoices, the villages of Judah are glad because of your judgments.

12 Walk about Zion, go around her, count her towers,

13 consider well her ramparts, view her citadels, that you may tell of them to the next generation.

14 For this God is our God for ever and ever; he will be our guide even to the end.

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