Joel
March 23, 2007 on 1:01 pm | In His First Bible, Old Testament, PrayerGrams | No Comments
In the days of the prophet Joel, an invasion of locusts left the people without crops or water. They felt true hunger like many of us will never know. Even now, people throughout the world, including many of the Shan Dai, rely upon the food of the harvest and the money earned from it, to buy their daily bread—or in their case—rice. God’s plan was not to leave His people devastated but to allow them to hear His truth, repent and be restored to the Lord who is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. When we hunger after God’s love and His truth, we are satisfied at a level that mere food can never bring. Joel’s message includes a promise that is just as precious and relevant in these days as it was years ago: “… everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved…” (Joel 2:32). Short, to the point, and what every man, woman and child needed then and still needs today: salvation in the name of the Lord. We pray today for Shan Dai people—those in need and those who have plenty. God, we ask for Your plan for satisfaction and message of hope to be shared with all. May Shan Dai people call upon Your strong name to be saved. Jesus, we thank You that there is no other name under heaven that we need to call out to; You are all we need. Whether the rice crop is abundant or lacking, we pray for the Shan Dai to hunger after You.
Hosea
March 23, 2007 on 1:01 pm | In His First Bible, Old Testament, PrayerGrams | No Comments
Dai weddings are festive. A dowry is paid to the bride’s parents, special clothes are worn, and an abundant feast is enjoyed by all. The happy bride, showing respect to her parents, cries as she is carried from her childhood home to the home of her husband’s family and the newlyweds begin their married life together. On the other side of the world, an American couple exchange vows: “I promise to remain faithful to you as long as our love shall last.” Not the most reassuring wedding vows ever spoken, yet vows like these characterize Israel’s situation when Hosea was a prophet of God. A covenant was made; God vowed to be Israel’s God and they vowed to be His people. But tragically the bride chose to prostitute herself with foreign idols breaking the promise time after time to her loving, faithful Husband. Married love is meant to be sacred, a symbol of Christ’s love for His bride, the Church. Lord, Shan Dai couples need You as foundational in their marriage. Father, please bless marriages around the world as husbands and wives seek to honor You by honoring their wedding covenant. So much is at stake. What joy there is from pleasing You and peace resides in going to bed at night faithful to promises kept. Thank You, Lord, for Your unchanging wedding vows: “I will make you my wife forever, showing you righteousness and justice, unfailing love and compassion. I will be faithful to you and make you mine, and you will finally know me as the LORD” (Hosea 2:19-20). Lord, You indeed are compassionate, loving, and faithful.
Daniel
March 23, 2007 on 1:00 pm | In His First Bible, Old Testament, PrayerGrams | No Comments
Even prior to the lions’ den experience, everyone knew Daniel as a man of exceptional character. In the pit, the lions’ mouths were shut but the mouth of King Darius opened wide to proclaim God’s praises: “I decree that everyone throughout my kingdom should tremble with fear before the God of Daniel. For he is the living God, and he will endure forever. His kingdom will never be destroyed, and his rule will never end. He rescues and saves his people; he performs miraculous signs and wonders in the heavens and on earth. He has rescued Daniel from the power of the lions” (Daniel 6:26-27). It is not likely that the oppressive governments over the Dai peoples would ever issue such a decree. And even if they did, the call to follow after God is an individual resolution, not something that can be demanded on any human level. So we continue to pray for individual Shan Dai people. Lord, visions, dreams, signs, and wonders are often used to open hearts to understand You. We implore You to use what You know as best to get the attention of Shan Dai people. Daniel was a man who knew You early in life and lived fully to honor You. Father, may Shan Dai children hear the story of Daniel and be inspired to turn to You with trust in all areas of their lives. These children might one day influence government authorities. May they open wide their mouths to praise You as the living God and provide a way for whole nations to hear and then choose You.
Ezekiel
March 23, 2007 on 1:00 pm | In His First Bible, Old Testament, PrayerGrams | No Comments
If someone who loved you said something for your good over 60 times would it affect your thoughts and alter the way you lived? In Ezekiel we continually read, “Then they will know that I am the LORD.” God is the Lord and we are not. He is in charge. Ezekiel ministered during the Babylonian exile. His job was to let the Israelites know that the suffering they experienced was brought upon them due to their choice of sin. God’s judgment allowed them to experience in suffering that He is Lord. Talking to a rebellious Israel, the Sovereign Lord said: “I will show how holy my great name is—the name you brought shame among the nations. And when I reveal my holiness through you before their very eyes…then the nations will know that I am the LORD” (Ezekiel 36:23). God, we pray for the Shan Dai nation to know that You are Lord. God, You choose to relay this good news through people, so today we pray for the people that are living holy lives before the Shan Dai nation. In the many challenges and setbacks that are faced in a day, may the knowledge that You are Lord bring about hope. We pray for Your love and purity to fill the lives of Christian Dai leaders. Great comfort can come when we embrace You, the Sovereign Lord. In Your holiness please do whatever is needed—including judgment and suffering—for us and for all people to know that You indeed are Lord. Reveal Your holiness to the Shan Dai.
Lamentations
March 23, 2007 on 1:00 pm | In His First Bible, Old Testament, PrayerGrams | No Comments
The laments of Jeremiah are some of the saddest chapters penned in Scripture. Destruction, devastation and despair were experienced by God’s people. The suffering and grieving of those alive during this time in history is truly hard to imagine. In China, some of the elderly Shan Dai people tell stories of famine under Mao Ze Dong when tree bark was eaten to stay alive, but nothing can compare to the tragedy during Jeremiah’s time. “Tenderhearted women have cooked their own children. They have eaten them to survive the siege” (Lamentations 4:10). And yet, it was during this hopeless circumstance that one of the most hope-giving verses can be found. No matter how devastating your situation may be, take courage and have hope. Father, we pray Your words of hope for ourselves, for those we know that are suffering, and for the Shan Dai people who do not yet know You. “The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself, ‘The LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!’ The LORD is good to those who depend on him, to those who search for him” (Lamentations 3:22-25). Lord, we pray for Shan Dai people to seek You and find that You indeed are good. May our hope be in nothing less than You. You know our circumstances and we need Your mercy. May the Dai have You as their inheritance. Great is Your faithfulness, O God Almighty.
Jeremiah
March 23, 2007 on 12:59 pm | In His First Bible, Old Testament, PrayerGrams | No Comments
What are you boasting about: wealth, children, professional position, talent or beauty? Ai Zom boasted of his skill. A gifted wood carver, Ai Zom lives in a Shan Dai village. During the Cultural Revolution, several carved idols were hidden, protected from the Communist regime. Years later, Ai Zom joined his friends to uncover these idols so that they could once again worship them. Idols in hand, Ai Zom could not help but critique the quality of the carving and he secretly boasted of his own carving skills. Is boasting wrong? What is God’s opinion? Through the prophet Jeremiah, the Lord addresses the issue. “Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth…” (Jeremiah 9:23-24 NIV). God used the situation with the carved idol to get Ai Zom thinking, “Am I to worship this idol that someone created?…is there not One greater than this?” We thank You, Father, for reaching out to Ai Zom and for bringing people into his life so that now he is exposed to truth and knows You. You are the One True God and in You do we boast. God, we pray that through Ai Zom, many other Shan Dai people will know You too. Of all the good things in life, You are the best! May the Shan Dai boast in You alone.
Isaiah
March 23, 2007 on 12:59 pm | In His First Bible, Old Testament, PrayerGrams | No Comments
The sky darkens with clouds, the wind picks up and thunder can be heard like loud Dai gongs in the nearby mountains. The rain pours down on the Shan Dai during another day of rainy season, and sometimes weeks can go by without a sign of the sun. Mud splashes from flip-flops onto the backs of long, straight wrap-around skirts as Dai ladies push their carts to and from the markets. Bike riders are covered with brightly-colored ponchos, forming a moving rainbow in the streets of town. Clothes hang for days without really drying and, regardless of the wetness, life continues on. The rainy season helps nourish the newly-planted rice and it can also provide time for people to gather under shelter and share biblical truths concerning life. Thinking of the Shan Dai today, God, we pray Isaiah 45:8 on their behalf: “Open up, O heavens, and pour out your righteousness. Let the earth open wide so salvation and righteousness can sprout up together.” Jesus, please shower down Your love upon the Shan Dai people. May they hear of God and His righteousness, be convicted of sin, understand judgment, rejoice in the redemption that only comes from You, and then live in the hope of being transformed into Your likeness. Father, we thank You for Your Word and the joy that it brings and pray for Your guidance as translation for the Shan Dai Bible continues. Let righteousness rain on the Shan Dai people and salvation spring up, changing their lives for all eternity we pray.
Song of Songs
March 23, 2007 on 12:59 pm | In His First Bible, Old Testament, PrayerGrams | No Comments
The book of Psalms is synonymous with praise, Proverbs is linked to wisdom, and the Song of Songs sings of great love. Some say this love song, found in the middle of the Bible, depicts God’s love for His people Israel. Some believe it is a story of Christ and His love for His Church. In these moving pages, others see love shared between man and woman. One thing is sure and not debated: God is love and nothing is greater than to give and receive love. People will know we love God by the love we express to others. One can sense the joy and security in these three key verses that ring true of faithful, committed love: “My lover is mine, and I am his”, “I am my lover’s, and my lover is mine”, “I am my lover’s, and he claims me as his own.” (Song of Songs 2:16, 6:3, 7:10). Committed love is what we all long for; deep belonging is what we desire. We pray today for Shan Dai people to know and experience You, God, in Your great, unconditional love. Father, we ask that in these times when AIDS is spreading among the Shan Dai due to prostitution and unfaithfulness that You would intervene. Knowing that You are the foundation of married love, we pray for lifestyles to change and faithfulness to flourish. God, we pray for You to heal broken hearts, mend broken marriages and give hope to families. May Your pure love flow and fill each of us so we might be instruments of Your love.
Ecclesiastes
March 23, 2007 on 12:59 pm | In His First Bible, Old Testament, PrayerGrams | No Comments
Living their days under the sun in an agricultural environment, the Shan Dai people can be great learners of what the Teacher has to say about seasons. There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven. May this be their season for learning about God. The list of activities under heaven begins with, “A time to be born and a time to die. A time to plant and a time to harvest” (Ecclesiastes 3:2). All things start with birth and before we can teach, we need to have learned. Yet sometimes it is while teaching that we learn the most. Although Shan Dai teachers have yet to read in their own language the wisdom found in the book of Ecclesiastes, they do have seasons of life, and they, like all of us, have eternity that God has planted in the hearts of people. Lord, we pray that what You have planted within us will flourish and be like rice that multiplies in the harvest. We seek today to purposefully slow down our pace and intentionally live with You in this present season. For the Shan Dai, rice planting season comes around up to three times a year. It is a hard, back-breaking kind of labor. Father, please plant Your truth and hope in their hearts even as they now plant rice one blade of bright green at a time. The wet rice fields are scattered with farmers, possible future teachers of Your Kingdom for the Shan Dai nation. What a wonderful classroom for sharing Your love.
Proverbs
March 23, 2007 on 12:58 pm | In His First Bible, Old Testament, PrayerGrams | No Comments
“Choose my instruction rather than silver, and knowledge rather than pure gold. For wisdom is far more valuable than rubies. Nothing you desire can compare with it” (Proverbs 8:10, 11). Precious stones are valued worldwide. Stones such as rubies and jade are still mined from the mountains where the Shan Dai people live. Jade of various shades of green is especially treasured and is often carved into dragons, Buddha images, or shaped into balls strung together and worn to bring good luck. For those seeking things that shine, silver, gold, and rubies are available in local markets in varying degrees of quality and price. A stroll through the market can also put you in contact with young Dai men without arms or legs begging for money. Tragically, the dynamite used in extracting the precious stones has removed the limbs from some of the workers. Wisdom indeed is needed—not just for those in the mining business—but for all Shan Dai people. Father, wisdom begins in You and we pray for the Dai as they make a wide range of choices each day that effect themselves, their families, and ultimately their eternity. God, You shine brighter than any gold ever fashioned and, more than that, You are the Creator of each person precious in Your sight. We pray asking You for wisdom, wisdom to choose You over any other option that vies for our attention. May Your wisdom be mined out by the Shan Dai people and esteemed even greater than life.
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