12 Oct We Believe in the Power of Prayer

Okay, I’ll admit it: I have never been one to sit still and pray for great lengths of time. I have always preferred the short bullet-point prayers shooting upward about some urgent need, or extreme gratefulness, because He has answered some undeserved plea.

But there have been times when I, along with my teammates,  have known that we really do need to fall on our knees and feel His presence—when we need to reach out, to beg others to pray with us, for us, for our children. All of them! This is one of those times.

For the next 30 days we am asking you, our partners, to take a moment and read these excerpts out of life in Brazil, at the campuses of the City of Youth and Hope Mountain, and truly hear our petitions for prayers. You are our friends, loved ones, partners, and many of you have been investing in these lives for years. If you don’t pray, who will?

Most of these reflections were written by my wife, Corenne, who experienced each one of these stories first-hand—along with hundreds of others written only on her heart, and collected during nineteen years at my side on the mission field. As she writes, “After 29 years in ministry, there is one thing we know: God expects us to pray, and He answers our prayers.”

For today’s prayer, we ask that you join the entire Hope family in praying that God will use these 30 reflections to challenge many hearts—not only to raise awareness for orphans and vulnerable children, but to encourage everyone to join us in prayerful supplication for each day’s request.

Sincerely,

Philip Smith, CEO and co-founder
For the entire Hope team

Each morning leading up to Orphan Sunday on November 11, you can receive an email devotional to help you pray for the children at Hope and many more yet to be rescued from abuse and exploitation. You can also download the entire prayer guide here if you’d prefer.

THE REST OF CORENNE’S INTRODUCTION:

“Until three weeks ago, Philip and I were living on the Hope Mountain campus with Marc and Isabella, our dog and all of the Hope boys and house parents. It was life in community with all the intrusive closeness of being part of an extremely extended family.  But last month, we left for the United States for a period of one year, so that our children could attend school in English.

Oh, how I long to hear Bernardo knocking at my door requesting new batteries for the game controller; or the “air raid alarm” signaling it’s dinner time. There was always something urgent to do. I always felt indispensable; but for the next nine months we will be mostly in the United States with Phil going back and forth. Now what?

Being unplugged for a season, I realize that perhaps I have more faith in myself than I do in God’s sovereignty. All I can do is pray. I pray fervently for Alex, 18, who like me  just left the security of Hope Mountain. I pray for Joao Carlos who is starting his first internship at a bakery, and for Eduardo who willingly entered rehab.

I pray, because after 29 years in ministry, there is one thing we know: God expects us to pray, and He answers our prayers.”

Jeremiah 29:13 “You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.”