Prayer Fuel

Pray as the Lord leads you as you read today’s verse

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.” (Matthew 5:27-30) ESV

Tunisian testimony

I am from a small town.  I was raped when I was younger.  Everyone in the neighborhood and my family knew.  They hated me for what had happened.  There is a law in our country that says if a man marries the girl he abused, then he won’t go to prison.  My family forced me to marry this man.  We were married for a month and then he divorced me.  I moved to Tunis and now work with an elderly woman as her nurse.  You can imagine that when I first heard about the Messiah I was drawn to Him.  He has begun to heal the pain of my past, and I know that I am His child. I can’t help but share about Him to the lady I work for and her family.  Pray that those I share with will understand that Jesus can heal the pain in their lives too.

Praying with insight

Mohammed said that it was permitted to have four wives if all were treated equally. He himself had at least 11 wives. Many were widows or prisoners of war. One was very young. This history influences marriages among Muslims all over the world. Jesus’ words in Matthew 19 and Genesis 2 of one man marrying one woman are counter-cultural. Jesus’ standard of holiness and faithfulness reveals the beauty of the sacrificial love Jesus has for the church. Pray for the truth of the beauty of marriage and faithfulness to be revealed across this land.

For believers

“Pay attention to this. See what Scripture says,” one woman said to her husband. We were reading this passage together with a new believing couple and it was clear that the wife was addressing the hurt she had experienced. Pray for believers who fall into old habits to repent quickly and be renewed by the Holy Spirit. Pray for spouses who not only speak the truth, but also forgive. Ask that God strengthen marriages to be a beautiful picture of delight and faithfulness.

For the lost

“My husband took the cologne I gave him, went to the neighboring country, and used it to woo and marry another woman.” Sumayah was crushed and asked what she should do when he came home. Maryam said, “I was in the car headed to a restaurant with my husband, dressed up with my make-up on, and he rolled down the window to flirt with another woman.” Pray that each woman in this region would know that they are precious and valuable, made in the image of God. Ask that men would be willing to listen to gentle truthful correction. May God bring hope and healing to marriages by revealing the beauty of Christ’s sacrifice.

For the church

We pray for the church of Tunisia to live out 1 Thessalonians 4:3-7. May the church:

• know the will of God for them, their sanctification
• abstain from sexual immorality
• make disciples who know how to control his/her own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God
• know that God has not called them for impurity, but in holiness

For areas of influence

Pray for places of religion in Tunisia.

• Pray for imams (mosque leaders) to be convicted that sin starts in the heart and to begin to ask questions about how hearts can actually be cleansed and changed.
• Pray for Muslims as they enter the mosque to be convicted by their sinful thoughts even if it hasn’t resulted in sinful actions and to want to find a solution for their shame.

Declaration of the scripture

Jesus, you want to give us better than what the world offers. We pray for you to soften the hearts of Muslim men and women throughout this land to begin to learn about Jesus, his ways, his teachings and to find the good news of 1 John 2:15-17.

“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world — the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life — is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.”

Pray as God leads as you watch this video from Tunisia