Secret Church

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Pray for the Hui Posted: 14 Feb 2013 04:00 AM PST In case you missed our announcement in November, we wanted to make sure you know that our prayer time at Secret Church on March 29 will be focused on the Hui people of China. The Hui The Hui (pronounced “way”), made up of at least 13 million people, are the largest and most widespread of China's Muslim nationalities. They also comprise the third largest minority group in China. To be Hui is to be Muslim—it is the core of who they are. For the Hui, Islam is more than just a set of religious beliefs—it is a total way of life. Therefore, those who have become Christ-followers face pressure and persecution from their families and communities when they believe in Christ. Although there are more than 13 million Hui scattered throughout China, very few (including the Chinese church) are intentionally planting their lives among the Hui to tell them about Christ. More About the Hui In March, we’ll be blogging daily about the Hui to let you know about their life and the challenges they face. If you want to learn more now (and who wouldn’t?!), you can go to the Pray for the Hui website that launched recently or follow them on Twitter (@pray4hui). Get Involved We would also like to ask you to commit to pray for the Hui throughout the month of April. We are inviting families, small groups, and churches to join us as in April as we pray for the gospel to go forth amongst the Hui. Ask your small group or church leaders if they would consider joining us as well.

What Do We Pray For? Part 3 of 4 Posted: 14 Feb 2013 04:00 AM PST We’re in the middle of a four part series in which Pastor David Platt instructs our prayers for the persecuted from the book of Acts. If you missed part 1, “Why Do We Pray?”, or part 2, “Who Do We Pray To?”, we invite you to check them out. Then, keep your eyes peeled the final post in the series early next week. In what was the worst persecution believers had experienced up to that point, Peter and John were thrown into prison for proclaiming Christ. Immediately upon their release, amidst increasing disapproval from outside authorities, the believers prayed the words now found in Acts 4:24-31. Teaching from this passage, Pastor David now answers the question, “What do we pray for?” World Watch List of countries in which Christians are most persecuted. ‘Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them, who through the mouth of our father David, your servant, said by the Holy Spirit, ”Why did the Gentiles rage, and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers were gathered together, against the Lord and against his Anointed”— for truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place. And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.’ And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness (Acts 4:24-31). _________________________________________________________________ How do you pray for people in Sudan or China or North Korea or Saudi Arabia? What do you pray for? I want you to see three things the believers in Acts 4 prayed for. But I think it would probably be most appropriate for us to start with what they didn't pray for. Sometimes what the Bible doesn't show us actually shows us a lot. Notice that at no point in Acts 4 do you see them praying for the persecution to stop. At no point in Acts 4 do you see them praying for God to bring His wrath down on those people around them. At no point do you see them lamenting for what they were going through. Instead of praying for escape from that trial, they prayed for enablement to stand up under the trial. Did you catch that? That's a weird way for us as Americans to pray. It's a weird way for us who cling to comfort to pray. Not for escape, but for enablement in the middle of it. And that's what they prayed in Acts 4. And that's what saints around the world are praying, and that's what we need to pray on their behalf. So, instead of for escape, pray for enablement. I think they prayed for three main things here in Acts 4. Number one, they prayed for the honor of Christ. "Now, Lord, consider their threats" (Acts 4:29)—what were the threats? Look back in chapter 4, verse 18 and 21, and you'll see the threats. They came to Peter and John and said, “You better stop preaching in the name of Jesus. Stop speaking about Jesus, stop proclaiming Jesus.” "Now Lord, consider their threats." Picture their prayer, "God, these people are rising up and trying to stop the proclamation of the glory of Jesus Christ. And we are praying that you would rise up and enable us to speak with great boldness so that the honor of Christ might be proclaimed through us." Notice that at the heart of their prayer was not even for their own needs. What was it for? Not for the needs of men. But the glory of Christ was at the center of their prayer. And it needs to be the center of our prayer for each other, in our own lives, and for these guys. I’m not saying that praying for needs in our lives is not important, but that's what we pray for all the time and we miss out on the whole point. The whole point is that God will enable us in the trials, in the suffering, in the persecution that we or they experience. "Christ, honor your name in the middle of it. Make your glory named in the middle of it no matter what it costs, make your glory known." Pray for the honor of Christ. Two, pray for the boldness of the church. "Consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness" (Acts 4:29). Imagine the temptation that was facing them in Acts 4, when you see your son or daughter's face and you know that if you go out and proclaim the name of Jesus, you may not come back to care for them. Imagine the difficulty of being in a place like Sudan or other places in the world where that is a reality day in and day out. You pray for boldness for the church. Not only to pray for the honor of Christ and for boldness of the church, but I think the whole prayer here is a prayer for the advancement of the kingdom. They continue on, and they say "stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders" among the people (Acts 4:30). God, we don't want to just see the gospel proclaimed, we want to see it transforming lives. And that's the picture we are hearing here about places like Sudan. There is a great need for the gospel to be proclaimed. Pray for the honor of Christ. Pray for the boldness of the church, and pray for the advancement of the kingdom.  _________________________________________________________________ The text from this blog post was taken from a sermon preached by Pastor David titled "Prayer and Persecution." You can listen to the message in its entirety here.

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