Worldwide Prayer Meeting

Jul 17, 2024 | by Lt. Colonel Allen Satterlee

Humayun Tomb in New Delhi

Prayer Focus -

India Northern Territory

We give God glory for this new day. We look forward to the opportunities of service that He will bring to us. But before that, we hope that you can pause for a few minutes to consider what He is doing in the world, particularly in a place where life for Christians is very difficult. Although they are many miles away, your prayers for our brothers and sisters are deeply appreciated.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, Thank You for the blessings of this day. Thank You for the people in my life, both in earthly family and in my spiritual family. Some of these have needs that I want to bring before You right now. You know what they are. There are ones who are struggling with health issues, some very serious ones. Speak to them through their sufferings and remind them that You are with them if they turn to You. Some have heartaches because of relationships. Those can be far more difficult than health. People can hurt each other so deeply and cause so much anxiety and pain. It is especially hard when some refuse to accept You as their Lord and in their rebellion, lash out against those who do love You. Give wisdom and grace to Your children as they deal with these. You know Lord, we cannot live in isolation but among imperfect people. We remember that we are so imperfect, too. We need You to help us with what we lack, for the answers we don’t have and the wisdom we need. We trust You in this, dear Shepherd Lord. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

  Background of the

India Northern Territory

          The area covered by the India Northern Territory encompasses nearly one-third of the land mass of the nation of India and holds close to half of its population. It also is the poorest and has some of the most densely populated states. This area represents by far the most difficult area for Christian work in the entire country. The following merit special attention:

            Delhi: The capital of the largest democracy in the world, Delhi is not only the center for government but finance as well. But it is growing faster than it can accommodate those coming to it resulting in squatter colonies that grow up into sprawling slums lacking adequate water, electricity, sewage and legal status and are often crime-ridden. It is estimated that there are up to 500,000 Christians in the nearly 20 million living in Delhi.

            Kashmir: The Hindu rulers of a predominantly Muslim state elected to join India when the nations of India and Pakistan formed, creating the only Muslim majority state in India. Tensions between India and Pakistan have led to open conflict several times and Islamic extremists have continued to seek to “liberate” Kashmir from Indian rule to create an independent Muslim state or join Pakistan. Despite all this, Christianity has been gaining a foothold.

            Himachal Pradesh: Called the “land of the gods,” it is the center of Hindu pilgrimage. Every mountain is named after a god. However, Christianity has been growing, nonetheless. There is a great deal of persecution, including anti-conversion legislation and government suppression of Christian preaching and evangelism.

            Bihar: the poorest state and second most densely populated, it is where Buddhism and Jainism both began. It was home to both the great Mauryan and Gupta Empires and the modern struggle for Indian independence. Known as the “graveyard of missions,” it is beset by deep poverty, widespread illiteracy and few Christian resources. There is widespread persecution of Christians by the Hindu majority.

            In all this region Christians are a decided minority, in some with as little as .1% of the population and suffering great discrimination and persecution. Despite this, across this whole region, Christianity has been growing, mostly in the more urban areas but steadily reaching out to the rural areas as well.

            The Salvation Army: Shortly after arriving in India in 1883, Major Frederick Tucker visited key cities in northern India. Rural work was established later and extended to Bihar and Odisha (Orissa). The boundaries of the India Northern Territory have changed over the years; there have been headquarters in Gurdaspur, Bareilly, Lucknow, and Kolkata and more recently, Delhi. In 1947, part of the territory became Pakistan. The present territory was established on June 1, 1991.

Facts, Stats and Leadership of the

India Northern Territory

• Total population to fish and disciple: 650,943,403 (This represents the largest population of covered by any Salvation Army territory in the world.)
• 399 officers, 3 envoys, 18 cadets, 250 employees
• 115 retired officers
• 172 corps, 950 outposts
• 72,922 senior soldiers
• 2,460 adherents
• 3,995 junior soldiers

Leadership

Colonel Chawnghlut Vanlalfela - Territorial Commander

Colonel Khupchawng Ropari - Territorial President of Women's Ministries

Lieut-Colonel Andrews Christian - Chief Secretary

Lieut-Colonel Sunita Christian - Territorial Secretary for Women's Ministries

Prayer Requests for the

India Northern Territory

• The new officer training session which commenced on 1^st July 2024 for eight cadets.

• The Officers’ Councils & Brengle Institute, which are going to be held in the month of September with the support of USA Southern Territory. Please pray that all officers will be further equipped in their ministry.

• The divisional reviews which will take place in the month of August 2024

• All the institutions and corps programs, especially children’s homes
   
• Financial sustainability of the territory.

• Our retired and active officers.

• Our people’s spiritual growth.

USA Southern Territory

Prayer Requests

• The family of Commissioner Willard S. Evans, who was recently Promoted to Glory
• The family of Gary Gorbutt, brother of Major Kathy Whittaker and uncle of Major Lynda Thornhill, who was recently Promoted to Glory
• The family of David Brewer, brother of Lt. Colonel Martha Jewett, who was recently Promoted to Glory
• Lt. Colonel James Seiler, Secretary for Business Administration
• Candidates
• Bernie Dake, Territorial Director of Communications
• Natalie Jones, Territorial Financial Consolidations Director, Finance
• Lisa Whitaker, Accounting Operations Manager, ARC Command
• Lt. Cristina Tilley, Director of Family Life Center, EBC
• Cadet Donna Shea
• Major Lorraina Crawford, Divisional Candidates’ Secretary, Potomac Division
• Lt. Colonel Jan Harwell, National Secretary for Social Services & Public Policy, NHQ
• Lt. Colonels Art & Ann Penhale, officers, soldiers, employees and volunteers of the Texas Division
• Bible Conference
• Anonymous prayer request for better cooperation between departments and personnel in our building, that people would not distance themselves from one another and avoid speaking to each other; prayer request thanking God for the elderly and that God would allow them to pass their wisdom on to younger people

Something to Consider

            There could have been no freer people in all history than Adam and Eve. Free from work they hated, free from disease, free from worry about what to eat and where to live. They were free to grow into the best that God intended for them. But their fall holds a lesson for all of us: there is no freedom without responsibility.

            God gave to our first parents the freedom to choose. That same gift is ours. Despite what some may say, our choices do not lie in the stars nor are we on the puppet strings of beings that play games with us. For good or ill, the responsibility of what we do with the freedom granted us lies within our own hearts.

            It doesn’t take us long to discover how absolutely skilled we are at making a mess of things, of how we instinctively know how to find what is the worse for us, of our ability to make a brilliant right choice followed by a bad one. We love our freedom. We hate our freedom.

            After a while we find that the burden of our bad decisions weighs us down. The hopelessness of that state can cause despair. But even as we are about to go under, we find the good news of Jesus reaching our weary hearts: “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free …If the Son of Man sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 7:32,36). In one of those great paradoxes of life we find that we can’t truly know freedom until we have understood bondage. In Christ, we can celebrate the freedom that goes beyond citizenship or national origin. We can be free indeed.

Benediction

Dear Jesus, As a hen covers her chicks with her wings to keep them safe, do Thou this day protect us under Your golden wings. Amen.