Praying 40 Days to Freedom — Day 10

August 20 (Day 10) —Tuesday. In the foothills of the Finisterre Mountains lies Uria Village, a central village of the Somau Garia people. The Somau Garia are subsistence farmers, mostly, but also cultivate some coffee, cacao, and vanilla to earn a little cash to buy things that cannot be acquired any other way. Lutheran missionaries came to the area in the 1930’s, but without the Word of God in their mother tongue, the impact has been somewhat limited. In the mid-1990’s Bible translators started working there. One team was not able to return after a few years of service. Angela and I went in 1997 and worked there for ten years, our sojourn culminating in the publication of the Gospel of Mark. It was a hard go and we needed to step away for a while. Pray for our Garia friends, that this will be a season representative of “the fullness of time” for them. May it be a year of the Lord’s favor for them. Pray that hearts will be tender and ready to receive all that the Lord has in mind for them. Pray that there will be a spirit of prayer and supplication that will enable them to break free of generations-old bondages that hold so many hostage.