Tag Archives: Somau Garia

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Praying 40 Days to Freedom — Day 24

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September 3 (Day 24) — Tuesday. There are about 4,000 Somau Garia speakers, yet this people wields profound power throughout northern Papua New Guinea by means of their shamans and sorcerers. Imagine if these same people were known all over northern Papua New Guinea for their holiness and devotion to Christ, for his working in their midst! Pray today that many of these 4,000 will turn away from traditional deities, from devotion to practices and behaviors that hurt them, to the living Christ, the one who has removed death’s sting, won the victory, and did a victory march with captives in his train. Pray that my Somau Garia friends will know the freedom that is only possible in Jesus Christ, through the work accomplished on the cross, the life and power given through his resurrection from the dead, and through the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit. Pray that these friends will become famous for faith!

 

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Praying 40 Days to Freedom — Day 21

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August 31 (Day 21) — Saturday. Jesus spent his Saturdays in the synagogue. He was true to himself, confident in his mission. When the authorities told him to toe the line with tradition, he healed, he surprised, he followed the call given him by his Father in heaven. Pray today for the heart of each one who will be preaching the word tomorrow. Pray that each messenger will be still today, listening to the still, small voice. Pray that their posture will be one of broken submission. Pray for the Spirit’s power and insight to be theirs today. Pray for the people speaking the Somau Garia and Aruamu languages today, that they will be moved to attend a worship service tomorrow, that the Spirit will provoke and encourage them to seek out a Christian gathering tomorrow.

 

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Praying 40 Days to Freedom — Day 10

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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.

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Praying 40 Days to Freedom — Day 8

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August 18 (Day 8) — Jesus did a lot of things that were considered controversial in his day. In the power of the Spirit, he went to his hometown synagogue for worship on the Sabbath. He was handed the scroll of Isaiah, which he read from. “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Then he said the words that made people want to throw him off of a cliff: “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” (Luke 4:18ff, emphasis mine) This was controversial to his hearers because he was claiming to be Messiah. However, he was and is Messiah and his purposes are true and unchanging. He was sent to proclaim freedom for the prisoners. Pray that Jesus’ purpose for coming will be brought to fruition among the Aruamu and Somau Garia peoples of Papua New Guinea—that those bound up in spiritual prisons of sin and darkness will be set free and brought into the Kingdom of Light. Pray for a readiness to hear the gospel in a fresh way. Pray for Todd as he prepares his heart, mind, spirit, and as he chooses (prayerfully) what to preach.

 

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Praying 40 Days to Freedom — Day 7

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August 17 (Day 7) — Saturday. Todd and Angela celebrate 22 years of marriage today (08/17/1991). Pray for God’s hand to continually rest upon their marriage relationship, especially in light of the depth and variety of transition they are experiencing just now. Pray for the unity of the Holy Spirit, mutual submission, and a quality of love and tenderness unparalleled in this generation to characterize their relationship. Pray for protection from the flaming arrows of the evil one. Oh, yeah, and while you’re at it, rejoice with them for 22 of the best years of their lives. They are certainly rejoicing today.

 

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Praying 40 Days to Freedom — Day 6

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August 16 (Day 6) — Friday. The Somau Garia people have a very developed system of tribal deities. Anthropologists call these totem systems. Throughout the year Garia people perform various rituals to appease the so-called gods. At the heart of this system of belief is an inherent mistrust of the supernatural, a fear of death and violence being visited upon them either now or in the afterlife. Pray for freedom for these dear ones, that they will no longer need to live in fear of the unseen, but will rest in the Unseen One. Pray that as Todd’s visit draws nigh, that the hearts of the Owens’ friends there, as well as the whole translation team, will be quickened in the Spirit. Ask that their hearts will be carried along in the direction of understanding their need for God and a desperate reaching for Him.

 

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Praying 40 Days to Freedom — Day 4

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August 14 (Day 4) — Wednesday. Acts 12 teaches us of Herod’s hate for the church and his wicked desire to please the ruling Jews in Jerusalem. He had James put to death with the sword (the first martyr). He was wild-eyed with violent pleasure, soaking in the praise of the Sanhedrin. He had Peter put in prison, intending violence toward him. But the church had an ace up the sleeve: prayer. Many of the saints were gathered in fervent prayer. In response to their prayer an angel waltzed into the prison, woke Peter, walked him through and out of the prison into the street, unnoticed by the guards. Many of the Aruamu people and Somau Garia people are bound in prisons of fear, ignorance, lust, idolatry, and spirit worship. Yet there is a remnant of believers. Pray that those in prison will be set free from the bondage that keeps them in darkness and pray that the believers among them will boldly and courageously proclaim Jesus’ name. Pray also that hearts will be prepared with a certain hunger and thirst for God—the eternity that God has placed in the hearts of men that we might all seek him.

 

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Praying 40 Days to Freedom — Day 3

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August 13 (Day 3) — Tuesday. Many of the Somau Garia people live in fear and great darkness. They have had the Gospel According to Mark in their language for six years. Pray today for the people who worked on translating that book. Pray that God will prepare their hearts to throw themselves into the work again, to be changed by their interactions with the Father as the time for Todd’s trip draws near. Pray for God to fill their minds and hearts with dreams, a language that is very much alive and common among Garia-speaking people.

 

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Praying 40 Days to Freedom — Prologue

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In a few short hours Day 1 of the “40 Days to Freedom” prayer campaign will be posted. In focus are three groups of people: The Somau Garia people of southern Madang Province (Papua New Guinea), the Aruamu people of the middle-Ramu district of Madang Province, and the missionaries serving with these folks (including my family and me who are connected to the Somau Garia people).

Why forty days? Why now? Prayer is foundational to transformation, to real spiritual impact. Todd will be preaching a series of gospel meetings to celebrate the availability of the Aruamu New Testament in digital audio. This will be a tremendous resource for transformation in the Aruamu communities. Todd will also be spending significant time reconnecting with the Somau Garia team–his brothers in the work of translation, to encourage them, renew relationships, and prepare for a return to ministry with them in the coming months.

Ahead are forty opportunities to bless, encourage, protect and change through prayer. Forty days, forty prayers, forty moments of connection with God, with the Owen family, and with the Aruamu and Somau Garia groups of people. Join us in forty days of dedicated intercession, that these precious ones might gain freedom from fear, despair, and hopelessness and in so doing, the Kingdom of God might be established in a powerful way in them.

Thanks for joining us!

 

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Groaning, Joy, and Prayer

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Groaning. This word is used in the letters to the Roman and Corinthian churches to describe our spiritual state and longing, groaning. We are told that “creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time”. We are told that we who have the Spirit “groan inwardly as we wait for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.” We are told that we “groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling.” Further, we are told that “while in this tent we groan and are burdened, not wishing to be unclothed, but to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling.” Not only do we groan, but creation groans and even the Holy Spirit groans in intercession for us.

July was birthed in groaning and finished with the kind of joy a mother knows when she is holding her newborn close to her heart. We began the month at the lowest financial state we’ve been in the last 15 years. Our fiances were like Bilbo Baggins’ perception of his age: “ . . . Stretched, like too little butter scraped over too much bread.” Our response was to pray.

God answered those prayers in a hundred unexpected and creative ways, pouring out providence joyously and generously. God answers prayer powerfully today.

Don’t just go on my word, though. I invite you to join us in a prayer event pregnant with promise, filled with opportunity, empowered by the Spirit, each day a fresh chance to see the God of hand at work. Beginning August 11 and continuing through September 19 many prayer warriors are joining together to pray through “40 Days to Freedom”, a missions prayer event with one purpose–to partner with Jesus in setting the prisoners free. The prayer event is in concert with an evangelistic crusade being held in Madang Province, Papua New Guinea, where I’ll be serving as evangelist for the meetings. This prayer event is also in concert with a visit I (Todd) will be making to the village we served in for over a decade, to re-engage the translation of the New Testament, building on the foundation laid by the publication of the Gospel According to Mark, dedicated in 2007.

Interested. Two things you need to do. Drop me an email at prayer@shakethegates.org  to let me know that you’ll be praying with us. Then pop over to “Resources” and download the 40 Days to Freedom Prayer Guide. Then, pray with all your heart. Use the guide as a springboard and pray as the Spirit leads you to pray.

Upon my return from Papua New Guinea, all the highlights, stories, and answers to prayer will be posted right here at shakethegates.org.

Blessings and thanks for joining in the battle!