Pray for Croatia

We need to pray for Croatia.

Croatian News: MPs Reportedly Collect Enough Signatures for Dissolution of Parliament
On Friday morning, Parliament Speaker Željko Reiner accepted the request of SDP and HNS and suspended the session of Parliament. Since reportedly there are more than 80 signatures for the dissolution of Parliament, representatives of the opposition parties requested that the Speaker include the dissolution of Parliament in the agenda later today, reports Večernji List on June 17, 2016.

“We cannot pretend that nothing is happening. The majority of MPs have submitted a request for the dissolution of Parliament, and it is clear that this means that the work of this Parliament has come to the end. Citizens demand new elections, and therefore we demand that you stop this session and include the dissolution to the agenda”, said Peđa Grbin (SDP).

-    Because of the above action in parliament the deputy prime minister has resigned and it is expected that the present prime minister will resign or be voted out. … we will vote on the dismissal of Prime Minister Orešković. We have already said why we are going to do it, due to the non-functionality of the government and its leadership. <Read More>
-    We started praying for the Croatian government 7 to 8 months ago. We prayed that the government of Croatia would be blessed, not to fall apart. We prayed often that corruption would be exposed. There has been some “under-handed” things exposed. The reality is that the constitution is in force but there just has to be new elections.
-    The gay sub-culture marched in the streets across Croatia recently demanding more rights. They were also joined by the pro-abortion advocates. <Read More>
-    Croatia’s President and Serbia’s Prime Minister to Meet on Monday - Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović and Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić will meet on Monday in Croatia and Serbia to sign a political declaration “of exceptional importance”, that will cover issues of minorities, missing persons, borders and succession,… <Read More>

Prayer Points:
1)    The redemption of a country always starts with intercessors. Lord, we pray for the coming together of intercessors to pray for Croatia. Croatians need to get desperate about saving their country.
2)    New elections are projected to be the first of September. This is a chance for a new direction for the country so let us pray for God’s favor.
3)    Let us pray now for men and women of good character to run for office.  May they secure positions at the head of parties, receive financial help that is not attached to favors and truthful media coverage.
4)     Twenty-three years ago Croatia and Serbia had just ceased a bloody war that left Eastern Croatia devastated. Pray that this meeting between the president of Croatia and the prime minister of Serbia will advance peace in the region. 
5)    In light of the attack on gays in Orlando, Florida, let us pray for the gay community in Croatia. Of course we want them to come to the salvation knowledge of Jesus. We as Christians in Croatia should approach them with love and let the Holy Spirit deal with any sin in their lives like He dealt with ours.
6)    Monday night, June 20th, Upper Room Zagreb hosted “Burn”. This was a team of seven people traveling through the Balkans lifting up extended times of worship. We believe this dedicated time of worship broke spiritual strong-holds over Croatia. Pray that more Croatians begin to join in on the prayer sets.

Pray for Greece

In praying for the countries of Southeastern Europe also known as the Balkans, we will take this week to pray for Greece.
Two Major events in Greece: 1) Wreckage of EgyptAir flight MS804, 2) Migrant riot on Macedonian border.

1) Greece: EgyptAir made sharp turns before crashing with 66 aboard

USA TODAY) -- Greek officials said Thursday that an EgyptAir flight that disappeared over the Mediterranean in route from Paris to Cairo with 66 people aboard apparently made two sharp turns then suddenly lost altitude before vanishing from radar.

Egyptian Civil Aviation Minister Sherif Fathi said the possibility of a terror attack as the cause of the crash of flight MS804 was “stronger” than technical failure.

Egyptian and Greek authorities said the plane likely went down near the Greek island of Crete.
Reuters reported that Greek authorities had spotted two floating objects in sea 50 miles southeast of area where the plane left the radar, 174 miles off the Egyptian coast.  Greece's defense ministry mobilized a search and rescue operation.

2) Migrants throw stones at police – Greek police throw Gas canisters
“Violence flares as Greek police clash with migrants,” May 18, 2016:

Migrants throw rocks at Greek police during a scuffle at the Macedonian border (AP)
Greek riot police have fired tear gas and stun grenades at refugees and other migrants who tried to push a railway carriage through a cordon during a protest at a crowded camp on the border with Macedonia. Police said about 200 people were involved in the violence, and the migrants also attacked officers with stones. There were no immediate reports of injuries or arrests.

The sprawling Idomeni camp is home to about 10,000 people trapped in Greece after a series of border closures further north on the Balkan migration route to Europe’s prosperous heartland. <Read More>

Two situations in Greece; one is of high priority to the media and one less covered but both are important to Europe. If EgyptAir flight was a result of terrorism, then it adds to heightened risk of flying especially in light of the Brussel’s attack. The refugees from the Middle East are backed up on the border of Greece because Macedonia will not allow them access as all consequent borders to Western Europe are currently closed to migrants.

Prayer Points:
1)    Let us first pray that the Greek authorities will handle both situations with much wisdom.
2)    Pray for the families of loved-ones that perished on the EgyptAir flight.
3)    I can only imagine what it would be like to be a refugee and have to flee my home. Let us pray that the Greek government and the European Union will figure out how to relieve their suffering.
4)    In last week’s prayer points we inserted this link, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQfs7nSHGGU.  In this video it is mentioned that 53% of all refugees are Christians fleeing the Islamic oppression. Let us pray for these Christians fleeing the Middle East. May the Lord be with them as He was with the Children of Israel when they fled Egyptian bondage.
5)    It is said that a good number of Christians in the Middle East or those that lived in Muslim lands, are nominal in their spiritual and doctrinal beliefs. It is also true that persecution can supply a grace that immediately deepens a person’s faith.
   a.    First let’s pray that they would be safe on their journey and the Lord would help them get to a safe dwelling place.
   b.    Let us pray that many Christian organizations would be able to get Arabic and Farsi language Bibles into the camps.
   c.    May these Christians from Muslim backgrounds be bold in their faith and lead many Muslims to the redemptive love of Jesus.
6)    With the present situation in Greece, let us pray for Greek churches to get involved in reaching out to these refugees. May the compassion of Christ compel them to see them as human beings first.
7)    There are reports of the Greek government and EU authorities restricting access to the camps. Pray that those helping the refuges would respect the authorities but at the same time the authorities would grant favor to visit and help. Pray for any confusion to cease and may the Spirit of God bring order into the camps.

Pray for Croatia

According to research data from the Croatian Institute of Public Health, Croatians are among the biggest smokers in the world…

Croatia is ranked the 7th biggest smoking nation out of 22 countries and 3 billion people. Croatia is ranked ahead of Poland and Romania. When it comes to female smoking, Croatia is ranked 2nd in the world only behind women from Bangladesh.

According to the Croatian Institute of Public Health’s data, 31% of people above the age of 15 smoke. On average they are smoking 16 cigarettes per day with the average monthly spend on cigarettes 512 kuna (74 dollars) per person.

“There are a variety of circumstances. Multifactorial. Unemployment and higher levels of stress certainly plays a role,” Tomislav Benjak from the Department of Public Health told RTL [news agency].

Around 3,000 people die from lung cancer a year in Croatia.
http://www.croatiaweek.com/croatian-women-2nd-biggest-smokers-behind-bangladesh/
http://www.who.int/tobacco/en/atlas6.pdf

It doesn't take long for any Zagreb visitor to notice the coffee shops which are everywhere. In the daylight hours and in the evenings these coffee shops are crowded with customers. We walk past these shops and ask, “Are there any Croatians at work?” Overall unemployment of those actively looking for a job are 18% while unemployment among young adults is 44%.

A lot of social issues together result in the fact of high smokers in Croatia

Prayer Points:
1) Stress is among the key factors which contribute to the reason many smoke. Let us pray that the spirit of discontent would be lifted. Let us come against hopelessness gripping the nation.
2) Smoking is also very deeply rooted in the culture and history of Croatian and the Balkan people in general. May this curse be broken off and a generation would arise truly standing up against such addictions.
3) Lets pray specifically for the women who are trapped in this cycle. Lord break every chain which binds and release the hope of Jesus Christ that sets the captives free.
4) May there be more education and information made available in creative ways throughout the educational and media outlets concerning the negative health effects of smoking.
5) We pray for the children who are exposed to smoking from a young age due to parents and family smoking. We pray that this cycle might be broken in Jesus’ name.

Pray for Zagreb, Croatia

There are mixed feelings in this city regarding the new government. Cynicism prevails in the attitudes of the Croatian people. They say things like, “They have promised us reform before but it stays the same.”, or “All the politicians are corrupt, how can we possibly trust them.”

We frequently pray for the government, but today let us pray for the attitude of the people.

Zagreb is a beautiful city compared to other cities in the Balkans. There are nice parks, the city center is truly the heart of the city. Maintenance is prompt and well-organized. It is quite remarkable that there is trash pickup three times a week. On the flip side, taxes are 25%

Recently, Jerry had the chance to witness to four nurses. They started talking about the city. Jerry begin to share all the things he liked about the city and then he listened to their responses; only one of the three nurses was positive. The discussion went really well as the Holy Spirit showed up. Jerry was able to bring them the message of hope for their city and country. He was even able to give a New Testament to one of the nurses who was obviously unchurched. 

Our heart is to see hope restored in people and of course we know the One who IS that hope!

Prayer Points:
1)    Our attitudes are much more important to the Lord than our knowledge or even our obedience. Pray for the attitudes of the people of Zagreb and the foreigners that live here.

2)    Jeremiah 29:7 And seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace. We are captivated by God’s love for this city. Lord, we pray for Your peace to descend upon Zagreb!

3)    Galatians 6:10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith. Let us pray for the churches of Zagreb, because they do stand responsible for the moral climate of the city.

4)    We have a deep desire for Christians of excellence to be raised up in Zagreb. Let us pray for boldness to come upon those that the Lord desires to use to invade the culture. the institutions of government, education, media, etc.

5)    One of the pastors leads a monthly prayer meeting for Zagreb and this event will be this coming Friday, Feb. 19th. Pray that these dedicated intercessors from several churches will touch heaven and cause a release of grace upon the city.

6)    May the Body of Christ be a light to Zagreb, a city on a hill bringing hope to the hurting.

For more about Intentional Strategies for Transformation see our website - www.ISTgroup.org 

Pray for ISTgroup

Pray or IST Group 2-8-16

We covet your prayers for ISTGroup this week as we provide a prayer seminar for the Body of Christ here in Zagreb. We are hosting a family from Bazel, Switzerland who serve in a house of prayer themselves and also do coaching for IHOP Kansas City.

The seminar will last for 6 days, devoted to many aspects of prayer and worship in a house of prayer setting; there will be times of instruction and practice. We will also go out to the key gates of the city and pray over Zagreb. IST Group is also preparing to host several other conferences in the coming months.

The Upper Room House of Prayer has been amazing. We meet five times a week, Monday through Friday to worship the Lord and seek His plan for our city, Croatia as a country and needs of the Balkan countries. There are about ten individuals who join us at various times throughout the week. Every day is different and exciting as we come with expectation to discover more about our Lord and His ways.

As you can see on http://istgroup.org , the three pillars of the organization are to promote prayer, empower the underutilized (poor) and to disciple. God has given us a clear mandate to start with phase one, which is to establish the House of Prayer. We feel that out of the place of prayer the other two pillars will come into proper alignment.

Prayer Points:
1) Please let us first rejoice in the Lord. As we are faithful He is more than faithful. As you stop and pray for us and ISTgroup, God is truly making advancements. We are witnesses, “as He is lifted up, He does draw men unto Himself”.
2) Pray that the presence of Jesus would increase in the Upper Room Zagreb House of Prayer (URHOP Zagreb).
3) We are so very thankful for the Tendon family coming to share with us their insight and anointing in regards to prayer and worship. Pray that the Lord would truly release His anointing over them as they teach.
4) Pray with us that the burning ones in this city would attend this seminar and the other upcoming seminars as well. Pray also for many to have a fire lit in their hearts for a deeper walk with the Lord.
5) Our heart cry is to see Jesus honored in Zagreb, Croatia and throughout the Balkans. Let us pray for the advancement of His Kingdom in this region.
6) As we go to the key gates of Zagreb to pray, may we stand in the Lord’s boldness and proclaim His victory.

7)     Pray for Zuzanna, February 8th is her birthday.

Thanks for praying with us. Our ministry is held up by your prayers.