Pray for IST Group Aug. 2016

Please join us in praying for Intentional Strategies for Transformation. We are intentional in finding strategies to transform Southeastern Europe (Balkans) for the sake of righteousness. We wait in prayer for God to impart wisdom to us for the task.

Here in Croatia as well as most of the Southeastern Europe, the populace goes on vacation for much of July and August. At IST we are learning to tailor our work load to better fit this culture and still be just as productive during this time. 
 
Prayer Points:
1)    Now that we are a legal Non-Governmental Organization in Croatia, let us pray for legal status in America. Pray that the filling of the 501 (c) 3 paper work will proceed on schedule.
2)    Pray that we would always hear God’s heart for IST Group and the nations it intends to serve.
3)    Upper Room Zagreb is functioning well. More people are joining us for prayer four times a week. Setting aside our upper room for prayer has been a blessing to our home and it opens a door for others to encounter the Lord. Pray that we continue to seek above all God’s presence.
4)    Pray that the Upper Room will continue to be a place where lives are changed and godly destinies are revealed to hungry hearts.
5)    Although August is a vacation month for Croatians, pray that spiritual warfare over the country would not be halted.
6)    Pray for the pastors of Croatia. Balkan pastors are men and women of great dedication. They generally have to work a full-time job and pastor also.
7)    We truly love those that partner with us in their giving. Pray for our partners to be blessed in their walk with the Lord. May the Lord reward them with His presence daily.


Please leave a Comment or Reaction so we will know you Prayed.

Pray for Kosovo 7-26-16

Pray for Kosovo

Kosovo, much as the rest of Southeaster Europe, suffers from high rates of unemployment, particularly among young people. In 2014, about 2 out of 3 young Kosovans in the labor force did not have a job, contributing heavily to the 35 percent unemployment rate among the population. The grim reality is, that the current economic growth is able to create jobs for only about 29% of the 11,500 persons entering the labor market each year.

Ethnic minorities, especially the Roma, Ashkali and Egyptians in Kosovo are significantly excluded from the labor market in Kosovo. Young and older workers, women, and ethnic minorities are more likely to be jobless or employed in informal or low-wage jobs. https://undpeurasia.exposure.co/the-new-entrepreneurs-of-kosovo 

When we were last in Kosovo, what we saw was very alarming. The Albanian flag flying everywhere, yet very few Kosovo flags. The sense is that if the country were allowed to vote, the majority would vote to join Albania. At this time Kosovo is under a United Nations protective government and a vote like that would be a direct embarrassment to the UN. Much like the Greater Serbian spirit back 20 years ago that actually led to the Kosovo war in 1999, now there is a Greater Albania spirit in the region. The question is, what really is Kosovo’s identity as an emerging nation?
Coupled with this, is the reality that cities are run by corruption and a real lack of properly trained staff. This is adding pandemonium to the complexity of the Kosovo problem.
 
Prayer Points:
1)    God loves the nations and various ethnic groups. Let’s pray that Kosovo could develop into a stable country. Let us pray for God’s mercy to come.
2)    There are often mixed feelings in other Balkan countries towards Kosovo because of so many negative actions of the past; the Kosovo war of 1999, Serb and Gypsy refugees and imbedded poverty. Lord, we pray for the righteous to rise up and bring forth godly intellectuals to govern and set policy.
3)    Kosovo needs to establish its identity. As Christians we desire and pray for it to be a “sheep” not a “goat” nation. (Matt. 25:32)
4)    The spirit of Greater Albania can be a game changer that could disrupt the present balance of powers if it proceeds unchecked. As we pray for peaceful settlement of affairs, let us pray for our loving God to settle the destiny of Kosovo as He prefers. 
5)    There are some healthy churches in Kosovo. So let us pray that they would take opportunities to go the “extra mile” for their Muslim countrymen. (85% Muslim) 5)    Matthew 5:41 And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. (It is being proven in Muslim countries worldwide that kindness is a powerful tool that wins them to Jesus)
6)    As of now many Muslims in Kosovo are very nominal in their beliefs, but there is a strong push by Wahabi Muslims to radicalize Kosovo. They paid for the building of over 200 mosques in the country. Let us pray for confusion to disrupt their plans.
Please leave a Comment or Reaction so we will know you Prayed.

Pray for Croatia 7-18-16

Pray for Croatia

We were praying for the education system in Croatia the other day, at Upper Room Zagreb. 
 
The educational system was dominated with communist philosophy while Croatia was part of Yugoslavia. After independence, the Catholic Church took educational dominance. This year there has been a backlash against Catholic dominance and a demand for more practical courses. During our prayer time, one of IST’s interns Cynthia, brought forth Daniel 2: 20-23

20 Daniel answered and said
 “Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,
For wisdom and might are His.
21 And He changes the times and the seasons;
He removes kings and raises up kings;
He gives wisdom to the wise
And knowledge to those who have understanding.
22 He reveals deep and secret things;
He knows what is in the darkness,
And light dwells with Him.
23 “I thank You and praise You,
O God of my fathers;
You have given me wisdom and might,
And have now made known to me what we asked of You,
For You have made known to us the king’s demand.”

Join us in praying into this:
1)    Lord, we ask for a change in the Croatian educational system.
2)    Dear God, forever wisdom and might are Yours. You can remove bad educational administrators and You set good ones in office.
3)    Those good administrators that are set in position can be wise in knowledge and understanding. Father, You can open their minds to the deep and secret things.

Daniel prayed three times a day and was made an adviser to four kings. Where no one else could interpret King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, Daniel inquired of God and got the interpretation. Wisdom from heaven was given to the king.

4)    We ask You, Lord, to surround the educational minister of Croatia; give him a dream or dreams from heaven. May his office doors be wide open for the God of wisdom to come in. Surround him with godly counselors.
5)    For generations Croatian children have received manipulated education. Let us pray that now would be the time for a healthy change in the system so a wise generation can come forth.
6)    Pray that teachers also would be touched by godly wisdom.
7)    Croatians have hard hearts because they have endured hard times. May their hearts be softened so godly wisdom can be understood.
Ezekiel 36:26
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.

Please leave a Comment or Reaction so we will know you Prayed.

Pray for IST Group 7-4-16

For the past four days we have hosted the board members in our home in Zagreb where we have been praying, strategizing and planning how to move forward with Intentional Strategies for Transformation for the next 18 months.  This past month, we moved some steps closer to IST becoming an official organization in Croatia as well as the US. Strategies are coming forth as we develop a solid structure and foundation. The vision of IST Group rings even clearer: We exist to pioneer and resource redemptive transformation in Southeastern Europe. We see God merging vision, strategy and obvious needs to unfold His plan for the Balkans or as it is now becoming known Southeastern Europe. (Please note this name to be used in our future communications)

One of the first items on the way forward for IST is economic development and justice for the underutilized. We see this materializing in the form of a farm development in an area of Croatia with no known community of evangelical believers. This project needs your prayers as we make slow but calculated steps toward it. You will hear more about this in the coming months.

We have two interns with us at this time, Cynthia and Laurel. They have been a tremendous blessing to us in so many ways! Not only are they participating in and helping lead prayer sets, but they have rolled up their sleeves and we were able to help a local church move to a new building. The interns are not only of great help but they are going out to the streets each weekend to talk with people about Jesus and loving on them.
 
Prayer Points:
1)    We are filled with gratitude for the boards willingness to set aside time and resources in order to join us here in Zagreb, spend time in the Upper Room HOP in order to hear His heart and then lay out a way forward for IST. Pray they receive a special blessing.
2)    Pray that the bond of unity will remain as we go forward to accomplish His will for Southeast Europe.
3)    We have identified an area of Croatia, known as Lika, with a population of 100 thousand people that has no evangelical church community. It is also an area that was heavily affected not only by the war of 1991-1995 but this area has served as a key battleground for wars dating back beyond Napoleon. This is the targeted area for the proposed farm project. Pray with us for the Lika area and the Lord of the harvest to reveal His heart concerning this area and our involvement.
4)    Doing life with the interns has been so rewarding. Pray for the Lord’s blessings to be upon them as they are giving their summer to serving with IST Group.
5)    Especially pray for those we have shared Jesus with. May they see Him as their hope and salvation. We believe these have been divine encounters.
6)    Our steps forward will require financial windows to open. Pray that God would supply all we need for what we consider His plan.

Please leave a Comment or Reaction so we will know you Prayed.

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 Zagreb

Pray for Zagreb, Croatia

We love this part of town. Just to the left of the Cathedral is a grove of trees where Jerry likes to sit on one of the benches and wait for someone to sit next to him. Almost everyone under 40 years old speaks English in Zagreb. He gets into some of the most interesting conversations that has led to salvations.

We are going to the streets of Zagreb this summer with the interns and some Croatian Christians. Also we will visit a Roma village several times during the summer. We ask for your prayers concerning our summer outreaches.

Our main desire on the streets is to develop relationships that lead to salvation and transformation of individuals.

Prayer Points:
1)    Pray for the two young ladies who are interning with us. May the Lord use them in new ways and may they see His manifest presence as they give Jesus away.
2)    Pray that the Holy Spirit will prepare us by filling us with “compassion for the lost”.
3)    Let us come against the fear of man. (True love and compassion cancels the fear of man)
4)    Pray that the Holy Spirit will go before us and set up divine appointments. That we will encounter people that have had the Holy Spirit stirring their hearts already.
5)    Let us come against the spirit of religion. Pray that this spirit will not be able to operate during the conversations and in their after thoughts.
6)    Pray that healthy relationships will follow. Pray that the Lord would put a hook in their hearts to draw them unto Him. (Seeds sown in good ground)
7)    Pray that all will come to true repentance unto salvation.


Thank you so much for praying with us.

Pray for IST Group

Pray for ISTgroup

Life in Southeastern Europe is a lot of fun. People are learning to make humor out of their struggles.

This past Friday we went to sign the NGO application to be submitted for the IST Group, then our attorney said FTJP… When she saw the puzzled look on our faces, she said, oh do you not know? Every Croatian knows what this stands for… “Fali Ti Jošjedan Papir” which translates to “You are missing one more document”. As the Croatian law has been in evolution around new NGO legislation, we have had to make changes to the statute, etc. Thankfully that document is short and easy and we will officially submit our application on Monday! Thank you God! Now we pray that registering ISTgroup as a non-government organization (NGO) here in Croatia will go smoothly and quickly.

Once this process is finished, Intentional Strategies for Transformation will have a legal right to operate. It is almost like being on an airplane, waiting on the runway to take off. You know where you are going and you are basically on your way but you just haven’t got the go-a-head from the control tower yet. Yes, God is our control tower and we have been busy in His Kingdom but being legal on earth is important.

Thank you SO Much for praying with us for the conference with Yonathan Lara. The meetings were designed to uplift the body of Christ here and God used Yonathan in a powerful way. Just to see the pastors that joined in with us moving in the Spirit was amazing. We see the chains of disunity slowly braking off! God is amazing and He is doing something in Zagreb.
On Tuesday of this week, our first intern will be joining us for the summer. We so look forward to Cynthia Beene coming to share ISTgroup life with us. Jerry will facilitate much of the internship activities.

Also we are being joined by Laura Howton from Alabama, who will help build the infrastructure of the IST Group. She is giving of her time and finances to insure that we have a strong foundation. She will be with us for the next three weeks. Laura, Cynthia and Zuzanna will make a trip to Romania to meet with the founder of NetWorks, a ministry that has had phenomenal success working with the poor. Our son Asa is actually there now working with that ministry, www.networks.org.ro. Then Zuzanna and the team will leave for southern Serbia to visit with a Roma church where we will discuss plans to help facilitate the integration of a discipleship training program.

Prayer Points:
1)    Pray with us for angels to guide, protect and rest upon our NGO application. Pray for favor and a smooth process in these secular offices.
2)    FTJP is due to government bureaucrats in this socialist Europe who will change policy or regulations in mid-course of the procedures. Pray that our document would be acceptable to all government offices.
3)    Our Croatian Christian lawyer went the extra mile to be precise and follow all present law yet still have the best interest of IST in mind. Pray that she will be blessed in all the ways God may show you to pray.
4)    Pray that Cynthia (intern) will have a safe flight from Texas. Also pray our second intern, Laurel, who is arriving on the 21stto arrive safely. Pray that they will experience all that God has for them and be equally a blessing to Croatia.
5)    Pray for the ladies as they travel to Romania and through Serbia. We ask for traveling mercies. May the car function properly and the roads be safe.
6)    We are so thankful for Yonathan Lara coming to bless Croatia. It is amazing to see God use this 21 years old young man with the gift of preaching and wisdom. Pray for him and his ministry. May he have even more open doors to minister. We are planning a conference for 2017 involving several nations. We covet your prayers regarding the planning of that.
7)    It is the beginning of summer here, so pray with us as we encounter people on the streets. May their hearts be open to the Gospel. Pray that we will be good examples of Jesus’ love in the midst of a lost and dying world.
8)    Pray for the Upper Room Zagreb. We gather to pray five times a week. Prayer is the foundation of IST Group, and we appreciate your prayers that we will continue to hear God speak direction to our lives and ministry.



Thank you so much for you prayer and intercession.