In the wake of the extensive flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey in coastal areas of Texas and Louisiana, President Trump has called for a special National Day of Prayer in the United States, today, Sunday, September 3.

The flooding has already claimed many lives and inflicted countless injuries, and the extent of property damage in the flooded area is almost incalculable.  Hundreds of thousands of homes have been destroyed or damaged, and in the city of Houston alone almost a million cars have been destroyed.  While it is difficult to accurately assess the cost of flood damage at this early time, it is likely that the amount will be hundreds of billions of dollars.

The President’s call for national prayer is thus one of prayer for the victims of the hurricane and for the success of the  national response and recovery efforts.  We can pray not only for those who have lost family members and friends or who have been injured, but also for all those who are in a desperate situation having lost their homes and possessions. We should also pray for the emergency-services and medical personnel, military and all who are helping people in the affected areas.

Naturally, those of us who have not been affected by this natural disaster can also contribute financially, as we are able, to any of the relief agencies and  charities that are working in the flooded areas.  The existence of many scams and fraudulent email appeals for money make it wiser to contribute directly through the websites of recognized charities, such as the American Red Cross or the Salvation Army.

But even if we are unable to give physically, we can give spiritually on this day of prayer by interceding for those who need help.  And we should not limit our prayers to help for those within our own nation.  At this same time millions of people are suffering from massive floods that have occurred in Asia where  over 1200 have been killed and some 40 million people affected by flooding in India, Nepal and Bangladesh. Parts of many cities are underwater and the storm front continues to move into Pakistan, where much more damage is expected.  In Sierra Leone a mudslide caused by rising storm waters killed over 1,000 people recently in the worst flooding that West African nation has faced in recent memory. 

The amount of suffering caused by these and other recent storms, like the total cost of damage done, cannot be calculated and is ongoing.  Government, state, and local agencies as well as charities and civilian groups are doing what can be done to help the people in need, but even if we are not involved directly, our part can be one of praying for that which cannot be accomplished humanly.

“When you pass through the waters,” the word of God tells us, “I will be with you” (Isaiah 43:2).  That is a promise we should be humbly claiming today – for all those suffering from great flooding in our own nation and throughout the world. 

The massacres of civilians, beheading of prisoners and hostages, and the rape, sexual enslavement and merchandising of captured women has been constant throughout the existence of IS. Despite its recent loss of some of its territory,  the crimes against humanity continue unabated, although incidences are less frequently mentioned in the media as much of the Western public has tired of the stories and they are no longer viewed as being “newsworthy.”

Some effort has been made by world governments to  curb IS, of course, but the results have been relatively small and slow in coming.   However, the new U.S. government administration has declared Islamic State atrocities to be clear “genocide” and has committed to stopping the scourge of this group.

The United States will host a meeting of ministers from some 68 countries this week to assess the current situation and to discuss strategies to defeat IS completely.  According to the news agency Reuters, the meeting, to be led by new U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, will be held in Washington on Wednesday, March 22 and Thursday, March 23.  

This will be the largest gathering of nations opposing the terror group to have occurred to date and an official has stated that the U.S. administration will discuss increased military as well as diplomatic and humanitarian efforts to curb the problem of the existence of IS.
As Christians we are hopefully well aware of the inhuman predations of IS on Christian and other populations within their territory and we are already praying about this situation.  The upcoming meetings give us a new opportunity to renew those prayers, however, and to fervently ask for the success of what may well be the most serious effort to destroy the evil of IS to date. 

We can pray for the success of the military, diplomatic, and humanitarian efforts that result from the meetings and we can pray also that the eyes of many of the IS extremists will be opened to understand the evil that they are committing.   Recent IS attacks in Europe show that as the group begins to lose territory, it is increasingly inciting terrorist activities elsewhere; we can pray for the failure of its attempts to influence more individuals to this kind of activity.
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Many have prayed for the protection of Christians and others persecuted by IS, and the international meetings planned for this coming week may come as close to a potential answer to the problem as has yet occurred.  Now is a perhaps a particularly good time to renew our efforts in urging our governments to act decisively in this situation, to support Christian and other humanitarian groups that are helping those affected by the ravages of IS, and to be fervent in prayers for the end of this unmitigated evil.  ​

The Africa-based Institute for Security Studies recently released a summary of the problems in Africa as we go into 2016.   The graphic above summarizes this report, and we should notice that it does not consider ongoing problems of famine, disease, malnutrition, human trafficking,  and other issues – simply current political problems. 

Africa is a huge continent (for a graphic representation of just how huge, see our blog post here), and the first thing we need to see is just how widespread the problems are over that massive landmass. According to the ISS, there are crisis hotspots in twelve countries with major problems ranging from ongoing terrorist activity to all-out war.  To put this in perspective, if twelve states of the United States of America were experiencing these levels of crisis and anarchy, most Americans would regard the situation as virtually apocalyptic.

The kidnapping of 276 (still missing) Chibok schoolgirls by the Islamic Jihadist and terrorist organization, Boko Haram, in Nigeria in 2014 resonated around the world (#BringBackOurGirls), but this event was only one of hundreds of ongoing kidnappings, killings and attacks being perpetrated by this and other groups in Africa – many of which never make it into the news in the Western world.
  
The cost for everyone affected by this ongoing violence is terrible, of course, but we need to be particularly aware of its effect on members of the Christian faith.  Christians are the primary target of much of the violence and persecution in many of the crisis hotspot areas – and remember a “hotspot” in Africa is not just a “spot,” it may be an area of thousands of square miles.  In some areas Christians are being attacked daily, with as many as three churches a week being burned and destroyed.  Our prayers for believers in these areas are needed just as much as for those in the Middle East who are suffering in what are often better reported circumstances.

Notice also that the ISS graphic shows the high number of elections in many of the affected countries in 2016, and we can pray that those elections will result in better acceptance and protection for Christians who are endangered by the widespread problems.  Overall the situation in Africa is worse for Christians than it has been for many years, and the problems are growing almost everywhere.
  
So if you are part of the family of Christianity (1 John 3:1-2, Ephesians 2:19-22), think about the responsibility to which our faith calls us – to have concern for suffering members of that family  (1 Corinthians 12:25-26) and to help them (Galatians 6:10). We need to be aware of the situation and remember to pray for and support our family in Africa.