Monthly Prayer Focus

Did you know that people are almost 20 times more likely to die from cold weather than from hot weather?¹ Cold weather kills thousands of people around the world each year. ²

In the regions GFA World serves, many people still live in poverty, and even a blanket or a winter jacket can be unaffordable for them. This puts lives at risk, and it makes it harder for missionaries to visit people who are waiting to hear of Christ’s love.

Please join us in praying this month for those who need blankets and winter clothing.

1 Dear, Keith, and Zhan Wang. “Climate and health: mortality attributable to heat and cold.” The Lancet 386, no. 9991 (July 25, 2015): 320-322. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736%2815%2960897-2/fulltext.

2 Gasparrini, Antonio, et. al. “Mortality risk attributable to high and low ambient temperature: a multicountry observational study.” The Lancet 386, no. 9991 (July 25, 2015): 369-375. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(14)62114-0.

Forced to live on the streets with no shelter, people without homes are especially vulnerable to chilly weather. One study in Poland found that homeless people were 13 times more likely than the general population to die of hypothermia.³ GFA missionaries seek to share Christ’s love with the homeless, among other people in need, and often distribute blankets to those sleeping on streets or benches.

Please pray God will continue to allow GFA missionaries and believers to offer much-needed warmth—and lasting hope in Christ—to people without homes. Pray homeless people won’t lose their lives this winter because of the cold.

3 Romasko, Jerzy, et. al. “Mortality among the homeless: Causes and meteorological relationships.” PLOS ONE (December 21, 2017). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0189938.

Some of the communities GFA missionaries serve lie in mountainous regions where people struggle to grow crops and earn an income. During the brutal winters of these regions, people must rely on kitchen fires to stay warm since homes usually lack central heating. Because of the frigid temperatures, going outside is typically not possible during early morning—or for the whole day in the case of extreme weather—so it’s even harder for people to make a living.

Pray GFA missionaries will have opportunities to share God’s love and provide warm clothing to people who experience long, harsh winters. Pray they will be able to minister to people who are stranded at home on extremely cold days.

Whether they serve in the Himalayan foothills orin rainy, cool areas, GFA missionaries suffer from the cold, too—and they don’t want it to stop their ministries. Warm clothing and blankets can make a world of difference, allowing missionaries to sleep better at night and travel more hours each day without risking their health. This helps them extend God’s love to more people in need.

Pray for good sleep and good health for GFA missionaries so they can continue making Christ known even in the coldest months of the year.

GFA missionaries and the people they serve never stop needing winter clothing and blankets. Even when they have such items, these necessities eventually wear out, and in some regions, they are very costly.

GFA leaders need resources and wisdom to effectively provide winter clothing and blankets to the missionaries under their care and to the hard-to-reach mountainous villages or impoverished communities where these missionaries serve. They also need God’s favor and traveling mercies to effectively organize events where they can get winter coats and blankets into the hands that need them.

Pray many people will give to provide winter clothing and blankets to those in need, and pray GFA missionaries will be able to purchase quality, low-cost goods to distribute. Also, ask God for wisdom and favorable travel conditions for our field leaders as they organize distribution events.

Even more than they need the warmth of a new blanket or coat, people need the eternal hope Jesus offers. These gifts can help people understand there is a God who loves them. Many winter clothing and blanket recipients, grateful for such love, seek to learn more about this God.

Pray many winter clothing and blanket recipients will realize Christ’s love for them and desire to know Him. Pray GFA missionaries will know how to respond most effectively as these individuals ask questions.

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