World Prayers for August 23-29: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania

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Photo caption: Hill of Crosses in northern Lithuania. Wikimedia Commons.

Bread for the World believes prayer is central to the work of ending hunger by 2030. Hunger happens in every corner of the world. In this blog series, we will provide a prayer for a different group of countries each week and their efforts to end hunger.

This prayer series will follow the Ecumenical Prayer Cycle, a list compiled by the World Council of Churches that enables Christians around the world to journey in prayer through every region of the world, affirming our solidarity with Christians all over the world, brothers and sisters living in diverse situations, experiencing their challenges and sharing their gifts.

We will especially be lifting up in prayer the challenges related to hunger and poverty that the people of each week’s countries face. In prayer, God’s story and our own story connect — and we and the world are transformed. In a prayer common to all of us — the Lord’s Prayer/the Our Father — we pray, “Give us this day our daily bread.” This line from this prayer can also be a prayer for the end of hunger.

We invite you to join Bread in our prayers for the world’s countries to end hunger. And we encourage you to share with us your prayers for the featured countries of the week or for the end of hunger in general.

For the week of August 23-29: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania:

Oh God, this week, we lift up to you the nations of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. Particularly, we pray for your guidance and wisdom for the political leaders as they seek to lead their nations forward. With recent happenings in Europe, we are aware of the potential danger posed to the Baltic States, and we pray for cover and protection over these countries. As they face the future, we pray for integrity and discernment for those in power to make the best decisions for the well-being of their people.

We also pray for economic stability in this region. Within the past decade, these countries have experienced significant increases in unemployment rates, which have resulted in drops in Gross Domestic Product (GDP’s).  As a result, there has been a growing need for new jobs and opportunities in the market. But more so, we pray for wisdom and grace to establish just economic systems that would provide equal job opportunities as well as lead to creation of new jobs. Furthermore, we pray for creative ideas and new innovations to flourish and enable greater progress in each country. In turn, we pray that these would result in sufficient income sources for people and mean that fewer families would live in poverty and suffer from hunger.

Last but not least, we pray for the Body of Christ in the Baltic States. We foremost pray for encouragement of their hearts to know that you are with them and will provide for their every need. As they experience your love and care, we pray that they would feel empowered to be agents of change and hope in their countries. In addition, as your people share the Gospel through their words and actions, we ask that the people’s eyes would be enlightened to see your love and would come to know you personally.

Percentage of the population of these countries living below the national poverty line (2014 figures):

Estonia: Not available
Latvia: 19.4
Lithuania: 18.6

Source: World Bank World Development Indicators as found in the new 2015 Hunger Report.

Prayer is a central part of Bread for the World’s work. Learn more about how you can get involved with prayer at Bread.

Photo: Hill of Crosses in northern Lithuania. Wikimedia Commons.

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