| Ethiopian
Prayer Initiative Commits to Pray for American Presidential
Elections
AIMS
News: Posted 2/1/2005
 What
began as a small prayer group in Addis, the capital
city of Ethiopia, has now spread into a nation-wide
movement that has spawned revival through the country.
Millions of previously unreached people have heard the
Gospel of Jesus Christ for the first time, and more
than 100,000 have been saved. For us at AIMS, the connection
between the growth in the prayer movement and the testimonies
coming out of Ethiopia is clear.
"I
believe that this prayer movement is the reason why
we are seeing the number of Muslims come to the Lord
and the breakthrough we have had in church planting
movements throughout the past two and a half years,"
said "Priscilla," AIMS Director of Africa.
Seeking
God on Election Day
Priscilla
was in Ethiopia during the 2004 Presidential Elections.
On November 3, she accepted an invitation to a prayer
meeting in Addis where about 150 Ethiopian believers
interceded for the United States elections. During the
meeting, they brought out an American flag, and dozens
gathered around to lay hands on it and pray for America.
Thousands more gathered for prayer in other cities across
the nation.
"They
asked me to speak to them concerning how they could
specifically pray for America," said Priscilla.
"My heart was so deeply touched that when I began
to speak, I cried."
Priscilla
requested prayer for the President, his health, and
the Christian initiatives he was trying to pass through
Congress. She also asked them to pray that American
Christians would develop the same fervency in prayer
as the Ethiopians. For two hours, they prayed for the
United States, the Presidential elections, and American
military who are serving in Iraq (including Priscillaís
son). They agreed to pass along the requests to the
thousands of Ethiopians in the prayer network who would
be praying specifically for the United States throughout
the next three months.
Humble
Beginnings
The
Ethiopian prayer network began with a small prayer group
in Addis. In December 2001, AIMS facilitated a large
multi-track Equipping for the Harvest conference in
the city including a track for intercessory prayer.
About 650 Ethiopian intercessors completed the training,
including "Pastor Elijah" (prayer coordinator
for the Evangelical Church Fellowship of Ethiopia).
From
there, the movement has grown beyond what anyone ever
expected. One year later, Pastor Elijah reported that
18 large groups were gathering for prayer throughout
Addis and beyond its city limits. This year, the network
stretches across the nation and includes thousands of
intercessors who pray 24 hours per day and seven days
per week. Priscilla believes that the Ethiopian movement
is just the beginning. "The Ethiopians are moving
the hand of God all over the nation of Ethiopia."
The
Next Step: Africa
Pastor
Elijah plans to attend a large scale prayer initiative
meeting in South Africa later this year where he hopes
to begin spreading the initiative into all the countries
throughout Africa.
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