Project Prayer: Ramadan 2023
30 Days of Prayer for the Muslim world
The month of Ramadan is important to Muslims because they believe Muhammad received the revelation of the Quran during this month. The spiritual rewards are thought to be multiplied by fasting as Muslims strive for purity and heightened awareness of Allah.
Every year since 2010 we have spent the 30 days of Ramadan in prayer for the Muslim world. We pray for the revelation of the Truth: that Jesus Christ is not a prophet, but the Savior and Lord of the world. Join us in praying from sundown March 22 until sundown April 20 – the 30 days of Ramadan.
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Wednesday, March 22 – Day 1: ISLAM. This is our acronym: I Sincerely Love All Muslims. “Love your neighbor as yourself.” That is God’s command. He didn’t say, “Love the believer next door.” He said, “Love your neighbor!” Even if your neighbor is a Muslim. Read Matthew 22:36-39.
Thursday, March 23 – Day 2: Five pillars. Ramadan is the fourth of the five pillars of Islam. The others are Shahada (declaration of faith), Salah (prayer), Zakat (almsgiving), Hajj (pilgrimage). These are ritual obligations. Works. Pray for Muslims to receive the gift of grace. Read Ephesians 2:8-9.
Friday, March 24 – Day 3: Mercy. The first 10 days of Ramadan are the first ashra. Ashra means “10” in Arabic. Ramadan is broken into three parts: days of mercy, days of forgiveness, and days to seek refuge from hell. Pray for Muslims to meet our merciful God. Read Luke 6:36.
Saturday, March 25 – Day 4: God is love. Five times a day, during the call to prayer, Muslims hear this declaration: “God is great.” But for most Muslims worldwide, they have never heard “God is love.” May they learn about the true love of God. Read 1 John 4:10.
Sunday, March 26 – Day 5: Brothers and sisters. Effective evangelism requires relationships. One Muslim background believer (MBB) said, “Since no Christian cared about me, I did not care about their message.” Show Christ’s love. Become a friend. Walk with them through life and allow the Spirit to lead in what, when, and how you share Jesus. Read Proverbs 17:17.
Monday, March 27 – Day 6: What is Islam? Islam means “submission” to the will of Allah. Allah is Arabic for “the god.” Members of Islam are called Muslims – “those who submit.” Islam was founded by a man named Muhammad (570-632). Read 1 Timothy 2:5.
Tuesday, March 28 – Day 7: A prophet among us? Islamic tradition claims Allah sent 128,000 prophets to earth. Muhammad was the last and greatest of these. He was 40 when the angel Gabriel visited him to deliver messages from Allah. Read John 1:14.
Wednesday, March 29 – Day 8: Did an angel really say that? The messages that Muslims say Gabriel delivered were dictated by the illiterate Muhammad to his disciples to make up the Quran, the most holy book of Islam. Read 2 Timothy 3:16.
Thursday, March 30 – Day 9: What do Muslims believe? There are five doctrines: God (Allah), angels, holy books (including the Torah of Moses, Psalms of David, Gospel of Jesus, and Quran), prophets (Jesus was one), and future judgment. Read 2 Corinthians 5:10.
Friday, March 31 – Day 10: The Quran vs. the Bible. The Quran says there is no Trinity, Jesus did not die on the cross, and each person must take care of his/her own sin. Salvation is earned by following the Five Pillars of faith. Read Matthew 11:28, 30.
Saturday, April 1 – Day 11: Islam on the rise. It is No. 2 among world religions. Most Muslim growth comes from high birth rates, but conversion plays a big part in West Africa, Indonesia, and the USA. Islam grew from 12.3 percent of the world’s population in 1900 to 24.3 percent by 2020. Read Matthew 4:16.
Sunday, April 2 – Day 12: Radical Islam in Africa. Many Muslims in Africa are dedicated to Islamic dominance of government, economy, education, and other institutions through violence, if necessary. Read Matthew 5:44.
Monday, April 3 – Day 13: Nigeria. Since northern states declared allegiance to Sharia (Islamic law) in 1999, enforced Islamization has gained momentum. Attacks by Islamic militant groups have increased consistently since 2015. Read 1 Timothy 2:8. CLICK HERE to pray for Nigeria.
Tuesday, April 4 – Day 14: Tanzania. Persecution against churches is common on the Islamic-majority islands, and radicalized Muslims have also tried to indoctrinate youth and target believers on the mainland. Pray for protection. Pray also for our Kilimanjaro Chapter guides and porters who have learned to be disciples who make disciples, plant churches, and study God’s Word. Read John 14:14.
Wednesday, April 5 – Day 15: Malawi. Mosques continue to be built in areas where once there only was a church. Muslims offer beef and wells for water to villages to lure them to Islam. “These Muslims, they have many techniques,” a C4C worker said. Read John 8:36.
Thursday, April 6 – Day 16: Mozambique. Front-line workers are inundated by the needs of Christians facing an Islamic insurgency (“reign of terror”) that began in the north in 2020. Islamic State has instituted “jizya,” forcing Christians and Jews to pay a tax to the caliphate. In other parts of the country, MBBs face family pressures (common in the Muslim world). Read Psalm 46:1.
Friday, April 7 – Day 17: Morocco. In North Africa, if Christians talk to others about their faith, they risk arrest and prosecution. With this legal background, Moroccan converts from Islam face intensive pressures to renounce their faith. Pray for a community of faith. Read Acts 2:42.
Saturday, April 8 – Day 18: 10/40 Window. The 10/40 Window is the rectangular area of North Africa, the Middle East and Asia between 10 degrees north and 40 degrees north latitude. The 10/40 Window is often called “The Resistant Belt” and includes the majority of the world’s Muslims. Read Matthew 28:19.
Sunday, April 9 – Day 19: Pakistan. Blasphemy laws and discrimination produce persecution. Jobs that are seen as low, dirty, and degrading are given to Christians, who continue to be pushed to the margins of society. Brick factories are debtor prisons for believers. Pray for strength. We lift our ministry partners in this Muslim-majority country. Read Psalm 24. CLICK HERE to watch Prayercast’s video about Pakistan.
Monday, April 10 – Day 20: Turkey. Many in Turkey consider being Muslim a part of their identity. To be Turkish, they believe, means to be Muslim. Pray that God will change that mindset as Turkish Christians serve and minister in their country. Pray the Feb. 6 earthquake opened hearts and lift the work our brothers are doing for the Lord. Read Jeremiah 31:25.
Tuesday, April 11 – Day 21: Masked dancers. Muslims around the world – especially in Western South Asia and Africa – strive for a mystical union with God. These are Sufis. In Turkey, the Whirling Dervish are Sufi mystics, not some tourist attraction. Pray for eyes to be opened. Read 2 Peter 1:3-5. CLICK HERE to pray for Sufis.
Wednesday, April 12 – Day 22: Indonesia. Tourism plays a significant part in the economy in the world’s largest Muslim majority nation. As Indonesian Muslims are on the move, let’s pray that they encounter Christ on their journeys, especially those who visit the island of Lombok. Pray for C4C’s Sembalun Project. Read Psalm 97:1. CLICK HERE to view Prayercast’s video about Indonesia.
Thursday, April 13 – Day 23: Educating the masses. Wahhabi Muslims consider themselves the gatekeepers of Islam. Wahhabism is rooted in and financed by Saudi Arabia. It is a fundamentalist interpretation of the Quran. The ideology is spread by building schools. Pray for wisdom. Read Proverbs 3:13. CLICK HERE to pray for Wahhabi Muslims.
Friday, April 14 – Day 24: Sunni vs. Shia. The majority of Muslims are Sunni (90 percent), or “People of the Tradition.” They consider themselves more orthodox than Shiites, who believe Muhammad’s successor should have come from his family line and imams are sinless messengers from God. Read 1 John 1:8. CLICK HERE to pray for Sunni Muslims and HERE to pray for Shia Muslims.
Saturday, April 15 – Day 25: Folk Muslims. The majority of Muslims combine superstition, witchcraft, and other dark arts to ward off evil spirits, seek protection, and bring blessing. Fear is a way of life. Orthodox Islam focuses on afterlife, Folk Islam with everyday realities. May they find peace in Jesus. Read John 14:27. CLICK HERE to view Prayercast’s video about Folk Islam.
Sunday, April 16 – Day 26: The role of women. The Quran is clear that men and women are equal in the eyes of God. But many cultures where Islam is dominant have traditional practices that make women second-class citizens. Muslim women face inequalities in work, education, health care, and family roles. Read Luke 1:45.
Monday, April 17 – Day 27: Night of Power. “Laylat al Qadr” or the “Night of Power” celebrates the revelation of the Quran’s first verses to Muhammad. It is an extremely spiritual night when prayers and good deeds are considered greater than all the prayers and good deeds done in 1,000 months. Read John 1:29-30.
Tuesday, April 18 – Day 28: Hajj. Annual pilgrimage made to the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia the last month of the Islamic calendar (June 26 this year). Over 2 million people attend Hajj. Muslims make great efforts to do the pilgrimage at least once in their lifetime. Pray for Damascus moments on the road to Mecca. Read Acts 9:3.
Wednesday, April 19 – Day 29: Eid al-Adha. When Hajj ends Muslims celebrate Eid al-Adha. It begins June 28. This is the “holiday of the sacrifice” and it remembers Abraham and his willingness to sacrifice his son Isaac. Pray Muslims know God sacrificed His Son for them. Read Genesis 22:13-14.
Thursday, April 20 – Day 30: Pray on! More Muslims than ever have turned to Jesus. Yet two billion continue to follow Islam. Our prayers for the Muslim world do not end at sunset today which marks the end of Ramadan. Our prayers continue through the rest of this year and the years to come. Read 1 Thessalonians 5:17. And “Pray on!”
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