The Worldwide Day of Prayer for Children at Risk took place in at least 100 local events in 34 nations on June 4.
Events that were registered on the day of prayer website this year spanned six continents and dozens of nations.
Nations such as Madagascar, Ethiopia, Denmark, Finland, New Zealand, Australia, Spain, Malta, Romania, Philippines, India, Nepal, Barbados, Tanzania, Burundi, Singapore, Pakistan, and Morocco all reported prayer events.
Many participants across the world testified that the prayer day has brought unity between denominations as Christians gathered with one aim: to help the children at risk, according to Christianity Today.
There are gruesome statistics about the exploitation and oppression of children under AIDS, slavery, trafficking, debt bondage, prostitution, pornography, as child soldiers, and poverty.
At the beginning of the new century, one-third of the world’s population was under the age of 18; that is approximately 1.8 billion children.
One in five people is a child at risk, and over half a billion children are struggling to survive on under US$1 per day, according to year 2000 statistics by UNICEF. Some 8.4 million children are trapped in slavery, trafficking, debt bondage, prostitution, pornography, and other illicit activities, reported Facts on Child Labour.
However, many "at risk" children are quick to recognise, through the love and care of God’s people, the good news that Jesus is their Comforter, Deliverer, and Restorer, according to the Church of the Nazarene's website in promotion of the event.
Research has revealed that nearly 85 percent of people who make a decision for Christ do so between the ages of 4 and 14. The Viva Network's initiative showed the power of God as prayers were answered and sustainable efforts were adopted.
The feedback forms that returned to Viva in 2004 indicated that a total of 609,874 people prayed for 1,646,661 hours. 50,493 prayer packs were sent out to 95 countries with 61,619 people having direct access to the materials.
More importantly, the prayer initiative did not end as a one-day event, but it has motivated many to take further action for the children, stated Christianity Today.
For example, 48 leaders signed a pledge to pray and contribute time, talents and money to help children in Nagpur, India. In Kolkata, India, ex-street-children began to visit the railway station to speak to street-children, tell them the dangers of drugs and show them how to get help, and the Fellowship of the Lord's People church in Prishtina, Kosova formed an organization to work with street-children.
Prayers were also answered.
In Nigeria, four children at the Little Saints Orphanage were healed from HIV after having been prayed for. 12 children and youth became Christians at the end of the prayer event held by Abusinzimana in Rwanda. In Lucenec, Slovakia, a group prayed for a family who had been told that their unborn baby would die soon after birth - the child was born entirely healthy soon afterwards.
The Viva Network is a UK-based network with 81 outlets in 48 countries helping 1.2 million children.
Rhoda Tse
Christian Today Correspondent
