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A Prayer for Ukraine

2/24/2022

Father God,

Our hearts break at what is happening in Ukraine. We pray for a quick and peaceful end to this attack. Protect the people who are under threat. Comfort those who are fearful. Release your peace and compassion in and through your church. Draw people to the Rock of Ages to find their shelter under your wings. Crush the arm of the oppressor. Frustrate their plans and bring them to utter ruin. Lead them all to the cross in this hour. Convict the hearts of every person to see each other as precious image bearers of God. We cry out for mercy. We need you Jesus. Ukraine needs you Jesus. Come O Lord. Bring your peace. Bring your salvation and blessing to that nation. Come O Lord. We long for your return. Your kingdom come and your will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. Maranatha.

In Jesus name.
Amen

Talbot Commencement 2021

12/17/2021

I was excited to introduce our newest graduates of our Doctor of Ministry program at today's Talbot Commencement Ceremony. If you'd like to deepen the well from which you drink from and strengthen your skills for ministry, contact our Doctor of Ministry department today. (See link below)

https://catalog.biola.edu/tst/dmin/?_ga=2.175054178.1190131510.1611550467-1209836806.1578594200

CT Book Awards

12/14/2021

Honored to have been one of the judges in this year's Christianity Today Book Awards. Congrats to all the authors for their great work in getting these books out into the world.

Sign Up for Updates

12/1/2021

As I've been able to blog more these days, I've received many requests for a subscription form to send out email updates for when I have new blog posts. If you'd like to be on that list, simply submit your email below. Thanks for all your support. I'm looking forward providing more encouragement and resources in the days to come. God bless you.

Arise 2021

11/19/2021

Excited to take part in Arise 2021 this year. Please pray for God to speak through me and bring honor to Christ. Thank you.

Ablaze Conference 2021

9/9/2021

I'm honored to be speaking for the 2021 Ablaze Conference hosted by Biola University and the Billy Graham Center. Registration is now open for the Oct 7-9 conference. Please pray that God would speak through me and be honored, and may we experience healing and revival in our nation. You can register or find out more in the link: https://www.biola.edu/ablaze-conference

Grieving and Groaning: A Prayer Guide for Afghanistan

8/21/2021

There’s a meme that’s been making the rounds recently of a man running but another man behind him is quickly approaching. The man in the front represents “me processing 2020 and 2021” and the man who’s quickly coming represents “2022 only 4 months away.” It’s hard to believe that 2022 will be just around the corner. There has been so much trauma we have been through collectively as a nation and as a generation within these past (almost) 2 years which will take many more months, if not years, to process. Covid was the first wave of shock and suffering that entered our lives but it was not the last. It was followed by waves of racial injustice, then political tension, and for many, the loss of their loved ones due to Covid. Wave after wave, it feels like the pounding did not stop.

Now the most recent wave of suffering turns our hearts to the nation of Afghanistan, who has had decades of war, terror, and instability in leadership. The Taliban, a repressive Isamic group, has seized control over the nation and people are trying to flee the country by the thousands. It has been heartbreaking to see the image of a baby being given to the US military for fear of the Taliban getting a hold of the child, the cries of girls pleading to enter the airport as they tell the soldiers, “Taliban is coming! They will harm us! Please take us!” The layers of pain and grief we have witnessed over these months make it clear that this world is broken and in desperate need of healing. Where can we turn? And what can we do?

I want to guide us through some steps we can take as we remember those in Afghanistan during this troublesome time.

Grieve

The first thing we must do in light of all this pain is to grieve. Lament the loss of life, the loss of freedom, and the persecution that is to come for so many. Henri Nouwen once said, “I am beginning to see that much of praying is grieving.” One thing this season of suffering has taught me is how important grieving is to the heart of God. May the Church mourn with those who mourn (Romans 12:15), realizing that it is God’s heart that we join as we choose to weep with the hurting. Let us grieve over the sin and suffering that has gripped Afghanistan.

Groan

Creation is groaning, as in the pains of childbirth, for the return of Christ to restore all things (Romans 8:22). And one of the gifts that pain gives to us in this fallen world is to let go of this world as our home and cling on to Christ. Paul teaches us that the Spirit helps us in our weakness and when we don’t know how to pray, the Spirit groans from within us prayers to our Father in heaven (Romans 8:26). If you don’t know what to say, then cry out and groan with the Spirit. God knows our hearts, sees our tears, and helps us to pray. Let us groan together over a nation that is in desperate need of deliverance. Let us cry out with creation, “Maranatha! O Lord, come!” And come quickly, Lord. Amen and amen.

Give

I know many want to help in other tangible ways to feel they are making a direct impact on the situation in Afghanistan right now. You can also give to some Christian organizations who are providing humanitarian aid in Afghanistan right now. World Relief and Lamia Afghan Foundation are a couple of groups seeking to bring the light of Christ to this nation during this urgent time of need. Giving to the least of these is ultimately giving to Christ (Matthew 25:40). Individually and as a church, let’s express love through our giving.

Go

While most of us are not able to go to the Middle East right now, we can all go before the Throne of Grace and plead for His mercy over this nation. Here are some key areas we can cover with our prayers.

Pray for the strengthening of faith for the believers

Believers in Afghanistan are preparing for an increase in persecution. A number of church leaders reported getting notices from the Taliban that said, “We know where you are, and we know what you are doing. We are coming for you.” Pray for protection. But even if their lives are threatened, pray that they will remain faithful until the very end and receive the crown of life (Revelation 2:10; Matthew 24:13). May their faith be refined and strengthened in the fire of affliction.

Pray for protection for the vulnerable

What we learn throughout Scripture is that God cares passionately for the orphan, the widow, and the refugee (Deut 10:18; James 1:27). They were the most vulnerable groups of society at that time. The Bible makes it crystal clear: those who are deeply vulnerable and deeply valuable to the heart of God. In Afghanistan, women and girls are especially at risk. Young girls are even given over to the Taliban as wives with little to no rights of their own. Pray for their safety, freedom, and deliverance.

Pray for missionaries

With the number of believers in Afghanistan being less than 0.05%, the work of missionaries there is vital. Now more than ever, the precious number of missionaries who are there face an even greater risk for their lives. They need our prayers for spiritual coverage (1 Peter 5:8-11), for intimacy with God (Mark 3:14) to carry them through hard times, and for their sending churches to partner faithfully and fervently in the place of prayer (Philippians 4:10-20). I provide a more in depth look at the intercessory needs of missionaries in my book Praying for Your Missionaries. If you know of missionaries there, I encourage you to pray through those needs during this crucial hour. This is spiritual warfare, and we must fight with them and fight for them in prayer.

Pray for stable and righteous leadership

Let us pray that God would establish good and godly leadership to rule this land (1 Timothy 2:2). Pray for leaders who will serve the people and not oppress them. Pray that God would crush the arm of the wicked (Psalm 10:15) and uproot the evil plans of the Taliban in Jesus name. May the plans of the enemy fail and God’s mercy and grace prevail.

Pray for homes for the displaced

There are thousands who are seeking shelter in a safe place. Pray that these refugees would find safe passage into a new home. Pray that God would put the lonely and lost in families (Psalm 68:6). Pray for more nations to open their borders and homes to welcome the foreigner into their land. May we love our neighbors as ourselves.

Pray for salvation for our Muslim neighbors

As God used persecution in the book of Acts to spread the gospel to other cities and nations, pray that this time of tribulation would also bear fruit for the Kingdom. Pray that the gospel would spread into the hearts of all Afghan people. Pray for more dreams and visions of Jesus throughout the Muslim world, drawing people to Christ. Pray that the Taliban will repent and turn to Christ as Lord and Savior and turn from the wicked ways.

Let God raise up mighty waves of prayer to crash over this nation and bring forth a mighty revival and healing for this land. Dear Church, let us humble ourselves and pray and seek His face together. Maranatha.

Eddie Byun is the Director of the Doctor of Ministry Program and Associate Professor of Christian Ministry at Talbot School of Theology. He is the author of the award winning book Justice Awakening, Praying for Your Pastor, and Praying for Your Missionary. He is also the Executive Producer of Save My Seoul, an award winning documentary about sex trafficking in South Korea.

AAPI Heritage Month

5/7/2021

I’m so honored to be the featured author for IVP today. As we celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in May, I've only grown more thankful over the years by how much InterVarsity Press has been committed to sharing AAPI voices. I appreciate their support, their values, and their vision to the greater body of Christ. And for this month, my first book with IVP, Justice Awakening, is 40% off. As this justice movement is growing in our generation, now more than ever, a firm biblical foundation of justice is needed. Help share this message today. #justiceawakening

A Prayer for This Hour ...

3/18/2021

Father, release the power of the Holy Spirit to convict the world of sin (John 16:8). Let hearts be humbled, let knees bow, and let lives be changed by the gospel of Jesus Christ. Comfort the broken-hearted, increase the courage and conviction of Your people ... to pursue justice and to protect the vulnerable in our land. Release Your peace into the hearts of the fearful. Father, have mercy and heal this nation. Uproot the evils of racism across America. Crush the arm of the oppressor. Destroy their strength. Render them powerless in Jesus name. Uproot the evils of abuse that have harmed women, men, and children for far too long. Remove these leaders from all positions of power - in the church, in the government, in all places of influence. We surrender these sins at the foot of the cross. Shine brightly in this hour, O Light of the world. Shine, and let Your Light drive away darkness. Bring change. Bring repentance. Bring revival. Bring healing. Let it be, Lord. Let it be. In the mighty name of Jesus we pray, Amen.

Providence ... and Power

3/7/2021

These two books have been life-giving. Reading them together has been life-changing. Providence has opened my eyes to see the beauty of God's sovereignty - in both mystery and majesty. Redeeming power has been such a humbling read. Power is too often used as a weapon that harms, instead of a shield to protect. And reading these two books together has allowed me to see pain through the lens of God's providence, to see suffering through the lens of sovereignty, and see Christ as the source of our hope in this fallen world. Highly recommended.