GLOBAL INTERCESSION: PRAYER FOR THE AMERICAS.

This week, we are praying for the Regions of North and South America, whose roles are critical to completing the Great Commission.
We also share the Prayer Alert for Iran. (see below)

AMERICAS – KEY STATS

PRAY FOR SOUTH AMERICA:

Latin America and the Caribbean.

South America is a continent, while Latin America is a cultural-linguistic region. The South American Region comprises three sub-regions of South America, Central America, and the Caribbean.

The current population of Latin America and the Caribbean is 670,808,456.

• Latin America and the Caribbean population is equivalent to 8.1% of the total world population.
• Latin America and the Caribbean rank number 4 among regions of the world (roughly equivalent to “continents”), ordered by population.
• The population density in Latin America and the Caribbean is 33 per Km² (86 people per mi²).
• 85.9% of the population is urban (577,321,791 people in 2026)
• The median age in Latin America and the Caribbean is 32.1 years.

10 Most Populous Nations of South America.

10 Most Populous Nations of the Caribbean.

Growth in South America

The growth of Evangelicals in Latin America in the last century, especially the last generation, is spectacular.

• In 1900, evangelicals numbered about 700,000, or 1% of the population. (only about 200,000 of these being in Spanish and Portuguese-speaking countries). They have now surpassed 100 million, or 16.8% of the population.
• Most of this growth was fuelled by the steady, faithful proclamation and witness of tens of thousands of laymen and pastors planting small churches out of a passion for the gospel – praise God for such growth and pray that it might continue!
• The New World is home to over 35% of the world’s evangelicals.

Historical Issues:
The resurgence of indigenous peoples and their fight for recognition, greater autonomy and self-determination. From Arctic to tropics to Antarctic, natives were routinely exterminated, subjugated and swindled out of their lands and rights. In many regions this struggle took on violent overtones – Guatemala, Peru, Mexico – while in others it has been chiefly legal and political.

Additionally, the legacy and progeny of the 11 million African slaves brought to the New World are issues that likewise demand repentance, reconciliation, and arguably, reparations from the European colonizers.

It was chiefly Christians who fought to end the slave trade and evangelize the native peoples of the Americas; it should be Christians who lead the way in walking out the path of full reconciliation.

Pray that God would create humble hearts in His people. May we be willing to truly listen to one another and do whatever it takes to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. (Eph 4:3)

Challenges:

• Illegal drugs, particularly cocaine, cause untold suffering and upheaval. They have wrought havoc in the countries producing the coca leaf as a crop (Colombia, Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru, others), to the countries used for trans-shipment (Central America and Caribbean, but mostly Mexico), to the consumers (primarily the US), but in fact all countries.
• Addictions, broken lives, violence, crime and corruption, greed, and overwrought judicial, law enforcement and prison systems are all results of this systemic sin.
• Criminal cartels and leftist guerrillas are funded while legitimate governments are seemingly powerless to stop the billions of dollars enriching wicked men.
• Pray for effective and viable policies to combat this evil, and pray that God might move in such a way as to end the seemingly insatiable appetite that fuels the whole evil structure.

Human Needs:

Widespread human need exists, even in these relatively stable and affluent continents.

• Economic poverty is the most obvious, having been a defining factor for decades in the political and even theological developments in Latin America.
• Lack of education and literacy, health issues, lack of clean water and sanitation, and persistent urban violence and crime all continue to plague much of the region.
• The Caribbean has the highest murder rate of any region in the world.
• While democratic government continues to take root in some places, in many others it is a fledgling concepts and needs both integrity by leaders and committed endurance by the population.

People movements are growing among the Amerindians, who have long been resistant or indifferent to the gospel – understandable given that Christianity mostly followed in the wake of the devastation of disease, conquest, and colonialism.

Church growth is occurring among Quechua and Aymara churches in the Andes, Mayan peoples in Central America and, increasingly, native peoples in North America. Also notable is the increasing indigenization of the gospel, centuries after it should have originally happened! Pray that Christians from majority groups might learn from, esteem, and honour fellow believers from amongst indigenous groups.

Pentecostals:

Pentecostals demonstrate the greatest vigour and are now the largest component of evangelicals in Latin America with over 66 million affiliates and 12.1% of the population. The Americas represent 50% of the world’s Pentecostals, despite having less than 14% of the world’s population. Their greatest success is among the poor. Growth is weakened by multiple splits, inadequate discipling of converts and often exaggerated claims of growth.

Missions’ vision has rapidly grown and matured in Latin America. The 1987 COMIBAM conference in São Paulo, Brazil, generated continent-wide interest and sparked numerous initiatives to reach the unreached. At that time, there were around 60 agencies with 1,600 missionaries. Today, there are over 400 agencies representing more than 10,000 missionaries!

An increasing proportion serves outside Latin America and in the unevangelized world. Major sending nations are Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, and Peru, but missionary sending structures are developing in most lands. Quite apart from this are the thousands who serve God abroad as economic migrants or deliberate tentmakers. Pray for consistent, loving, fruitful witness of these servants of God to their host cultures.

The Assemblies of God movements in Latin America have become a Missionary Sending movement sending to 121 Nations with over 6 Million US$ annual giving.

PRAY FOR NORTH AMERICA.

Countries in North America

SPIRITUAL IMPACT OF NORTH AMERICA.

The positive spiritual impact of North America, and especially the USA, on the world. Praise God for:

• Great evangelists and missionary statesmen who touched the world (Finney, Moody, Billy Graham and others).
• The immeasurable effects of writers, speakers, pastors and trainers on the global body of Christ, through training, teaching, discipling and empowering.
• Unstinting generosity in giving financially to good causes – especially mission advances. Pray that godly North Americans might continue to engage with the needs of the world in a humble, passionate and informed way. Hollywood’s portrayal of American life is a perversion of the values that made the USA a great nation.

The impact of the media is significant all over the New World. Widespread use by Christians of local, national and international radio and television networks as well as the Internet has a massive influence. The influence of the medium of television – for both spreading the good news and for proliferating ungodly values – cannot be understated. The multiplication of local television and radio stations and broadcasts as well as countless thousands of Christian and evangelistic websites, mobile phone applications and other digital tools further widen the opportunities for proclamation of the gospel.

Issues within Evangelicalism in the 21st Century.
Pray about these issues:

• A reigniting of the flame of the Spirit to bring back revival and growth. While still increasing, evangelicals are growing at less than half the rate of 25 years ago. This can partly be explained by slowing overall population growth rates and by overall sociological/demographic principles. But genuine biblical revival is too rare and is often replaced with glitzy showmanship, and what church growth does occur tends to be transfer growth from other churches.
• Evangelical nominalism, a threat to every region of the Americas. The disconnect between notional assent to the claims of Jesus and living them out blunts the Church’s cutting edge and creates a distaste for Christian hypocrisy among non-believers. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the US, where there is a gap of over 22 million between those who identify themselves as evangelical and those even remotely connected to church life. Pray for the integration of these millions into active and meaningful involvement.
• Prosperity theology – a baptized acquisitiveness that can justify selfishness and focus on things of this world.

The Evangelical Missions movement has had an enormous impact on the world – firstly from North America and now increasingly from Latin America. Caribbean missions vision is still young but is now increasing. The maturing, evangelical, Latin American missions movement has expanded and organized greatly since the 1980s. Pray for:

• Congregations to learn the privileges and responsibilities of being part of the Great Commission and of supporting cross-cultural outreach within their own lands and abroad.
• Financial support of workers, the lack of which is a major limitation. The failure of congregations to understand the need to support their workers will limit the potentially incredible harvest force from Latin America.

THE PENTECOSTALS IN AMERICA.

Pentecostals demonstrate the greatest vigour and are now the largest component of evangelicals in Latin America, with over 66 million affiliates and 12.1% of the population. The Americas represent 50% of the world’s Pentecostals, despite having less than 14% of the world’s population. Their greatest success is among the poor. Growth is weakened by multiple splits, inadequate discipling of converts and often exaggerated claims of growth.

Pray for the Missionary Vision of the Assemblies of God and the Pentecostal World Fellowship Churches in both North and South America to be a catalyst for completing the Great Commission.

(Sources: The Operation World, Worldometers.com)

Thank You for Praying for the Americas.

Prayer Alert! Pray for Iran.

As you may know by now, there is war in Iran and in the surrounding nations, and we request your earnest prayer for the Nation of Iran.
The International Prayer Connect Prayer Alert notes that: