Day 25
Kazakhstan
James warns us that anyone who knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, is walking in sin. Jesus, we humbly pray and ask that You will show the Christian Believers in Kazakhstan what You want them to do and how You want them to live to be witnesses for You. Give them strength and courage to do good and obey You. For those who do not yet know You, Jesus, we pray that they will come to know that You are a good God, whose plans and purposes are good and trustworthy. Help them to take that step to faith today. For the leaders of this nation, we bless them to know what is the good they ought to do, and do it for the sake of this nation (The Bible, James 4:17).
A large country the size of Western Europe, Kazakhstan is the world’s leading uranium producer and the economic leader of Central Asia. Soviet-era nuclear testing and toxic waste dumping plague the nation as well as elevating drug addiction levels and HIV/Aids rates. Islam had a resurgence after the Soviet era, but more legal restrictions are being imposed on all religious groups. Unregistered Protestant churches and their Believers suffer the most persecution. Political instability and infighting between the ruling party and opposition groups have been the mark of the last three years. The impact of Russia’s war in Ukraine has been felt hard in the neighboring nations, with many migrant workers in Russia losing jobs due to sanctions, and the rising cost of living impacting the poor.

Day 25
Oman
Lord, we pray for the proud Omanis who are sure of themselves that by their own efforts they will succeed. We bring to Your authority those who planned and acted as if God did not exist. It was as if they claimed to be able to control the future. They were wrong, and a confidence in themselves like that is evil. To think that they could plan the future is to sin against You. Only You can know what is to come. Lord, we even pray for the prideful Churches that talk about what they will do, speak as if they are able to make it happen. Let them realize that it is wrong to speak like this. Only You know and can make things happen (The Bible, James 4:16).
Oman is listed in 47th position in the World Watch Report 2023 by Open Doors for Christian persecution. The Sultan of Oman is Haitham bin Tariq Al. The standard of living improved dramatically due to the discovery of oil. Omanis highly respect their Sultan and have enjoyed peace and prosperity under his leadership. Morden technology has vastly changed the lifestyles of Omanis. Smartphones, the internet, and social media command a great deal of the time of young and older Omanis. Oman’s population has doubled in the past 25 years and around 50% of the population is under 16 years of age. Traditional family structures are also changing. The conservative and traditional nature of Oman’s Islamic society, combined with material comfort, results in much resistance to the Gospel.
