Prayer for Boko Haram and their captives

Yesterday in the news, it was reported that Boko Haram laid explosives on one young kidnapped girl and sent her into a school where they detonated the explosives. It was reported that as a child learned of this situation, she said, “God is our refuge and strength. May we enjoy Him while we still have life.”

Please pray with me:

Oh God of Creation, Lord Jesus,

Hear these feeble prayers for these young girls, kidnapped by Boko Haram and for members of Boko Hiram.

The courage of these saints in Christ puts me to shame as I live in such luxury. Forgive me for not taking greater care in prayer for the persecuted, and those imprisoned for the testimony of Christ.

They are tortured, they are sent to their death. May Your presence be so tangible and their joy so complete that their captives are stymied. May they be protected from the false teachings and may You seal them from doubt. Father, may the angelic host protect their mind and may Your Holy Spirit fill their consciousness with Scripture. Truly, may they pray for their persecutors.

These members of Boko Haram—Oh God have mercy. Capture their minds and hearts. May they be filled with doubt. May they find a breach in this evil to question the brain-washing that permeates their soul. Shake them at their core and cause them to cry out to You Oh Lord. May Truth reign!

Jesus, You are Truth. Use these mere children to proclaim the new creature, created by the Holy Spirit. May their testimony of true purity cause their captors to be afraid. Fill the hearts of these men with fear. May they shake and shiver in the knowledge that You are the Most High God.

Father, may these children, staunch warriors of Christ be filled with song. May Thy Spirit uplift them so strongly that their physical pain and emotional angst is out-of-mind.

Sharpen their discernment and sense of Your presence. May it be their comfort and silence the loneliness.  Fill these young hearts with prayers for their captors. May they minister to their captors, to each other, and to You gracious Lord. May their testimony be incomprehensible to those who see and hear them.

Raise up Your Church here in the U.S. and pour out prayers through us for the persecuted church around the world. Wake us up and cause us to urgently be vigilant on their behalf. May we not be found sloppy in our Christian walk. May we not hide from the situation of the church in the busy-ness of our day.

Lord, for these children, grant us prayers by Your Holy Spirit.

In the of Jesus, who was and is and is to come...

(Please add your prayers, support, and "Amen" in the comments section.)