Prayer Focus January - February 2014

January 2014 1 Wed. New Zealand - Calendar Gifts CLC sends out calendars to prisoners in New Zealand. This is a joint effort, with the calendars being provided by another Christian trust and CLC then sorting and sending them out. Last year at least 12,000 calendars were delivered in time for Christmas and for some prisoners this is their only Christmas present. The calendars have a New Zealand scene for each month and each day has a Bible verse.

Boxes of calendars ready to go out!

CA1 and will have the opportunity to attend the wedding at the same time.

4-5 Sat/Sun. UK – Staffing Needs There are staffing needs in several UK shops - for Managers, staff, and volunteers.

Pray that the Lord will send people to us who share our objectives and ethos.

The warehouse also continues to be under pressure and more help would be appreciated. In the meantime, please pray that the work will not be hindered through the lack of the right people.

6 Mon. Germany – New Evangelistic Book “In December we sent out around 1,000 copies of an evangelistic ‘art’ book. We published it together with an artist/author through cloudfunding. Publishers were cautious about the project but it worked out well. Please pray with us, that many people are encouraged by this very modern way of presenting the gospel.”

Valentin Schweigler, Director

S Rozhdestvom!

2 Thu. Portugal – Counting on Volunteers At the beginning of January CLC Portugal hold their annual inventory. Carlos Cunha, the shop manager, relies on volunteer help to get the job done, so please pray he has willing and able helpers for the task. Pray too for the purchase of a new invoicing system and the time needed to adjust to it.

3 Fri. Central Asia – Wedding Congratulations!

The Director of the company we partner with, and manager of the CLC bookshop, in CA3 is getting married tomorrow and has moved to be with her husband in the same city as our CA1 bookshop! Neil Wardrope, CLC’s International Director, is currently visiting the couple that run the bookshop in

7 Tue. Russia – S Rozhdestvom! (Happy Christmas) The Russian Orthodox Church celebrates Christmas today. While most of our shops are already well past the Christmas rush, in some countries we are still in the holiday season – up until the 10th of January in Russia. Neil Wardrope will be with the team today as part of his current trip to visit CLC staff.

8 Wed. Maternity Leave in Sierra Leone Lavinia Kamara, who oversees the finance and administration, will be taking maternity leave for up to four months, starting in January. Please pray for Lavinia, and for a safe delivery of her baby as Sierra Leone is known for having poor ante and postnatal care. Lavinia’s absence will mean added responsibility for other members of the team. Please pray for wisdom and strength for these extra tasks.

9 Thu. Maternity Leave in Ecuador “Monica and Paulina are both CLC staff members and on the administrative committee for CLC in Ecuador; their work is greatly appreciated. Currently they are on maternity leave and have new babies to care for. We are grateful for the provision of people to take on their roles until they return.” Carlos Marin 10 Fri. Austria – Busy Weekend CLC Graz has two book tables at conferences this weekend – one in Carinthia, which will be run by volunteer helpers, and the other in Graz (at the Evangelical Alliance weekend).

Shop manager Edeltraud Heumann writes: “Two opportunities at the beginning of the New Year to spread the Good News. Please pray for good contacts!”

11-12 Sat/Sun. UK – Retail Website Give thanks for the increased traffic on the CLC UK retail web site (www.clcbookshops. com) and for the success of the preChristmas e-mail marketing campaign which encouraged customers and contacts to visit both the web site and the shops. Pray for Cristi Cotovan as he continues to work on improvements and upgrades to the site, and for his wife Ane who is now helping with some of the site maintenance work.

13 Mon. Cyprus – Facing 2014 “We are grateful to those who prayed for us during the busy Christmas season as we held a number of book tables in different parts of the island. They went well although sales were not as high as the previous year.

However, we had some unexpected good orders for Bibles for which we praise the Lord. Please continue to pray with us as the economic outlook for 2014 is not very good for Cyprus – and the crisis may well deepen.” Sotos and Eva Photiades 14 Tue. USA – New Candidates Please pray for Henry and Cheryl Dallis and family who will be coming to do Candidate Orientation and Partnership Development training in January. If all goes well and they are accepted, they would begin work with CLC USA as missionaries. Cheryl would likely serve in one of the bookstores and Henry would work alongside Dave Desch in the Maintenance Department.

15 Wed. Philippines – School Books “Our Publishing Department is working with a well-known author to produce a curriculum programme, ‘CLC Wise Kids Series’, to be used by the Department of Education.

Bible verses will be included in the content.

The first project is the ‘READSHOP 1’ and hopefully we will also produce books for other subjects - music, Filipino, arts, PE and writing. Pray for God’s direction and wisdom for this project. We plan to release the first two titles this month.” Romualdo Macinas

16 Thu. PNG – Stock Sales and Inventory We are grateful to God for giving us another year to serve him in 2014. Please pray for God’s wisdom as we try to find new ways to increase sales this year. Our ‘stocktaking clearance sale’ will be held during this month and then on the last day of the month we do the annual inventory.

17 Fri. Ecuador – Events for Booksellers We are grateful to God for the opportunity recently to host meetings and training sessions in Quito for booksellers from all over the country. Dr. Alfonso Ropero (Clie Publications)

and Dr. Jaime Mirón (Tyndale) shared in some of the sessions and the time was a great blessing for all those who attended. (see photo) CLC Ecuador Event

updated evaluation of the situation.

21 Tue. Mozambique – Board Members We are very grateful that a Brazilian missionary couple, Sandro and Clarissa Silva, joined the local Board of CLC in Mozambique last year. They have been quick to learn about the ministry and to help us with finding solutions to overcome our challenges. Please pray for them and for all the local Board members, that each one would find their place to be able to serve on the Board according to their gifting.

18-19 Sat/Sun. UK – Stock Taking We are preparing for stocktaking and the end of our financial year at the end of January. This brings extra tasks on top of the normal workload so pray that the service to customers, from both the warehouse and shops, does not suffer. Pray too for John Auger and the accounts team as they finalise accounts for the year end.

22 Wed. India - Sri Lanka Some years after withdrawing from Sri Lanka, ELS/CLC India is re-starting the work there. A national, Brian Stevenson, has received training from the Indian team in Chennai and has now returned to Sri Lanka to manage the bookshop. Please pray for this new venture, that good contacts would be established and that a suitable location for the bookshop would be identified.

20 Mon. Cote d’Ivoire – Shop Closure Last year was not easy for the ministry and sadly our bookshop in Korhogo will close at the end of January. Regarding our other bookshops, in Abidjan and Bouake, the future of Bouake is also uncertain. Please pray for Liz Patten, the Africa Regional Director and Prosper Weda, the French West Africa Director as they visit in February to get an

23 Thu. India – Annual Conference CLC, or ELS as it is known in India, normally have their Annual Conference at the end of January. This year there will be the important issue of the future leadership of the ministry to address as the current National Director, Christopher Roberts, is due to retire. A new leader will be elected at the conference. Please pray.

CLC UK Team 2012 Confernence

CLC India Team with Neil Wardrope & Dave Almack Page 3 (January)

24 Fri. France – Board Meeting Today a meeting of the CLC France board members is scheduled. The development of the publishing department will be one of the main topics as we have many opportunities.

Your prayers for God’s wisdom and guidance would be appreciated.

25-26 Sat/Sun. UK – Sheffield CLC Sheffield is providing the bookshop for two major conferences soon. The first is the ‘Global Connections’ conference from the 27th to the 29th of January, and the second is the ‘Life in the Spirit’ conference that takes place in February. Please pray as the Sheffield team selects and orders stock for these conferences. Also pray that CLC will work well with the organisers to meet the needs of the conference delegates.

27 Mon. Italy – We are a Mission “In CLC Italy we are trying to convey more effectively to churches and believers that we are a “mission” and that our purpose is not primarily business orientated, but to please God and ‘build His kingdom’. Please pray for creative ideas, and people who are able to communicate these ideas, so our interaction with the Christian community will improve. We are thankful for growing cooperation with various other missions regarding literature projects.

28 Tue. Swaziland –Links with Other Missions We thank God for new Board members Steve & Lorraine Stavroplous (photo below), who are missionaries with Trans-World Radio. Lorraine will be getting alongside the two ladies working in the bookshop, for mentoring and support, whilst Steve will keep an eye on our (still precarious) financial situation, ensuring that bills are paid on time and that expenses are kept as low as possible.

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29 Wed. Korea – Translation Department CLC in Korea is organising a translation department to take on the work of translating the Anchor Bible Series published by Yale University Press. We trust that the Korean version of the Anchor Bibles will help Christians in Korea grow in their faith and understanding. Please pray our translation department will do a good and successful job.

30 Thu. Hungary – Starting to Publish This year we hope to start publishing books in Hungary. Although it has been an idea for many years, this will be quite a new thing for us - please pray for wisdom in choosing the right titles, and for the right people to work with us with the translation, proofreading and printing process.

Pray for our team as we prepare ourselves mentally, physically and spiritually to face another year of challenges.

4 Tue. USA – Two New Titles Please pray for the successful launch of two new CLC titles – Getting Into God by Stuart Briscoe and Led to Lead by Marty Berglund.

These books will be available early in 2014.

31 Fri. Japan – Accounts and Budgets There will be meetings of the CLC leadership at the beginning of February to discuss issues such as last year’s accounts and the proposed budget for 2014. Please pray that wise and godly decisions will be made.

February 2014 1-2 Sat/Sun UK – Inverness The Inverness shop gives praise for the provision of a brand new Vauxhall Combo van through a very generous donation. Give thanks that this will enable Les and Esther Dowey to continue their book ministry in the Highland and Islands region of Scotland.

Give thanks too for increasing church support for this venture. Pray for safety as they travel and for a growing interest in the books and Bibles they carry. (Photo below)

3 Mon. PNG – Back to School In February it is Back to School month in PNG and we plan to do a Back to School sale. Pray for good sales as we try to stock stationery and Bibles for school children.

5 Wed. Bangladesh – Building Works Please pray for the bookshop in Dhaka which is run by Dominic and Shilpi Cadet. They have faced many difficulties in running the shop since it opened.

Currently a flyover is being built very close to the bookshop, and the noise and disruption is causing much concern. At one point, a heavy crane got stuck in the road opposite our bookshop and it was in danger of collapsing onto the shop.

Thankfully the situation was resolved without causing any damage.

6 Thu. Romania – Growth in Publishing We hoped to extend our publishing activity in 2013 and, as a result, we printed 6 new titles and reprinted 2. At the time of writing, we have another 3 books already translated and hope to have them printed in the first three months of 2014. We pray for God’s help in order to improve the quality of our publishing, to produce better translations, and to learn more about all the activities related to publishing. It is still a relatively new process for us.

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7 Fri. Italy – Our Volunteers Please pray for our volunteers and parttime helpers, that they may be a practical help to the managers and a blessing to the customers. Silvia in Turin, Erica in Milan, Teresa and Stefano in Florence, Emanuele in Rome, Luca in Naples, Margherita in Palermo, and Debora and Giuseppe in Catania. In CLC Bari there are a number of volunteers - in fact the shop is entirely run by volunteers under the leadership of Laura. Thank God for each one of them.

8-9 Sat/Sun. UK – Stockport CLC Stockport give thanks that they survived another disaster when, two months ago, the empty building next to their recently relocated shop collapsed. No one was hurt and the bookshop was only closed for two days. Although the relocation of the shop (due to fire damage from a neighbouring property) was in 2012, customers are still finding the new shop. Please pray that many more will come back and the shop will prosper in its new location.

10 Mon. Colombia - Mexico & Miami At the time of writing, CLC Colombia was in the process of establishing a new work in Mexico and adding a retail store to the warehouse operation in Miami. Pray for the right people to join the two teams and for the successful launching of these two initiatives. Praise God for the opportunities that are open to us.

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11 Tue. Kenya – Promoting the Bookshop Please pray for the team in Nairobi as they seek to develop and promote the retail shop located at our warehouse. With a number of Christian bookshops having closed due to economic conditions, there has been less call for wholesale services lately, but the individual retail customer has less choice of where to go to find Christian resources.

Please pray for creativity, stamina and spiritual encouragement for Edith, Patrick and the other members of the team.

12 Wed. Austria – Orders and Stock Control In the first month or two of the New Year, CLC Austria has two specific areas where prayer would be appreciated. Firstly, representatives from all the publishers will be visiting the shop to take orders for the first half of the year. Secondly, Edeltraud Heumann, the shop manager, needs to decide whether to change the stock system and she wants to spend time visiting other shops to get information on how they control their stock. If a change is to be made this year, the new system needs to be ordered and put in place before the summer break.

13 Thu. Thailand – Staff Needed Please pray for Yongyut and Paula Kantheseema who lead the CLC ministry in Thailand. Sales are declining yet overheads and expenses are increasing. Added to that, no new staff have joined the team for several years now and there is still an urgent need for an English speaking staff member. Another ongoing prayer request is that the right people will be found to rent some available rooms above the Chiang Mai bookshop. CLC have bought the whole building and rental income would be a significant financial help.

14 Fri. Portugal – First Publication CLC Portugal plans to launch its first publishing project in May. Praise the Lord for professional and qualified people who have helped, free of charge in the process of translating into Portuguese, the CLC USA publication Holiness without the Halo

by Stuart and Jill Briscoe. Please pray that all the final details will go well and that this book project will be the successful start of CLC publishing in Portugal.

revolutionised by technology. Pray for the technical work being done, and for the inspiration to know how to use these new means to reach more people with the Gospel.

15-16 Sat/Sun. UK - Trustees The UK trustees will be meeting on Tuesday 18th of February. Please pray for them as they oversee the work of the mission, set policy and guide the director Phil Burnham and the heads of departments. In particular pray for the two new trustees Eddie Olliffe and John Watkins as they join the Board.

20 Thu. Venezuela – Dollar Difficulties The parliament has granted Venezuela’s president wide ranging powers that allow him to pass bills without the need for parliamentary approval. Government inspectors are visiting every business to enforce the new rules that require prices for goods and services to be restricted.

Please pray for our team as they are very concerned. Please continue to pray for the need to receive US dollars to pay suppliers.

This situation is becoming extreme and is threatening our ability to buy from publishers. The dollar rate on the street is three times the official rate but it is almost impossible to obtain dollars through the official channels.

17 Mon. Mozambique - Finance Matters Financially, things have always been a struggle, but we praise God for the generosity of a gift from CLC USA which has enabled a loan to be paid off and, shortly after that, the cancellation of a long standing debt. Alex Bila, the CLC Maputo manager, says that this gives a sense of doors being opened for us, but at the same time it also brings with it great responsibility. Please pray that we will order wisely and within our means this year and pay suppliers in advance.

18 Tue. Philippines - Publishing Department The publishing department is working with KingStone Media to produce graphic novels and Bible comics. The initial target date for release was December 2013 but, due to unexpected circumstances, the launch date will now be around the middle of this year.

The publications will be released in English for distribution solely in the Philippines, and in Filipino for worldwide distribution. Please pray for the necessary funds and for the success of this project.

19 Wed. Websites and eBooks CLC is moving rapidly into the digital age.

Seven or eight new commercial websites should be launched in the first few months of this year and, in addition, further websites will be launched to support the eBook project. In time we trust that all CLC teams will have their own eBook website selling eBooks in multiple languages. The book world is being

21 Fri. France – New Website “Our website is now 9 years old. We know we have to offer a complete new website to our customers. For this reason, we’ve been working hard with Cristi Cotovan (CLC IO) and Pierre Glassmann (the CLC France webmaster) to launch this new website at the end of February. Please pray for these men as they work to solve all the technical issues.” Hervé Lessous, National Director 22-23 Sat/Sun. UK - Ipswich CLC Ipswich has dreams of expanding their reach to the very town where CLC started in 1941. Manager Penny Rivett writes: “We had a meeting with DNA Networks a fresh expressions church in the centre of Colchester and they signed up for our Church Partnership Scheme and took on a CLC bookstall. They seem very enthusiastic about this new venture and have volunteers lined up to help. Their building is used for many other activities, both Christian and secular, and the volunteers are prepared to have the bookstall at these events too.”

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24 Mon. Poland – Six New Titles Franklin Graham will hold an evangelistic meeting in a huge stadium in Warsaw this June. CLC Poland has the rights to print his books, and also those of Billy Graham.

With a partial collaboration of the Polish Baptist churches, CLC Poland hopes to publish six new titles by the end of March which will include The Reason for my Hope

by Billy Graham and Rebel with a Cause, the autobiography of Franklin Graham. Please pray for the good coordination of this project and that these books will be a blessing to thousands of Poles and to CLC Poland.

25 Tue. Bolivia – One Year Later We praise the Lord for Gamaliel and Marlene Padilla from Venezuela who moved to Bolivia last February and started the CLC work there. The bookshop in Santa Cruz opened in August and the small team there have been working hard visiting churches and Bible Colleges and doing book tables to make the ministry known. They organised a booksellers’ breakfast for the very first time in the city and twelve people attended the meeting. The booksellers were thankful for the vision of CLC to serve all the denominations and churches in Bolivia.

26 Wed. Barbados – CLC Shelter!

Recently a young woman came into the bookshop to shelter from the rain and she took the opportunity to browse around the store.

This led to a conversation between her and one of our staff about her relationship with the Lord. After another visit the young lady trusted Christ for salvation. Praise the Lord!

27 Thu. Netherlands - 400th Year Celebration This year there will be a celebration marking the 400th year of the Amsterdam Canal. CLC Amsterdam was asked if it wanted to be included in a book giving information about the shops in the canal zone. A photographer and a journalist visited the bookshop to get the relevant information. Please pray the CLC contribution to this book will be effective in drawing new visitors to our shop and, more importantly, to pointing people to the Good News we want to share.

28 Fri. New Zealand – 150th Year Celebration CLC is financially supporting a project to reach every household in New Zealand with the Scriptures. This is a very ambitious plan to commemorate 150 years of Christian presence in New Zealand. The aim is to distribute them before Christmas 2014.

Please pray for this exciting project.

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