Our lord Jesus prayed for us to the Father in John 17:21- 23, ".....that they may be one as we are one. I in them you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me...." The Lord's fervent hope for us is that we will live in unity. Even as He prayed then, He is still interceding for us at the right hand of the Father. In these disturbing and dangerous times, it is crucial for believers to be united in prayer. Why? So that the world will know that the Lord Almighty Himself reigns. In today's world we see that 1.3 billion Muslims are united, and 600 million Hindus are united. But the world does not acknowledge Christians as being united because we have allowed too many factions to divide us. What should it matter that we have differences in culture, language, or even denomination? We serve the same Master, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Let us follow Him in obedience and seek His will together as one, humbling ourselves together in prayer. Christian brothers and sisters in eastern countries are in desperate need. Here in our comfortable churches we cannot even fathom that need. While we may be concerned with issues of church management or evangelistic campaigns, they are beset by persecution. As we gather in our worship services and Bible studies, Christians in India, Pakistan and other south Asian counties are being threatened with physical harm unless they convert to Hinduism and Islam. Christian missionaries are being deported, violently attacked and even killed. We, the fortunate ones, must shoulder part of their burden and take it to our Lord in prayer, for only He can give them strength for the days ahead. There is no longer any room for division among us. It is imperative that believers from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Guyana and Trinidad (considered as Indians), Bhutan and Nepal cry out to the Lord from their hearts with loud voices as one, to implore His grace on our suffering brethren. We will hold a prayer meeting on Saturday, March 15, 2003 from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. at Bellerose Baptist Church 240-20 Braddock Avenue Bellerose, NY All saints are requested to pay $10.00 to share in the cost of materials and an Indian buffet lunch. Please call, email or fax Mike Massand at the numbers below at your earliest convenience and advise him how many are attending from your church in order to arrange for the lunches. We need this information by March 1 along with your payment. Prayer -- 11:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Lunch -- 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Reports on persecution -- 2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Solution & Planning -- 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Prayer -- 5:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Due to security reasons, a list of specific prayer needs will be given at the door, as well as the agenda for the meeting. Let us all prayerfully commit ourselves to attend this prayer meeting. We shall seek God's blessings and His wisdom. We want you to share your vision and thoughts in the meeting. The Lord is waiting for us to be united. In His service Mike Massand Harvester