April - 9 to 10

Country : COLOMBIA Population 34,939,000 Peoples Spanish-speaking 98.6%. Estimated composition: Mestizo (Eurindian) 57.6%; European 20%; Mulatto (Eurafrican) 14%; African 4%; Zombo (Afro-Indian) 3%. Indigenous Amerindian 0.78%. (50% of population in 1850). Still speaking 65 languages in 12 language families. Largest: Guahibo 80,000; Paez 44,000; Catio (Embera) 40,000. Other 0.6%. Gypsy 39,000; Arab 32,000; English-speaking 13,000; Chinese 7,000. Literacy 70%. Official language: Spanish. All languages 79. Languages with Scriptures 1Bi 27NT 21por. Cities Capital: Santa Fe de Bogotá 6,000,000. Other cities: Medellín 2,500,000; Cali 1,630,000; Barranquilla 1,220,000. Urbanization 67%. Economy Major export earners: oil and coffee (legal) and cocaine (illegal). Colombia processes 80% of the world's supply of cocaine. A great difference between the incomes of the rich and poor. Unemployment 18%. Public debt/person $534. Income/person $1,190 (5.6% of USA). Politics Independent of Spain in 1819 as part of Grand Colombia. A separate state in 1831. Polarization between Conservatives and Liberals has given 150 years of partisan politics, dictatorships and civil war. Those unrepresented by the two contending parties turned to support a variety of violent Marxist guerrilla groups. Some of the latter have aligned themselves with drug cartels who have their own terror groups, leading to a pandemic of assassinations and kidnappings. The constitution of 1991 and elections of 1992 are aimed at bringing the cycle of violence to an end, but the level of violence has continued to increase. Religion After years of persecution of and discrimination against religious minorities, the privileged position of the Roman Catholic Church was removed by the 1991 Constitution, which accords greater freedom to ethnic and religious minorities. Non-religious/other 1.6%. Tribal religions 0.5%. Muslim 0.2%. Jews 0.1%. Baha'i 0.1%. Christian 97.5%. Affil 95.9%. Growth 2.2%. Protestant 3.8%. Growth 4.6%. Roman Catholic 93.1%. Affil 91.53%. Growth 2%. Other Catholic 0.01%. Affil 0.01%. Growth 3.2%. Orthodox 0.02%. Growth 2.7%. Marginal 0.6%. Growth 13.1%. 1. Colombia has a reputation for being possibly one of the most violent countries in the world. Leftist guerrilla movements and the drug-trafficking "barons" dominate many areas of the country. Corruption, blackmail, kidnapping, assassination and revenge murders have brutalized society, which is fast losing moral values and ethical standards. Pray for the political, legal and spiritual leaders of the nation -- for their safety and courage to stand up for the right. Pray that Christians may remain untainted by the evils of their society and become God's instruments for moral, social and spiritual change. Pray that the anger and fear of ordinary people may turn many to personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour. 2. Satan's hold on Colombia must be broken by prayer. Widespread occult practices, the web of powers linking corrupt leaders, drug dealers, the private armies and others all conspire to hinder the advance of the gospel through the intimidation of Christians and missionaries and closing areas of the country for the free proclamation of the gospel. 3. The 1991 Constitution has brought a glimmer of hope with the opening up of the democratic process to those previously unrepresented, reforming the judicial system damaged by the violence of the drug wars, and granting greater religious freedom. The spate of violence has decreased, but pray for the breaking of the power of the drug syndicates and for alternative employment for the many who have earned their livelihood from drug-trafficking. 4. The Roman Catholic Church has exerted an enormous influence on every part of society, but the changing political scene has radically affected it. The main body of the church is strongly traditional, but the charismatic movement has had a wide impact. Yet 70% of all "Catholics" never go to Mass. Pray that the slackening of ties to the state in the new Constitution may open up the way for spiritual renewal. 5. Evangelical growth has been significant. In 1933 there were only 15,000 Evangelicals. Subsequent persecution reached a peak in La Violencia between 1948 and 1960, when religious bigotry provoked the destruction of churches and the robbery, rape and murder of believers. The last 30 years have yielded a harvest from among a receptive people. Aggressive local, city-wide and national evangelistic outreaches have resulted in an eightfold increase in congregations and Evangelical believers. The level of violence in the country and internal problems have slowed the growth of late. Pray for solutions in: a) The leadership crisis, which has grown with the growth of the churches. There are too few deeply taught in the Word, too many personality clashes, and a tendency to autocratic leadership which has divided or distracted many congregations and denominations. There are more than 20 theological institutions training pastors. b) The moral crisis. Fear silences many Christians when confronted by the corruption and violence of their society. Laxity in morals and finance has damaged the effectiveness of many Christian workers and groups. Pray for high standards of biblical holiness among the people of God. c) The disunity crisis. Divisions within the Body of Christ have become a discredit to the name of the Lord and a poor witness to the government and people. Many denominations have been split over bitter personal rivalries, legal rights, properties and relationships between missionaries and Colombians. CEDECOL, the Evangelical Confederation of Colombia, is a body that links over 50 evangelical denominations and coordinates inter-church action. Pray for a decisive work of healing and spiritual unity. 6. Missionaries live under great stress -- especially those from the USA. Some have been murdered, others have received death threats and many have had to be withdrawn from ministry in dangerous areas where leftist or narcotics terrorism is rife. Pray for courage and faithfulness to their calling. Internal mission/church relationships have been a source of tension, division and grief. Great humility and sensitivity is required in the complex ecclesiastical scene in order to have a viable, fruitful ministry. Major mission agencies: SIL/WBT (278), NTM (168), SBC (55), CMA (37), AoG (33), Brethren (29), TEAM (25), OMS (24), and ABWE (19). Major missionary-contributing nations: USA (728), Canada (78), UK (30). 7. Colombian missionary vision needs stimulation. Many Amerindian peoples are closed to foreigners, but only a few Colombians have committed themselves to evangelize them. A handful of Colombians have gone to other lands, but church support is limited. The Spanish edition of Operation World is published in Colombia. Pray for the ongoing ministry of the COMIBAM committee in inspiring Christians to mission. 8. Unreached peoples. Pray specifically for: a) Less evangelized cities. Medellín, with Evangelicals only 0.4% of its population, is renowned for its hardness to the gospel. Medellín is the nation's crime and narcotics capital with 300 gangs of paid killers and 7,000 murders per year. The city of Cali is also a special challenge for the gospel. Cooperation between denominations in Medellín, Barranquilla and Cartagena has led to many conversions (LAM). b) Nearly two million in Bogotá's slums. c) The thousands of Gamines, or homeless street urchins of the cities. YWAM and WEC have a ministry to them. d) The urban middle class which has been stricken by the economic and political crises of the past decade. They are possibly the least responsive section of society. e) The Syrian-Lebanese Muslim community, which numbers around 12,000. f) Amerindian peoples closed to evangelical church planters. Possibly 30-40 are in this category -- including the Inga, Coreguaje, Cuiba, Desano, Epena, Huitoto, Saliba and Tucano. 9. Work among Amerindians has been a constant struggle -- travel and living conditions, indifference of the people, opposition of officials and anthropologists, inter-mission rivalry and recently narcotics terrorists who force the Amerindians to grow cocaine and marijuana. The 1991 Constitution grants wide autonomy to tribes in the rain forests. In spite of it all, there has been some response with people movements to Christ. Pray for: a) Strong, viable, well-led churches, able to cope with drug traffickers and modernization. b) Church-planting ministries of NTM (in 10 peoples), South American Mission in three northeastern peoples, CMA in two peoples, etc. c) Bible translation: SIL has 145 workers committed to 33 translation projects; a number of NTs are nearing completion, and between four and 13 languages await translators. d) GRn recordings which are available in 58 languages. e) The opening up of areas and peoples long closed to the gospel by government restrictions or terrorism. 10. Supportive ministries. a) Literature is not sufficiently used; few churches have a vision for a literature ministry, yet it could be a major corrective for the lack of Bible teaching. CLC has four bookstores, a wide distribution network for literature, and a growing productivity as a publisher of locally-produced Spanish titles. Desafio, a WEC magazine, is used for evangelism by 51% of evangelical churches. b) Student work has been slow and hard. Marxist ideology once dominated the campuses, but now a new spirit of enquiry and openness to the gospel prevails. UCU (IFES) groups have multiplied, under a vision to see an evangelical group witnessing on each campus. c) Christian radio. Evangelicals have little access to national radio and none to TV networks. However, six evangelical broadcasters -- including HCJB (Ecuador), TWR (Bonaire), FEBC and High Adventure (USA) -- broadcast 686 hours a week in Spanish. HCJB also broadcasts 1/2 hour per week in the Inga Quechua language.