I Want More

Ariel says it best...

"Look at this stuff, Isn't it neat? Wouldn't you think my collection's complete? Wouldn't you think I'm the girl who has everything? Look at this trove; Treasures untold; How many wonders can one “home” hold? Lookin' around here you'd think sure, she's got everything...I've got gadgets and gizmos aplenty. I've got whozits and whatzits galore. You want thingamabobs? I got twenty-But who cares? No big deal, I want more..."

Are you content with what you have or could she have been singing about you? What do you want? 

I want people around the world to learn to have a personal relationship with Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior before they die! I want to make an impact on the people in the community where I live and serve God. I don’t want to just read the Bible, I want to live it out loud—to be the hands and feet of Jesus—to go where He would go, to love how He would love, and to serve others how He would serve. 

We cannot do that by sitting at home or in a church pew “watching” church—WE MUST BE THE CHURCH. We must seek opportunities to serve, to give, to help others at home and abroad. We need to pray for our missionaries all around the world. We need to seek opportunities to help minister to their families and search for ways to partner with their ministries. 

We need to help touch the lives of those in need. One easy way we can make a difference is by demonstrating God's love in a tangible way to needy children around the world.  Together with churches worldwide, we can share the Good News of Jesus Christ through a simple Operation Christmas Child Shoebox Gift. It is easy, fun, something the whole family can do together, and a great way to spread God's Love! 

By taking part of the blessings we have been so abundantly given and sharing with others by packing Operation Christmas Child gift-filled shoeboxes over the next few weeks we can give children around the world a gift, for some it is their 1st time to ever receive a gift! These boxes will go to children in over 100 countries around the world. I challenge you to pack a shoebox this year and to help make a difference this holiday season and EVERY DAY wherever God has placed you!! 

Operation Christmas Child

How Christmas in the USA often looks...

1 OCC Shoebox Per Child Per Lifetime...Christmas Around the World...

It is almost National Collection Week for Operation Christmas Child!

Drop of locations in your area: FIND MY DROP-OFF LOCATION

May these shoebox stories from years past, to make your heart smile! 

Your gift-filled shoeboxes are tangible expressions of God’s love for children around the world suffering from poverty, natural disasters, war, disease and famine. These children, many of whom have never received a gift before, learn they are loved and not forgotten. Since 1993, Operation Christmas Child has collected and delivered more than 157 million gift-filled shoeboxes to children in more than 150 countries and territories around the world. Since 2009, more than 14.9 million children who have received a shoebox gift have participated in The Greatest Journey - our 12 lesson discipleship program where they learn what it means to follow Jesus and share their faith with friends and family.

If you need a little motivation as to what and why to put certain things in your shoebox, check out my video from back in 2016! YOU CANNOT PUT TOOTHPASTE OR CANDY THIS YEAR! 

In 2018, Operation Christmas Child, the world's largest Christmas Project of its kind, hopes to collect enough shoebox gifts to reach another 11 million children in more than 100 countries! Pack yours today or build one online: Build-a-box-online-for$25

Click here for: SHOEBOX PACKING TIPS

November 2017 Operation Christmas Child Prayer and Praises

November 13-20, 2017

Mid-South Praises and Prayer Requests:

1. Praise God for the many successful Speaker Tour and promotional events which have taken place throughout the states of Arkansas, Kentucky, and Tennessee.
2. Thanksgiving to God for the solidifying of a logistics network 327 strong, and for the equipping and training which collection network team leader volunteers have received.
3. Requesting the Lord to call a greater number of leader volunteers for the purpose of ministry multiplication and effectiveness.
4. Effective training for all our Drop-Off Team Leaders, that attendance will be high and that the cause will be well communicated.
5. Praying to God for the ultimate “win” of 850,000 “Gospel Opportunities” to be collected from the Mid-South Region this National Collection Week.

OCC NORTHEAST ARKANSAS Praises and Prayer Requests:

1. Let us all praise God, believing in advance, that He will provide 11,550 Shoebox Gospel Opportunities from the 7 counties in Northeast Arkansas.
2. Pray that He will do abundantly more than we can ever imagine to touch needy children around the world this season and that hearts are already being prepared with people packing shoeboxes, customs agents in receiving counties, in the TGJ teachers being called up to be trained this season, and all the precious children that will receive these gifts.
3. Pray God will provide us a Drop-off Location in Clay County in 2018.
4. Pray God will rise up volunteer leaders as coordinators of our OCC NEA team in 2018 and new team members for OCC NEA.

Baltics, Balkins & Central Europe: International Prayer Requests each country faces:

• Wisdom to recruit, select, lead, and develop new and/or transitioning volunteer leadership team members.
• Provision of resources and the person who leads this area so they are able to reach their God-sized goals for the current year.

Country Highlight - Slovakia

There is a woman with two children who has been visiting a small group at church for almost two years. Her husband was never interested in joining us. Just before the shoebox distribution, they realized that they needed new boots for their daughter. When their daughter opened her shoebox gift, she found a beautiful pair of boots that were exactly the size she needed. The father was shocked. He assumed that his wife had told them about their need and that they had added them to the box. When he learned no one had added anything, he was touched to find out that God is omniscient and takes care of us in very specific ways.

WEEK 1: November 1-7: Germany & Austria

1. Praise God for five Connect conferences in the first half of the year where participants were able to hear and see more of the impact the project is making in children’s lives.
2. Praise God for more and more Processing Site Leaders to accept the change to Central Processing after many months of casting the vision for volunteers to see and understand the need for change.
3. Praise God for the great team of volunteers and staff of the Germany speaking world who are eager to reach as many children as possible with the love of God.
4. Pray for all planning and preparations for our first Central Processing Center where we hope to process between 80,000-100,000 shoeboxes.
5. Pray for all volunteers to be refreshed before another busy season.

WEEK 2: November 8-14: Poland

1. Praise God for the first 1,000 children reported to graduate from TGJ and for the TGJ teachers.
2. Praise God for new places with opened doors for the Gospel in our country.
3. Praise God for the celebration events in our country with testimonies of God in action and His love.
4. Pray for 240 Ministry partners to apply for Operation Christmas Child and TGJ during the new season.

WEEK 3: November 15-21: Romania

OCC Romania

1. Praise God for a newly started Senior Regional Leadership Team in Central Transylvania.
2. Praise God for thousands of children who completed TGJ and for their teachers.
3. Pray for the change of National Discipleship Coordinator and strength and wisdom for her to take responsibility over a very big project.
4. Pray for the further development of the newly started NGO for OCC.

WEEK 4: November 22-31: Slovakia

1. Praise God for all kids that completed TGJ.
2. Praise God for all Ministry Partners and TGJ teachers who were able to invite more kids than usual.
3. Pray for the new season in Slovakia. We need more children and teachers for TGJ.
4. Pray that God will call more volunteers from MPs to the new regional teams that we want to create.
5. Pray for unity in all our teams. Pray for finding suitable storage for the new season.

November Devotion: Lay Hold of What is Yours

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ…” Ephesians 1:3

Our new identity in Christ is the focus of the first three chapters of the book of Ephesians. In these chapters, the Apostle Paul describes in exciting detail all of the amazing power, privileges and promises that are now ours as born-again believers in Jesus. In fact, God’s provision for His children is so thorough that Paul tells us that “God…has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.” That means that everything we will ever need, God has already provided in Christ and it already has our name on it! Bible commentator Dr. John MacArthur states it this way, “God’s superabundant blessings belong to his children, by faith in Christ, so that what he has is theirs—including his righteousness, resources, privilege, position, and power.”

This passage tells us that these resources and blessings that belong to us are located in “heavenly places” meaning the spiritual realm where the throne of God exists. We access and lay hold of these resources and blessings through prayer. Prayer brings God glory because it shows that we believe He is good, generous and the giver of all good gifts. Prayer also grows us in dependence on God for everything we need. We must remember that one of the great weaknesses of God’s people throughout the Bible was a sinful desire to be independent of God; but, prayer increases our dependence on our generous Heavenly Father. Repeatedly coming to God in prayer to lay hold of the resources and blessings we need also teaches us the joy of abiding in His presence. We were created to enjoy uninterrupted fellowship with God. Time spent in prayer grows our joy in abiding in His presence. Through prayer God gets the glory and we get the good resources and blessings we need day to day.

Build A Shoebox Online Today!
OCC Resources
Click Here to learn more about Serving Year-Round with OCC!

August Operation Christmas Child Prayer Requests

Southern Africa: International Prayer Requests / General Prayer Requests each country faces:

• Wisdom to recruit, select, lead, and develop new and/or transitioning volunteer leadership team members.  
• Provision of resources and the person who leads this area so they are able to reach their God-sized goals for the current year.

NEA Prayer Requests:

1. Pray God leads us to the perfect Central Drop-Off location this month! 
2. Pray for all the teachers, students, parents and school employees that are starting back to school this month. 
3. Pray for our area team by name, as we all have everyday battles. Our Northeast Arkansas Area Team is has 20 team members: Regional Manager: Vicki Pepper, Prayer Mobilization: Jennifer Barnett, Linda Smith, Leiandrea Higgins, Genia Rutherford, and Lisa Jowers. Church Relations: Amber Andrews, Michelle Dement and Shearlene Durham. Community Relations: Hilary Morgan, Judy Cole, Tiffany Lindner and Tysha Wilkinson. Drop-off/Logistics: Carol Queen, Carolyn Scott, Cynthia Sullivan, Hannah Estes, Rebekah Overman, Shellie Gibson and Kevin Barnett. 
4. Pray for Project Leaders kicking off shoebox collections for this season! 
5. Pray for our NEA goal of 11,550 Shoebox Gospel Opportunities!

WEEK 1 - AUGUST 1-7:
Angola
● Praise God for helping the team fulfill their strategic plan for 2017.
● Pray for the National Leadership Team and volunteer Regional Leadership Team members- that they will continue to serve with integrity and will remain committed to God and OCC.

Lesotho
● Praise God the distributions are going well and that many children are hearing the Gospel through OCC.
● Pray for the upcoming strategic planning meetings in June. Pray for the Lord’s wisdom and direction for OCC.

WEEK 2: AUGUST 8-14:
Malawi
● Praise God for the smooth logistics process as the gift boxes arrived and the Gospel is being proclaimed to the children at Outreach Events.
● Pray for effective outreach events and that more children will enroll in TGJ. Pray the TGJ teachers will be committed and the children will complete all the lessons this season.

Zimbabwe
● Praise God the containers have cleared customs and are now on their way to the distribution locations.
● Pray for team building and growth for the leadership teams, Ministry Partners, and TGJ teachers. Pray everyone involved with OCC will fully understand their role in order to make a greater Kingdom impact.

WEEK 3: AUGUST 15-21:
Botswana
● Praise God for an amazing time together at Global Connect and for the safe return of the team members.
● Pray for the National Leadership Team as they prepare for the national Connect conference and launch TGJ 2.0 with the other teams.

Zambia
● Praise God the National Leadership Team members received their visas to attend Global Connect.
● Pray for the upcoming vision trip as the team will be hosting visitors from the UK.

WEEK 4: AUGUST 22-31
South Africa
● Praise God for the gathering of many nations, tribes, and tongues at Global Connect. Praise Him the team was equipped, refreshed, and encouraged.
● Pray for the teams as they are in the midst of distributing shoeboxes. Pray many children will come to know Jesus and attend TGJ.

Swaziland
● Praise God for unity among the teams.
● Pray for this year's strategic planning meetings and the results would glorify God by expanding his kingdom in Swaziland.

July 2017 Operation Christmas Child Prayer Requests

Mid-South Prayer Focus July Praises:

• Praise God for the successful relocation of the Mid-South Regional Office from Nashville to Murfreesboro, TN
• Regional Director Todd Edwards is thankful to God for the uneventful move of his family from Ohio to Tennessee
• Thank God for the efficacious support provided by staff to volunteers and volunteers to ministry partners

Mid-South Prayer Requests:

• Hasty Martin as she prepares to step down from her role as Regional Manager for Kentucky
• New Regional Manager for Kentucky
• Upcoming Project Leader Workshops in our region
• Health for our volunteers, for healing, wisdom for doctors treating them and for family members
• Our Mid-South goal of 850,000 shoebox gifts
• New Drop off locations

NEA Prayer Requests:

• New Central Drop off Leader
• New Area Coordinator
• Pray for each other on our area team as we all have such busy summers
• NEA Shoebox Goal for 2017 – 11,550 Gospel Opportunities!!!

East Asia - International Prayer Requests General Prayer Requests each country faces:

• Wisdom to recruit, select, lead, and develop new and/or transitioning volunteer leadership team members.
• Provision of resources and the person who leads this area so they are able to reach their God-sized goals for the current year.

Week one of July please pray for Indonesia and Malaysia.  
Indonesia's Requests:

• Praise God for the successful appeal for tax exemption for all 16 sea containers filled with over 125,000shoebox gifts.
• Pray the seed sown into the hearts of the children who heard the Gospel at the outreach events will produce much fruit.
• Pray the oppression Christians are facing in more sensitive areas will not affect the ministry of Operation Christmas Child in the future.

Malaysia's Requests:

• Praise God for His faithfulness in providing free storage and logistic support for the ministry partners in east Malaysia.
• Pray God will send more ministry partners who will be good stewards of the shoebox gifts, capable of effectively sharing the Gospel, and faithful in discipling a new generation.
• Pray for the family of the Church Mobilization Coordinator who recently passed away. Pray for comfort and peace for his wife, their children, and their extended family. 

July 8-14th pray for Myanmar: 
Myanmar's Requests:

• Praise God for the opportunity for the entire volunteer National Leadership Team to participate in the Global Connect Conference in Orlando, FL.
• Pray for the new areas where God is going to allow the formation of new volunteer regional leadership teams. 

July 15-21st pray for the Philippines:
Philippines's Prayer Requests:

• Praise God for the 8,000 ministry partners who participated in outré ach events this season.
• Pray every position on the volunteer leadership team will be filled; pray more teams will be formed to reach the far-flung areas of the Philippines.

  

  Philippines OCC Shoebox Recipient

July 22-31 Pray for Thailand:
Thailand's Requests:

• Praise God for the new direction of Operation Christmas Child Thailand and its transition to Operation Christmas Child’s International Headquarters’ East Asia leadership team.
• Pray for the development of new volunteer teams who will be mobilizing prayer and reaching out to ministry partners who will be faithful in sharing the Gospel with the children. 

  

  OCC Thailand

  

  OCC Thailand

Pray with Operation Christmas Child - March 2017 week 4

What a privilege we have to be able to call out to the Almighty God in prayer, to speak to Him and He hear us and answer us! We can call out to Him and He listens...we should not take this lightly. We should not underestimate the power of prayer.  James 5:16-18 declares, "…The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops." God most definitely listens to prayers, answers prayers, and moves in response to prayers. With that in mind, do we pray as often and sincerely as we should? Do we pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)?  Jesus taught, "…I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you". (Matthew 17:20). The Bible urges us, "And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints" (Ephesians 6:18). Will you join me in praying for the Operation Christmas Child ministry with bold faith, believing God is going to move mountains with this ministry?  The specific request for the last week of March are listed below. Thank you for being a prayer warrior for this ministry!

NEA REQUESTS: 

1. Pray as we seek the Lord’s direction for the next Area Coordinator for our team. 
2. Pray for a new Collection Center Coordinator (central drop off leader) and Collection Center (Central Drop-Off Location). Pray for God to reveal who and where this needs to be in NEA.
3. Pray for Vicki Pepper (our Mid-South Regional Manager) as she helps NEA and travels to fills in the voids where teams are missing leadership. 
4. Pray for our 2017 Shoebox Gospel Opportunity Goal for the 7 counties of NEA that will be announced soon!!! 

Mid-South Requests: 

1. The Lord to raise up key leaders for multiple developing teams. 
2. A smooth upcoming re-commitment process for year-round Connect Volunteers. 
3. Provision for volunteers who will be attending the Global Connect Conference in April. International Prayer Requests that each country faces: 
4. Wisdom to recruit, select and lead new and/or transitioning volunteer leadership team members. 
5. Provision of resources and the person who leads this area so they are able to reach their God-sized goals for the current year.

Middle East and North Africa:

1. Pray for the upcoming training events and the new season. \
2. ray for wisdom as new teams are growing in their knowledge and the love of OCC ministry.
3. Pray God will open doors to enter into unreached areas. 
4. Pray for the political stability in the country. 

Middle East and North Africa:

1. Pray that the Ministry of Religious Affairs will approve the importation of the containers. 
2. Pray for adequate storage of the shoeboxes and ministry materials for this season. 
3. Pray for wisdom and a successful season for the team.

Russia, Europe and Central Asia:

1. Pray for the importation process as it is becoming more complicated every season. 
2. Pray the team finds a way to import the boxes, in spite of the new restrictions, so that children will be able to receive the gifts.

South Asia:

1. Pray for security for the volunteer team following a very tumultuous year, which Christians were targeted by terrorist groups. Pray for God’s protection over all believers in the country. 
2.  Pray for favor and a smooth process as the team seeks to obtain the 2017 tax exemption from the Muslim majority government. 
3. Pray God will provide the right person to serve as National Coordinator.

Pray with Operation Christmas Child, March 15-21, 2017

NEA REQUESTS:

• Pray as we seek the Lord’s direction for the next Area Coordinator for our team. 
• Pray for a new Collection Center Coordinator 0(central drop off leader) and Collection Center (Central Drop-Off Location). Pray for God to reveal who and where this need to be in NEA very soon. 
• Pray for Vicki Pepper (our Mid-South Regional Manager) as she helps NEA and travels to fills in the voids where teams are missing leadership all over the mid-south.
• Pray for our 2017 Shoebox Gospel Opportunity Goal for the 7 counties of NEA that will be released soon!!!

Mid-South Requests:

• The Lord to raise up key leaders for multiple developing teams. 
• A smooth upcoming re-commitment process for year-round Connect Volunteers. 
• Provision for volunteers who will be attending the Global Connect Conference in April.

International Prayer Requests that each country faces:

• Wisdom to recruit, select and lead new and/or transitioning volunteer leadership team members. 
• Provision of resources and the person who leads this area so they are able to reach their God-sized goals for the current year.

We are continuing to pray for the Middle East, Africa, Russia, Europe, Central Asia and South Asia this week. Specifically, the following are prayer requests from each country:

Middle East and North Africa

1. Pray God will appoint a Prayer Mobilization Coordinator for the volunteer regional leadership team in the north. 
2. Pray the team will be able to obtain tax exemption for this season. 
3. Pray God will give OCC a way to import into the country after last year’s attack from the secret police.

Russia, Europe and Central Asia

1. Pray for the recruitment and selection of a new volunteer National Leadership Team Prayer Mobilization Coordinator. 
2. Pray for The Greatest Journey discipleship program trainings. 
3. Pray for the new house churches that will start after the distributions and The Greatest Journey discipleship program classes this season.

South Asia

1. Pray for God’s immense favor in selecting quality, spiritually oriented Ministry Partners for the 2017-2018 season. Pray for the vision casting meetings the volunteer team will be holding for potential Ministry Partners next month. 
2. Pray for the training sessions. Pray that the vision of OCC will be conveyed clearly and understood by the Ministry Partners and The Greatest Journey discipleship program teachers.

Pray with Operation Christmas Child March 8-14th

March 2017 Week 2 Pray with OCC March 8-14th we are praying for the Middle East, North Africa, Russia, Europe, Central Asia (RECA), and South Asia.

• Praise God for the 38 countries that have received shoeboxes and volunteer teams who are now working diligently through Outreach Events to share the Good News with over 5.7 million children.  
• Pray for the children who are just beginning to hear more about Jesus through The Greatest Journey after receiving their shoebox.  
• Pray for the over 2 million shoeboxes still en route on ships to children in 20 countries.  
• Pray for tax exemption of shoeboxes in 15 countries.  
• Praise for customs clearance of sea containers filled with shoebox Gospel Opportunities in 18 countries.

NEA Requests: 

• Pray as we seek the Lord’s direction for the next Area Coordinator for our team. 
• Pray for a new Collection Center Coordinator (central drop off leader) - hopefully within First Free Will Baptist Church in Jonesboro so we can keep the same Collection Center (Central Drop-Off Location).

Mid-South Requests: 

• The Lord to raise up key leaders for multiple developing teams. 
• A smooth upcoming re-commitment process for year-round Connect Volunteers. 
• Provision for volunteers who will be attending the Global Connect Conference in April. 

International Prayer Requests that each country faces:

• Wisdom to recruit, select and lead new and/or transitioning volunteer leadership team members. 
• Provision of resources and the person who leads this area so they are able to reach their God-sized goals for the current year.

Middle East and North Africa:

1. Pray for the tax exemption process that, in the coming months, children in our country would have an opportunity to hear and respond to the Gospel. 
2. Pray for the Ministry Partners who were trained and are excited to receive gift boxes for the first time. 
3. Pray for the children and the partners who will be ministering to them this season. 

Russia, Europe and Central Asia

1. Pray the Ministry Partners will be able to reach children with the OCC gifts and Good News in remote areas.  
2. Pray God will give grace to believers in the eyes of the government officials so that the latter will not create problems for the volunteer National Leadership Teams and Ministry Partners. 

South Asia

1. Pray for the provision of good partners in areas that are greatly affected by insurgent groups. Pray for wisdom, guidance, and protection as the teams seek these new Ministry Partners. 
2. Pray for God’s mercy and favor as the team searches for the right candidate to support the ministry in an area inhabited by an unreached people group.

Drumroll Please...2016 Shoebox Gospel Opportunity Totals are in!!!

We have an exciting announcement—the numbers are in! Join us in praising God for 11,485,662 shoebox gifts packed in 2016! That's 11,485,662 children and 11,485,662 Gospel Opportunities, packed by all of YOU...WOW!

Please continue to pray for each child receiving these gifts, that they will feel God's love and experience the Good News and Great Joy of Jesus Christ. Since the project began, over 146 million shoebox gifts have been collected and delivered to children in more than 150 countries around the world.

Shoebox gifts collected in 2016 by country: 

United States - 9,121,799

United Kingdom - 872,104

Canada - 664,525

Germany - 388,673

Australia & New Zealand - 346,592

Spain - 41,107

Finland - 37,144

Japan - 13,718

-------------------------------

Total: 11,485,662 Gospel Opportunities

Someone may have been praying for the exact Shoebox Gospel Opportunity that you packed!  Pack a shoebox (or two, or three, or 3000) touch a live and change it forever in 2017! Have you set a goal for how many your family, church or organization will pack in 2017? If so comment below at the end of this blog post-we would be thrilled to hear from you!

Philippines

Pray with Operation Christmas Child - January 2017 Week 3

Will you join us in praying for South America this month? This week we are praying for Panama, Paraguay and Peru.

Panama

·         Pray God will provide a new storage and distribution location for the shoeboxes for this year. Pray against challenges as the teams distribute the shoeboxes to the ministry partners.

·         Pray for the logistics process; pray that all of the communication and work with customs and the port will be handled without any delays. 

Paraguay 

·         Praise God OCC was able to reach the city of Puentesiño, which is difficult to access. Praise Him the team was able to reach over 1,000 children, demonstrating the tangible love of God.

·         Pray God will guide the team to hear His voice and will provide the ideal person to serve as the volunteer National Coordinator for Paraguay.

Peru

·         Pray that the successful church-planting tool of shoebox gifts will continue to multiply. 

Peru June 2016

Peru June 2016

Peru June 2016

Javier is a volunteer with OCC in Peru...the other side of the box, Judy and I are on the NEA Area team in the USA, we met him as our translator when we were on a medical/dental mission trip last summer (June 2016)

Proverbs 3:5 - this hangs on a wall in the church in Neuvo Pachacutec, Lima Peru.

Peru June 2016 - you can NOT send liquid in shoeboxes but we were able to take it on out mission trip, the kids loved bubbles!

Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;

January 1-14, 2017 Operation Christmas Child Prayer South America week 1 & 2

Prayer Reminders

Prayer is what opens the heart of a child to the redemption available through the blood of Jesus. Franklin Graham says, “The most important item you can send in a shoebox is prayer.” Faithful prayers are what allows the journey to accomplish its intended purpose. What a glorious opportunity we have to participate in his plan.

                                See our new OCC Prayer Video and share it with your friends.

This month we are praying for South America

General Prayer Requests each country faces:

·            Wisdom to recruit, select, and lead new and/or transitioning volunteer leadership team members.

·            Provision of resources and the person who leads this area so they are able to reach their God-sized goals for the current year.

MID-SOUTH PRAYER REQUESTS:

·              Pray for the new Mid-South Regional Director Todd Edwards as he transitions to the region January 3rd.

·              Praise God for the many gospel opportunities that He blessed our region with in 2016!

·              Pray for Godly wisdom for Mid-South staff and Area Coordinators as they begin planning for 2017.

·              Please continue to pray for prospective volunteers who are showing interests in serving with OCC on their local Area Teams as year-round Connect volunteers.

·              Pray for all National Leadership Teams as they begin receiving and distributing shoeboxes.

·              Pray for the many children who will receive shoeboxes and as they have the opportunity to attend The Greatest Journey.

NEA Prayer Requests:

• Pray for our area team as Vicki Pepper, our Regional Manager, as she will be helping our Area Team until we have a new Area Coordinator. 
• Pray for Melinda Dixon and her mom as she is healing. Pray for blessing on Melinda as she is a care giver for her mom and as her work load increases - she had to resign, with heavy heart as our AC and will be greatly missed.

PRAISE ITEMS:

1. Millions of shoebox gifts packed by prayerful donors are on their way to children in over 100 countries. God has allowed Operation Christmas Child to reach more children this year than any previous year with the precious gift of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 
2. Praise God for the 11 countries that have already received their 2016 season shoeboxes and for the volunteer teams now working hard in Outreach Events to share the Good News with over 200,000 children. 
3. Pray for the over 6 million shoeboxes on the way to children in 43 countries 
4. Prayer is what opens the heart of a child to the redemption available through the blood of Jesus. Franklin Graham says, “The most important item you can send in a shoebox is prayer.” Faithful prayers are what allows the journey to accomplish its intended purpose. What a glorious opportunity we have to participate in his plan.

Argentina

Argentina OCC

·         Praise God for the completion of the volunteer National Leadership Team this year.

·         Pray for the children enrolled in The Greatest Journey in the cities of Buenos Aires and Corrientes to grow in discipleship. 

Bolivia

·         Praise God for the honor of preparing pastors and teachers, as well as mobilizing churches, for the spiritual formation of the new generations that will come to know God the Father.

·         Pray that in this season, God will open the doors to reach new unreached communities where the Gospel has previously been inaccessible. 

Bolivia OCC - The Greatest Gift Book

Brazil

·         Pray for an opening in the bureaucratic process to allow the importation of shoeboxes in the future.

·         Pray for wisdom for the volunteer team in the city of Recife as they plan for future seasons.

·         Pray for the contacts that will be made with new churches and ministries in the Northeast of Brazil for this year. 

Chile

·         Praise God for the more than 5,000 children who received Christ in 2016. 

Colombia

·         Pray for the vision castings, as well as the Ministry Partner and The Greatest Journey trainings that occurred throughout the various regions in Colombia for greater effectiveness. 

Ecuador OCC

Ecuador

·         Praise God for the largest and most effective national volunteer conference in the country held recently.

·         Praise God for the provision of various gift-in-kind donations for storage of the OCC materials.

·         Pray for wisdom in navigating the government bureaucracy that comes with managing a large amount of boxes in the country.

Pray with Operation Christmas Child - November 2016

This month we are praying for South America. International Prayer Requests that  each country faces is: 

1. Wisdom to recruit, select, and lead new and/or transitioning volunteer leadership team members. 
2. Provision of resources to reach their God-sized goals for the current year.

WEEK 1: November 14-20th REQUESTS:

1. IT IS NATIONAL COLLECTION WEEK – PRAY FOR THIS WEEK TO BE A SUCCESS!!! Sign Up to pray for 10 minutes during National Collection Week at: 24/7 NATION COLLECTION WEEK PRAYER PARTNER 

• Monday, November 14: Ask God to bless the local volunteers who serve to collect, process, transport, and deliver shoebox gifts around the world. 
• Tuesday, November 15: Pray for Operation Christmas Child to bring joy to boys and girls who are struggling to overcome the effects of poverty, disease, famine, or war. 
• Wednesday, November 16: Pray that the hearts of children who receive shoebox gifts will be prepared to receive the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 
• Thursday, November 17: Pray that the gifts inside each shoebox will help girls and boys begin to experience God’s unconditional love. 
• Friday, November 18: Pray that the children who enroll in The Greatest Journey follow-up discipleship program will come to faith in Jesus, and share the Good News with their friends and family.  
• Saturday, November 19: Pray that God will use Operation Christmas Child to open doors in countries that are not receptive to the Gospel. 
• Sunday, November 20: Praise the Lord for using Samaritan’s Purse to distribute 135 million Operation Christmas Child shoebox gifts since 1993! Pray for millions more children to experience the love of Jesus Christ through these simple gifts. 
• Monday, November 21: Pray for the seamless transportation of shoebox gifts as they are transferred from local drop-off sites to regional Processing Centers.  (Also the 21st is my birthday, you can pack a shoebox online with me at: BUILD A BOX ONLINE

Argentina - 

1. Pray for the children enrolled in The Greatest Journey (TGJ) discipleship program in Buenos Aires and Corrientes. 
2. Pray pastors and teachers will be able to witness to parents who attend TGJ graduations. 

Bolivia - 

1. Praise God for the honor of preparing pastors and teachers, as well as mobilizing churches, for the spiritual formation of the new generations that will come to know God the Father. 
2. Pray that in this season, God will open the doors to reach unreached communities where the Gospel has previously been inaccessible. 

Brazil - 

1. Praise God for the unity of the local team in their ministry and for the love they have for each other.  
2. Pray for the contacts that will be made with new churches and ministries in the northeast of Brazil next year. 

Chile - 

1. Praise God for more than 5,000 children who received Christ in 2016.  
2. Pray for all the children who are being discipled and will soon graduate from The Greatest Journey discipleship program.  

WEEK 2: November 21-27th 
Colombia - 

1.  Pray for the customs and transporting of the shoeboxes and literature this season. Pray for the provision of the resources needed, including financial, logistical, and volunteer support. 
2.  Pray for the volunteer leadership teams that are working hard this season. Pray the Lord will bless them in all areas of their lives – families, ministries and jobs. 

Ecuador - Pray for wisdom in navigating the government bureaucracy that comes with managing a large amount of boxes in the country.

Panama -

1. Pray God will provide a new storage and distribution location for the shoeboxes this year. Pray against challenges as the teams distribute the shoeboxes to the Ministry Partners.  
2. Pray for the logistics process; pray that all of the communication and work with customs and the port will be handled without any delays. 

WEEK 3: November 28-Dec.4th
Paraguay -

1. Praise God OCC was able to reach the city of Puentesiño, which is difficult to access. Praise Him the team was able to reach over 1,000 children, demonstrating the tangible love of God. 
2. Pray God will guide the team to hear His voice and will provide the ideal person to serve as the National Coordinator for Paraguay. 
3. Pray for the volunteer coordinators serving on the regional volunteer leadership teams in San Pedro, Itapúa, Concepcion, Paraguarí and Central. Pray for the completion of these teams. 

Venezuela -

1. Praise God for the ministries of evangelism to children and adolescents. Praise Him that those who have received the message of salvation are persevering and believing the promises of the Lord Jesus Christ. 
2. Pray for the provision of food and medicine.

Bolivia Shoebox Distribution