Southeast Asia
· Give God thanks and praise that the children in several orphanages in this region are healthier and doing well as a result of some agricultural improvements at those facilities. Thanks be to God that the children are able to have protein every day to supplement their diet of rice and vegetables. Please continue to pray that God will provide for the children in these orphanages and for peace and freedom in this region. (It would jeopardize the children and staff at these facilities to disclose the ministry name or location.)
United States
· Please be in prayer for the more than 2000 children of fallen U.S. military service members—many of these children have little or no memory of their deceased father or mother. Pray for the bereaved spouses of these service members as they navigate the financial and psychological challenges associated with their loss.
· Pray that God will be present through caring school personnel and schoolmates for older children who struggle emotionally and flounder in school. Pray for 11-year-old Aaron whose father was killed in Afghanistan two years ago and who is struggling in public school now. Pray for 4-year-old Adela and her new baby brother, Clint, who was born after their father was killed in Iraq last year.
· Give thanks to God for programs like Fort Hood’s Gold Star Family Support Center that provide grief counseling for children dealing with the death of a military parent. Thank God for recent improvements that will benefit bereaved families: Children of fallen service members will have military medical coverage until adulthood instead of losing it three years after the death of that service person. An additional improvement is that families can now stay in military housing for a year after the death of their service member instead of six months. Also new is a 24-hour call center that assists survivor families with questions about benefits. (Associated Press)
