Moldova
· Please be in prayer for children like 16-year-old Anna who have been abandoned in this country and are at great risk of being trafficked. In Moldova, a child under the age of 7 is abandoned every day. Anna was 11 when her mother put her and her older brother in the care of a neighbor, then left for a job in Portugal. The neighbor abandoned the children when their mother failed to send money home. Their mother had been trafficked into prostitution in Hungary. (BBC News)
· Give God thanks that Anna’s mother was able to escape her traffickers and that she is now in a skills training course. Praise God that Anna has been offered a computer course that will make her less vulnerable to traffickers by giving her a marketable skill.
· Pray that the people of Moldova become more aware of the vulnerability of abandoned children. Give thanks that more churches, schools and orphanages are holding life skills classes to warn children about the dangers of being trafficked.
Senegal (Rainbows of Hope: Maison de L’Espoir)
· Give God thanks for the establishment of another home for street boys in Dakar. Praise God that the boys in the second House of Hope are settling in well and are able to receive an education.
· Please pray that TK, an older boy who will begin a new job as a carpenter, will be able to stay strong in his faith while working for a Muslim boss.
· Pray that EH, a former resident at House of Hope, will maintain his strong faith in God as he begins a new job and is confronted by the distractions of the city.
· Pray that God will be revealed to the four very distracted teenagers living at House of Hope and that they will be good role models for the new boys.
· Continue to pray for the leaders and volunteers in these homes; that they will stay healthy and unified and be spiritually renewed. Pray that God will provide additional caretakers who are compassionate and loving. Pray that God will bless and equip the Rainbows of Hope summer team that will work there in June and July.
Brazil
· Please pray for the children of Rio de Janeiro’s favelas (shantytowns) who are caught in the violence between neighborhood drug gangs, police and sometimes vigilante militias. From 2002 through 2006, over 1800 juveniles were reported murdered, according to a state research center. (Washington Post)
· Pray for children who are used by gangs to carry out the worst crimes. Children under 18 cannot be prosecuted under law, but are sent to poorly functioning, overcrowded rehabilitation facilities.
