Europe as a Mission Field

I was reading through some of the older posts on here and was reminded of what a need for Christ that there is in Ireland and throughout all of Europe. The need is great enough that Operation Mobilization has identified Europe as one of the 9 focal points for world missions. It is a mission field that is not thought about often, but this was a good reminder to me of why God has called our family to serve there.

The following is from the OM International website (http://www.om.org/):

Europe - Restoring Hope

Once, European Christians told the world about Jesus. Today's "Christian" Europe is spiritually bankrupt. The ruins of ancient churches symbolize a continent that has turned away from Christ.

Prosperous Europeans may seem content. But rising suicide rates, the desperate search for alternative spiritualities and the growth of other religions demonstrate the emptiness behind the façade.
Throughout Europe, nations are battling against the effects of crime, drugs and alcohol abuse while in places such as Bosnia, Kosovo and Ukraine whole communities have been shattered by war and poverty.

Yet, in the midst of brokenness, God is restoring hope to Europe. Across the continent OM teams are living out the reality of the Gospel as they provide practical help, build friendships and share truth.

Together with the European church, OM is transforming lives and communities in more than 30 nations by caring for the unwanted, loving Muslims, empowering the next generations, reawakening the religious and challenging the secular.

Once the sender of missionaries to the world, Europe is now the one continent where the church is shrinking. In most of the countries, including Ireland, less than 1% of the population is evangelical. But, there are open doors to share the Gospel with Europeans and a growing immigrant population throughout the continent.

In Ireland, while Catholicism is still a major influence over the country and culture, few have a living relationship with God. Traditional 'religion' has failed to tackle serious social problems such as alcoholism, teenage pregnancy and a high suicide rate among young men. Evangelical numbers have grown over the past 10 years and stand at 0.75% of the population, though according to Operation World, this is still the lowest percentage of any country in the English-speaking world.

Some Prayer Points to consider:

Please pray that God will restore hope to Europe.

Pray for workers reaching out to the marginalised people in Europe (homeless, refugees, immigrants, drug addicts, alcoholics and prostitutes) that they will be filled with compassion and will demonstrate the love of Jesus to those they meet.

Pray for God to raise up a new generation of Europeans who are on fire for Jesus and willing to share their passion for Him with others.

Pray for unity among European churches and a common commitment to reach out with the good news of Jesus.

Pray for the thriving churches in Eastern European countries such as Ukraine, Moldova and Romania to catch a vision for world missions.

Isaiah 58:12
Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.