♥ Compassion International, a sponsorship agency for children in need has just published the Journey Prayer Guide, a 30-day Prayer Guide for children in poverty, created by the staff of Compassion Magazine.  Below you will find prayer suggestions for a week.  Further suggestions will be published on this blog on Saturdays for the following week until the project ends.  You can also start your 30-days of prayer at anytime.  Eventually all of these posts will be filed in the Category List at the right of my blog under Praying for Children in Poverty.

Join me in praying for:

Day 15: Impoverished Countries – Imagine if you didn’t know how you would pay for your family’s next meal. About 1 in 5 people in developing regions lives on less than $1.25 per day.

Day 16: Addiction –  Addiction enslaves people and tears apart families. Worldwide, alcohol abuse is a leading risk factor for premature death and disability, and at least 15.3 million people have drug issues.

Day 17:  Safe Water – In our homes, we have all the clean water we need. Worldwide, 1.8 billion people use a drinking-water source contaminated with feces. Such water can transmit illnesses, including cholera, typhoid, diarrhea, dysentery and even polio.

Day 18:  Fathers – Many fathers in the developing world yearn to provide for their families but come up short. Those who don’t have enough education or any specialized skills must work long hours in low-wage, temporary jobs that barely cover their families’ basic needs. Common day-labor jobs include construction and farming.

Day 19:  Children in Sub-Saharan Africa – Poverty disproportionately affects sub-Saharan Africa, where a child is 16 times more likely to die before reaching age 5 than a child in a developed region.  Sub-Saharan Africa is the only region where the number of malnourished kids increased from 1990 to 2012.

Day 20:  Teenagers and Young Adults – Marriage and pregnancy put adolescents at a greater risk of becoming mired in poverty. Gang recruitment is another top threat to teenagers who live in poverty.

Day 21:  Food Security – As we thank God for our daily bread, it’s important to remember all the hungry bellies around the world. About 1 in 7 children under age 5 was underweight in 2012, and 1 in 4 children under age 5 had stunted growth.