This past weekend some of my friends and classmates left America to go do missions on a sixteen-month internship overseas. The surreal and bittersweet moment prompted me to think of ways I could support my friends in prayer as they left to spread the Gospel to the nations.
I then asked some recent graduates who completed their own 16-month internship, what they needed and wanted prayer for most, while overseas? So here are a few ways you can support our interns while they’re overseas.
Pray for Acclimation
Going to a new place you’ve never been, surrounded by people who do not speak your language, and who possess a completely different culture and worldview than you, can be challenging.
Pray that the interns who have just left America will:
- Adjust well
- Not be discouraged by culture shock
- Be given grace to embrace the challenges of a culture shock
Pray for Team Unity
The enemy is always trying to cause division, especially in a house full of missionaries who are being obedient in carrying out the great commission. Many interns have expressed that when you have so many different personalities working together with different ideas of how things should be done, difficulties and disagreements can arise.
Pray that the interns will:
- Abound in love for God and each other (Phil 1:9)
- Grow in unity each day
- Learn to communicate and love each other well
Pray for Fast and Effective Language Learning
Learning a new language is no easy feat and can be scary.
Pray that each intern would:
- Give themselves grace in this process
- Not allow fear of messing up and saying the wrong word(s) to hold them back from stepping out.
- Be able to effectively communicate the Gospel despite the language barrier
Pray Against Feelings of Loneliness
Teams haven’t necessarily built friendships with their teammates before heading out, so it can take time building those relationships. At moments there can be times of feeling isolated or lonely, especially when the country you’ve moved to doesn’t speak your language.
Pray that interns are:
- Able to connect well with each other
- Able to find safety and home in their team and site leaders
- Able to build friendships with people in the community
Pray for Awareness of Spiritual Warfare
Each country has its own set of strongholds and spiritual warfare. And when you’ve been in a place for a long time, you can become accustomed to the oppression or attacks of the enemy and think its normal.
Pray that the interns:
- Would be wise as serpents and innocent as doves (Mat 10:16) to see the schemes of the enemy
- Would receive protection over their minds and emotions
Pray for Perseverance
The Global Internship is both an amazing and difficult experience, and expectations and presuppositions can sometimes cause discouragement when things don’t look like you thought they would. And, it can just be plain exhausting at times.
Pray that students will:
- Not grow weary in doing good (Gal 6:9)
- Have motivation to do homework and
- Not lose sight of why they are there