WEF is an annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, that has been held since 1971 (with a few exceptions). Although participants come with a variety of agendas, WEF — also called Davos — aims to foster dialogue on global issues. 

Joe Handley serves with A3, a leader development group. He says that despite criticism of Davos as being elitist, “They’re meeting at a pivotal moment in history. When I look at the world, what was the post-World War II kind of global order is completely being reshaped these days.”

Conversations at Davos can have global ripple effects. Handley is watching closely for implications for the Ukraine-Russia war, tensions between Cambodia and Thailand, and ongoing religious freedom concerns worldwide. 

“The Davos meeting reminds us that the world is seeking coordination to solve global problems,” he says. “But we know that the Word of God teaches us that no system can heal the human heart or human condition. We need character-formed leaders, and this is where the church serves the world best.”

That conviction has driven A3’s work for decades, equipping Christian leaders to serve differently. 

“Our theory is that the world doesn’t necessarily need better policies — although good policies are helpful — it needs a different kind of leader. That’s why A3 does what it does, to form Christ-like leaders who can serve, not dominate, and really be the light and hope of Jesus in the world today,” says Handley. 

“The world doesn’t suffer from a shortage of smart people, but it suffers from a shortage of Christ-like character.”

Find your place in the world’s events through prayer.

“Leaders, all of us, are in a uniquely dangerous position, because power can corrupt, and we tend to get isolated from people and from the truth when we fall into those positions of authority,” says Handley.

“Scripture warns us that this can be dangerous, and leadership can be tempted to replace what should be dependence on God [with dependence] on ourselves.”

In keeping with 1 Timothy 2:1-2, pray for world leaders this week and beyond. Pray for godliness, wisdom, justice, and compassion among them, especially during the World Economic Forum, January 19-23, 2026.

Header photo: By UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) – The World Economic Forum in Davos, CC BY-SA 4.0. 

But when Sundar’s life recently experienced a downturn, Jesus met him at rock bottom.

Regan Miller with Mission India says, “[Sundar] could not save his business. He couldn’t figure out how to turn things around, and it really affected his mental health.”

During this time, God led a Mission India church planter to connect with Sundar. The church planter shared the Gospel with him.

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

“Sundar made fun of it at first,” Miller says. “But the more that Sundar heard about Jesus, something shifted in his heart, and he received Christ as a Savior!”

Sundar also shared his newfound faith with his wife and children. Although they were skeptical at first, eventually, they began attending church together as a family.

Unfortunately, it didn’t take long for Sundar to also begin facing persecution.

Miller says, “You can imagine this was a big surprise to the local community. Sundar’s parents and brothers stopped speaking to him. There were usual customers at the grocery store that they still had to come out of necessity for groceries, but they just treated him poorly because he had come to Christ.”

Currently, there is still one problem — the shrine.

Miller says, “He’s planning to remove the shrine from his yard soon. He’s making plans to remove it. He’s aware of the risk that would be involved with it and what people might think and the potential response from his neighbors.

“[Sundar] would love prayer that this goes over well, that he could even lead people to Christ in the process, and that this whole situation can move by peacefully.”

Pray for Sundar’s faith to be strengthened amid persecution. Pray for his new life and the lives of other Indian believers to be a testimony to their communities of joy following Jesus.

IDOP Devotional

Stories like this are included in Mission India’s 7-day email devotionals leading up to the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP).

Mission India’s IDOP devotional series starts October 27, and IDOP is November 3.

Sign up today for Mission India’s IDOP devotionals!

Miller says, “This year, what makes our devotional really special is that we’ve got church leaders from around the US that have each taken a day and written out that day’s devotional…. Then after each church leader’s reflection, it’s followed by a story from India about someone who was persecuted. It includes action steps you can take [and] prayer prompts.

“It’s a great way to engage and not only learn about persecution in India but learn how you can find strength in your own suffering through the stories of people in modern-day India and also back in Scripture as well.”

Header photo courtesy of Mission India.

A hidden layer 

Bruce with Uncharted Ministries says that at first, their team didn’t realize the scale and depth of suffering that Pakistani Christians endure. Then, a young Christian leader in Pakistan revealed another layer to them through a simple request. 

“We were introduced to this [reality] by him just sharing a need,” Bruce says. “He didn’t ask for any money. He just said, ‘Please, please pray for this young 13-year-old girl.’” 

The teenager had been kidnapped by a man in his forties, then forced to marry him and convert to Islam. 

“[She spent] five months chained to a bed and [was] malnourished but was rescued. She was later found pregnant as a 14-year-old and gave birth to a little baby girl,” Bruce says. 

Hers is just one story among hundreds that rarely have a happy ending. 

“Over 1,000 Christian young women are kidnapped, and only 10% ever make it back to their homes,” Bruce says. 

Lifted up out of poverty  

By God’s grace, Uncharted Ministries is able to come alongside vulnerable Christian families with practical help and even freedom (more on that here). 

“Christian women are in a tough way, so we’ve been providing six-month training courses for Christian young women to be seamstresses or beauticians,” Bruce says. “[They are] six-month classes, 15 students in each one for six months of training in the business skills but also being discipled, being loved. They become a little family.”

A young Christian woman shows what she has sewn. (Photo courtesy of Uncharted Ministries)

The training courses have served 120 women so far. Bruce says it’s amazing to see how God has opened the way for this ministry.

“After successfully completing the course, they are given their sewing machine, a work desk, chair and supplies to begin their business,” he says. 

“These young women [will] earn money for their family, but then they’ll attract a young man someday who’s also upwardly mobile, and they together can work and increase their standard of living. So we’re looking at generational change, where God is going to transform their lives.”

One of Uncharted’s contacts in Pakistan recently told Bruce, “It’s so encouraging to know that we weren’t created just to be hated.” 

“That stuck with me,” he says. “They feel so reviled in the culture, but what God is doing [is] He’s just plucking these people out and giving them skills.”

You can have a place in this life-changing ministry. Gifts to Uncharted Ministries designated “Pakistan” will aid frontline efforts of rescuing families from slavery, supporting young women who have been sex-trafficked, and training girls in business skills. Visit unchartedministries.com to make a gift under the “Pakistan” designation. 

Header photo courtesy of Paul Jai/Unsplash.

One day last February, a group of leaders gathered at one of the facilities of Thimar-LSESD, a ministry to Lebanon in the capital city, Beirut. These leaders came from the business sector, NGOs, churches, and the media world, but they had a common goal for the day: to learn how to build God’s Kingdom better together.

Photo of Movement Day February 2024 courtesy of Thimar-LSESD

In the months since then, what have been the results? Hunter Williamson with Thimar shares about two groups that formed from Movement Day. 

“The Christian Businessmen Association has been meeting to discuss different ways that they can actually work with local churches to support local churches, and also ways that they could consider the workplace a ministry,” Williamson says. 

“Having your local business not only [be] a local business that supports your community, but also using it as a platform for sharing the gospel, for talking to people about Christ.”

Second, a pastors’ network has allowed churches to share wisdom on the best ways to reach local communities. 

Photo of Movement Day February 2024 courtesy of Thimar-LSESD

“Lebanon is a country that is very diverse — it can really change a lot from one area to the next. So finding ways that each pastor can share the gospel and the proper context for their individual community is critical.” Williamson says.

Thimar intends to host a Movement Day again next year. But for today, they need your prayers.

“For the past four, almost five years now, a series of crises have been afflicting Lebanon,” Williamson says.

“First there was a mass public uprising against the government. That was quickly followed by very severe economic collapse. The COVID-19 pandemic had a huge impact on Lebanon and really exacerbated the political and economic crisis. Now there is the escalating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, which seems that it could escalate into a full-scale war any day now.”

Williamson adds that another wave of mass emigration from Lebanon has risen in the past few years. That includes Christians. 

“It’s great for us to have days and events like Movement Day,” he says. “But as more and more people seek to leave the country, this really affects Christian organizations and the church, when you have its members leaving.” 

Ask God to lead Christians to stay in Lebanon. Pray as you feel led for stability and effective gospel witness. To learn more about what Thimar is doing to advance the gospel in Lebanon, click here. 

Header photo is a representative stock image courtesy of Andrew Moca/Unsplash.

FARMS International offers interest-free loans to Christians to help them work their way out of poverty. Even with this backing, though, farmers in Cuba are struggling.

Scott Clifton with FARMS says, “We had someone who was planning to build an irrigation well that decided instead to pivot the business and to plant rice because of the immediate need for food.”

But then flooding damaged part of this man’s crop of corn.

“He said [that in addition to the flooding] they go without electricity 10 to 12 hours a day. They can’t get fuel or supplies. It’s actually gone backwards — so instead of using tractors for harvesting and for planting, they’ve had to go back to using animals,” says Clifton.

“They always find a way to make things work, but it’s taking double the effort that it used to take. It’s really a desperate situation that we can be praying for there.”

The bright side to this is that God has been building up the Church in Cuba.

“The Church is exploding in Cuba. It has been for the last decade or so,” says Clifton. “We hear reports about, ‘Oh, this church used to be one church, and now it’s grown into three churches.’ That’s happening all over the place.”

(Photo courtesy of FARMS International)

Clifton also says churches are having events where they supply food to their congregations to bless them. “It’s really something that God is using. In the crucible of challenge and hardship, He’s developing and growing the Church.”

Support believers in Cuba by praying for solid church leaders and for fruitful harvests. 

“For this project that I mentioned, where they’re farming rice, now they’re hoping to quadruple the size of the rice paddy. They’re working on the business plan and logistics for that,” says Clifton.

Ask God to bring stability to Cuba’s government and continue to soften hearts and change lives in Cuba.

Learn more here about how you can come alongside Christians around the world with FARMS International.

Header image of Cuba courtesy of Jennifer Chen via Unsplash.

Takeshi Takazawa with A3 says, “They’re healthy, to a degree, but they know that they cannot continue the same way of doing business for the next 10 years. Then what do you do?

“They are stuck in having trouble developing the succession plan or finding the successors.”

This problem of succession affects Japanese churches as well. Takazawa says, “We have existing about 1000 Bible-believing churches in Japan, and they face exactly same thing in the business.”

A3 guides both businesses and churches through the transition of leadership and provides mentorship for the next generation of leaders.

“We help each congregation, each older pastor. We help through seminars, cohort, helping them to identify the vision and the mission that God has given to a particular congregation beyond the existing senior pastor,” Takazawa says.

Once a transition plan is decided, A3 continues to facilitate communication, offer resources, and invite the Holy Spirit into every step. They see times of transition as invitations for people to draw nearer to God and seek His help. This process requires prayer.

Takazawa says, “I encourage you to pray for Japan, the people in the churches, pastors, leaders, Christians, going through this major change. Intercede for us so that we would go deeper with God through this transition.”

If you are a business leader, consider partnering with A3 to encourage and mentor others in business around the world. Learn more here.

Header photo by Aditya Rao on Unsplash.

Many Russians and Ukrainians own companies in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. Russian is the common business language. Joe Handley with Asian Access says, “Depending on who you’re working for, you may create an alliance with one or the other. It’s a very sensitive situation. The Asian Access approach is trying to unite the church, so how do you unite the church when you have people taking sides?”

As Russia loses influence in Central Asia, other countries try to make inroads. Iran, for instance, has focused on diplomacy with Tajikistan, as well as Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. The region’s position between the EU and China sets it up for further conflict.

Central Asian Church

It could mean big things for the Church. Handley says past growth of the Central Asian Church happened during the fall of the Soviet Union.

As outside forces grab for power and influence, ask God to strengthen the growing Church. Handley says, “To really extend the reach of the Gospel in places where, in Kazakhstan’s case, it’s pretty open. In Kyrgyzstan, it’s a little more challenging. But nevertheless, the need for building up the leaders of the Church is immense, so that’s the status as of now. We plan to go back in early 2023.”

“We ask everyone to pray for us, because we’ll probably open in at least one of those countries, possibly two.”

Header photo courtesy of picknicker54 from Pixabay.

FARMS International strengthens the local Church by helping Christians achieve sustainable business goals to leave poverty and live more freely.

Rejecting Shame and Poverty

South East Asian values differ greatly from those of Western cultures. People operate in terms of community honor and shame rather than individual achievement.

Scott Clifton with FARMS International says that failing to provide for your family, for instance, implies much more than the physical lack of shelter or food. It brings dishonor on the head of the home.

(Photo courtesy of FARMS International)

This shame combined with the day-to-day realities of poverty can be overwhelming. FARMS desires to empower the Church to focus on the Gospel by supporting individuals with sustainable business goals.

Clifton stresses that their goal isn’t to just “help” people stop feeling the effects of poverty, but to provide a lasting way for them to move forward.

“As a ministry we want to assist efforts that are going on. We want to strengthen the Church, but we want the ownership to lie with the people who are impacted. And so that’s coming from people themselves who run the program and who are part of the churches.”

A Different Type of Loan Program

Practically, FARMS operates through a model that combines Christian stewardship with interest-free loans. The loans are used for business goals that individuals are already pursuing. They can and are applied toward a variety of industries, from fisheries to wood-working businesses.

(Photo courtesy of FARMS International)

Clifton says “We operate through revolving loans. And so that means that it’s a loan that must be paid back. We operate among believers. Believers agree to give offerings out of their profits and that’s really the core principles.”

The model is simple, leaving plenty of room for cultural interpretation. In places like South East Asia, it helps preserve the honor of those receiving the loans. It’s not just charity, but a way for FARMS to Biblically assist the Church while empowering them to take ownership in their families and communities.f

Clifton explains that just as not being able to provide for a family can bring shame, using a FARMS loan to move out of poverty can transform a person’s mindset.

“To say that I moved from not only just struggling to provide for myself and our family, but now we have excess and I can give and I take part in the ministry of the Church in a new way. I impact the community around me. That’s a huge transformation at a personal level for people in that culture. So that’s what I’d say [is important] within the honor/shame culture.”

Get Involved

Clifton says he is encouraged that many ministries are moving toward a more sustainable model of ministry and spreading the Gospel. Sharing Jesus is critical, but helping disciple and support local believers in a way that allows them to take ownership of their local churches is also vital.

FARMS has programs in many areas of South East Asia and around the world. Join their team today and help Christian brothers and sisters step out of the struggle and shame of poverty to focus on local ministry. Learn more here.

Header Photo Courtesy of FARMS International

For 20 years FARMS International has operated two separate loan programs in Haiti. Surviving hurricanes, earthquake, and sickness, these locally-run programs seek to strengthen communities by offering business loans through local churches. Projects typically revolve around agriculture and livestock, says FARMS Executive Director Scott Clifton.

One program issues 35 loans a year while another had issued more than 300 before natural disaster setbacks. They’re working back up again, and 60-65 families are currently loan recipients.

(Photo courtesy of FARMS International).

Among the recipients are many large families with 7-10 kids. Widows with FARMS loans have been able to create livelihoods for themselves and their families.

Haitian loan participants often buy goats and pigs. With the additional money or livestock they are able to pay back the loan, allowing money to go out again.

Those extra livestock are a form of security for many families.

“If they have goats and they need an emergency expense… then they’ll sell one of the goats and they’ll have that money available,” Clifton says.

The earnings also go back into the community through church offerings, adding an extra layer of support. Learn more about FARMS here.

Relief vs. Development

(Photo courtesy of FARMS International).

There is an important place for relief, but that’s not where FARMS does its best work. In cases of disaster and war, fast externally sourced relief can be life-saving. FARMS does its best work by addressing the long term.

“Haiti really is a place with a lot of need and a lot of poverty. It’s a difficult situation to work in, because the need is so evident, yet at the same time there’s so many people trying to help. There’s more NGOs per capita than any other nation and so there can be a real problem of dependency as well,” Clifton says.

The FARMS approach focuses on local development and dignity.

“They’re joining the purpose that God has for their life by using the gifts and talents that God has given them. And when people have that… dignity, participating in the kingdom in that way, that can be really transformative,” he says.

Haiti’s Unique Training Program

FARMS loan programs are each run by a local board of directors who receive training in business and on what to look for in a loan. The Haitian directors decided to go a step beyond and provide general and technical training for all loan recipients, Clifton says.

Pastor Renaud, one of the Haiti program directors, describes the process as ‘like training a toddler to walk.’

First they stand, then they take their first steps, and soon they’re running around having completed their business development.

Pastor Renaud and the other Haitian FARMS leaders have made development even easier for program participants.

“It was something that they developed because they saw the need, and when they developed it, they saw it meet that need. And so they continued with it. And that’s a great model to follow,” Clifton says.

He thinks the Haitian Loan Program’s training may be helpful in other locations.

How Can I Pray?

Pray for the residents of Haiti and other FARMS locations around the world during the COVID-19 pandemic. Cases have now reached Haiti, but social distancing is often not possible due to close quarters and an inability to stop working.

“It’s just a very difficult situation if diseases start to spread rapidly.”

Pray for the success of FARMS programs and local loan recipients. Ask that successes now would create a domino effect for future generations and communities.

Consider donating to help support initial loan investments in places like Haiti.

Header photo courtesy of Tim Trad via Unsplash.

In the words of Slavic Gospel Assocation’s Eric Mock, “While the Ukrainian government works to establish itself on the world scene, it still reels from the reality of its industrial base that was greatly damaged when Russia invaded the eastern third of the nation.”

As a result, villages and towns have been devastated. Local businesses, including grocery stores, gas stations, and more, have been shelled into rubble. Most surviving businesses chose to flee rather than wait in fear for their turn, and new businesses rarely take the financial or physical risk of establishing themselves.

Photo courtesy of Slavic Gospel Association

Homes are gone, too. Most have been blown away by bombing and war, leaving locals starving, impoverished, and homeless. Conditions are already harsh, and as winter builds, it’s only going to get worse.

And yet, there is hope. “In the midst of suffering that’s going on, God continues to accomplish things, as you said, behind the scenes and in amazing ways, to raising up His church and people that desire to make a difference.”

That’s where the Crisis Evangelism Fund comes in. The Fund provides mattresses, linens, food parcels, evangelistic literature, and more. They’re equipping locals to face hardship with a good night’s sleep, full bellies, and Gospel hope.

“We’ve been able to get behind the people that God has raised up to help the people in eastern Ukraine, Ukrainians reaching Ukrainians,” Mock says. “What a joy it’s been to see how these faithful believers, week in and week out, are putting their lives on the line in the midst of this conflict to take a message of faith, the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and to bring much needed food and supplies to citizens.”

If you want to support, you can contribute directly to the Crisis Evangelism Fund and learn more about how your donations help Ukranian families. You can also donate to other projects Slavic Gospel Association uses to support Ukranian believers and hurting locals.

Not sure you can spare the money? Pray.

“It would be foolish for me to think that my man-centered efforts are the total solution to all their needs there,” Mock says. “Instead, it’s the power of God at work through the power of prayer. And God hears our prayer. In fact, Peter Deyneka Sr, the founder of Slavic Gospel Association, would say, ‘Much prayer, much power. Little prayer, little power. No prayer, no power.’”

Header photo courtesy of Slavic Gospel Association