Prayer that hits the target by Viva

 daily prayer guides for each goal  thoughtful writing and craft activities  real children’s stories  weekly challenges to complete This child-friendly resource helps you use the themes of the Millennium Development Goals to pray for children at risk around the world over eight weeks, offering:

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Prayer that hits the target M O RE

Children are suffering. We all know that. Thousands of people are working to help them. We all know that too. Yet the problems persist. Children are still suffering. In cities all over the world there are projects doing great work, but a lack of money, people and time means there is a limit to what they can achieve alone.

idea s a n d re to h at viva source .or s elp mo you g g st et pra from t the ye hi r g uide s

We need to work together. Imagine what would happen if the people caring for children joined forces. If childcare workers, local churches, governments and international charities came together to tackle the issues faced by children. Whole cities would be transformed. Together we would have the power to bring about real change for children, not just chipping away at the surface of the problems but fighting them right at the root. At Viva we are doing just that. Through our 44 city-wide networks we are increasing the unity, quality and impact of work for children at risk, our joint action changing the lives of over 1 million children around the world. Viva, Unit 8, The Gallery, 54 Marston Street, Oxford, United Kingdom, OX4 1LF t: +44(0)1865 811660 e: info@viva.org w: www.viva.org

Viva is an operating name of Viva Network.Viva Network is a company limited by guarantee no. 3162776, registered charity no.1053389, and registered in England at Unit 8,The Gallery, 54 Marston Street, Oxford OX4 1LF, UK

Prayer that hits the target At Viva we are passionate about helping people work and pray for children at risk around the world. We want to see children become all that God made them to be. Yet in many countries there are still thousands of children missing out on some of the most basic things in life.They are going hungry, dying from diseases that can be stopped, not getting an education and missing out on opportunities because of their gender. One of the most recent ways humankind has tried to help struggling children is political, using the money and might of the world’s wealthier countries to help those with less resources. In the year 2000 every country that is a part of the United Nations signed the Millennium Declaration, dedicating themselves to achieving eight targets that would save and improve the lives of millions of people across the world.Although these Millennium Development Goals are very difficult targets, if they were reached we would see poverty go down, unfair treatment challenged, diseases disappearing and people working together to do it. Most importantly for us, the lives of millions of children would be changed for the better. But right now it is looking like we might not manage to achieve those goals in the time that was set.

We believe that God wants to see the world become a better place, and that he wants to use all of us to bring that about. In fact, as you read through this prayer guide, you will see that there are many ways we can each use our words, our abilities, our time, or our money to help those who need it. But we mustn’t forget that it’s a partnership: we can’t do it without God.We will never see a changed world unless there is change in people’s hearts and minds, and only God’s power and grace can truly bring that about. So we need to pray, adults and children alike, that God will help us to make a real difference in the world.As we are committed to both prayer and action, the Millennium Development Goals are useful examples of key things that people are already working towards but which also need God’s power.Whether you use this resource on your own or with your family, or take it into your church, small group, or school, we hope that it will guide your prayers as together we ask our loving God to help our hurting world.

All the stories in this guide have been taken from real prayer requests we have received from our partner networks. Names, locations and some details have been changed for child protection purposes. All Bible verses are taken from the New International Version.

The Millennium Development Goals

6 laria, a m , S D I t HIV/A iseases a b m o C er d and oth

aternal m e v o r Imp

health

child Reduce rate ity mortal

equality r e d n e n te g Promo power wome & em

versal i n u e v Achie education y primar

treme x e e t a c Eradi and hunger y povert

7 ental m n o r i v en Ensure tainability sus

8 ership n t r a p l ba p a glo opment o l e v e D el for dev

Goal 1: Make sure children have enough food and money to survive

Imagine never being able to spend more than 50p in a day. How would you eat? What would you wear? How would you get to the places you need to go? Sadly lots of people around the world live just like that. Many children go hungry every day and don’t even have a proper place to sleep at night. We want to help the people who look after children to give them everything they need, so that they always have enough food to eat, a bed to sleep in and a safe place to live.

Psalm 107:9 ‘...for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.’ This verse reminds me to: ...................................................................................................... ...................................................................................................... How could God use me to help a young person who is hungry? ...................................................................................................... ......................................................................................................

Angel’s story… As the youngest in a family of six, with barely enough money to offer each child one meal a day, nine-year-old Angel often had to miss school and earn a few pesos to make sure she got dinner. She felt hungry all the time, and because she was missing out on learning the very skills that might help her make more money in the future, the feeling seemed unlikely to go away. Through Viva’s city-wide network in San José, Costa Rica, four churches have come together to run feeding centres for the children of the community, and between them they are offering good healthy meals to 800 children three times a week. As staff get to know the children and their families they can also introduce them to other network projects that can help them see a doctor, start going to school or build a better house. Through those feeding centres Angel and her brothers and sisters are now not only given meals during the week, but they have also been put in touch with a project that is paying for them to go to school. So Angel has the chance to make sure that her appetite is satisfied both now and long into the future.

Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger

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Take a pair of scissors, t wo paper plates and some old magazines and cut out some pictures of different types of food that you like to eat. Place the pictures of food on one of the plates. Then pick up the empty plate and hold it. Now, imagine someone else picking up the plate of your favourite foods and eating them. Your plate is empty. How do you feel? Many children around the world feel exactly as you felt, but their stomach stays hungry every day. Take time right now to pray and ask God to help the hungry children around the world.

Goal 1: Make sure children have enough food and money to survive

Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger

Day 1

Day 2

Melissa is 15, and lives in Lesotho with her grandparents, who are very poor. They live in a small tin shack, which leaks when it rains, and there is only one bed - Melissa has to sleep and bathe in the same room as her grandparents. • Pray for children like Melissa who live in cramped, damp and unhealthy conditions • Pray for God to bring hope and real change to children in these situations

In Peru many families go to the big cities hoping to find work, only to find worse conditions of poverty. Children often end up being forced to sort through rubbish dumps to sell things on the street, just to support their families. • Pray for children forced to work when they should be enjoying their childhood • Pray that their parents would be able to find work to support their children, rather than the other way around

Day 3

Day 4

When you are HIV+ like Sophie, aged two, being hungry is even more of a danger. Hunger makes you weak, but you need to be strong and relatively healthy to be able to take anti-retroviral medication to keep HIV under control. • Pray that children like Sophie would be able to get nutritious meals to keep them healthy enough to take their life-saving medication • Pray that more families would be able to afford the medication their children need to stay healthy

Love in Action in Lesotho helps to provide education, health services, clothing and other support to children who otherwise would not be able to afford these things. • Pray for Love in Action, and other similar organisations, to be able to find ways to keep children out of poverty forever • Pray that those organisations will have enough money to allow them to do the work God has called them to

Day 5

Day 6

In Kenya, Bethesda Children’s Ministry is working to rescue children from the streets. They offer activities like drop-in centres and football clubs, where children can meet others their age, and play and learn together. • Pray for the staff of projects like Bethesda to love and care for the children in the way that they need • Pray for children who have to live on the streets, that God would protect them and lead them to projects that can help them

Raoul is a seven-year-old boy in Cambodia who, along with his family, is trying to settle back in to life after war. His father is a farmer whose business is struggling so much that he cannot always afford to feed his wife and two children. • Pray for children like Raoul, who have been affected by a war that they had nothing to do with • Pray that struggling parents would do well in their jobs so they can properly support their families

Day 7 There is more than enough food and money in the world to go around, and yet children are still living in poverty and constant hunger. Sometimes projects or churches try to help on their own, not realising that there are others just around the corner working to achieve the same goal. • Pray that God would bring more organisations together to reach a bigger number of children • Pray that they would share their resources and use them well, to keep children out of poverty for good

This week I can… Set aside a small amount of money every day, and then send it to a charity to help make sure children have the food and money they need.

Goal 2: Help children go to school

Achieve universal primary education

Sometimes you might find school boring and wish that you could stay at home instead. But imagine what life would be like if you had never been to school: you wouldn’t be able to read a book, look at a magazine, write a letter, or use the Internet.You wouldn’t be able to read this! That is what life is like for many children around the world. We want all children to be able to at least finish primary school, and hopefully secondary school too. That way, when they grow up, they will be more likely to find a job that will give them enough money and food to survive.

Psalm 119:73 ‘Your hands made me and formed me; give me understanding to learn your commands.’ This verse challenges me to: ....................................................................................................... ....................................................................................................... How could God use me to help a young person who cannot go to school? ....................................................................................................... .......................................................................................................

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Find a clock, and give yourself exactly one minute to gather anything you see that could be used in a classroom or to teach others. When the time is up, count the number of items you collected. How many different things did you find? You are very fortunate to have access to things like paper, pencils and books! Many children around the world would love to trade places with you and be able to get an education. How does that make you feel? Now take the number of school items that you collected, and pray that number of times this week for children around the world to be able to get an education. Start with your first prayer right now!

Patricia’s story… As a young girl, Patricia was abandoned on the streets of Harare, Zimbabwe’s capital city, and it wasn’t until she was 15 years old that she was taken in by a local project. They wanted to help her start school with others her own age, but she had never even been to primary school, and could not read or even write her own name. Thankfully, the project was part of Viva’s city-wide network. Through that network a group of projects and churches run ‘bridging schools’, which help children who have been out of school to catch up with other children their age in English and Maths. Patricia was able to go to one of these bridging schools, which meant that she was finally able to learn how to read and write with no pressure from other children. Now she is getting ready to join the local high school, and takes great pride in carefully writing her name on all of her school books!

Goal 2: Help children go to school

Achieve universal primary education

Day 1

Day 2

The need for education in Kisumu, Kenya, is so big that the people who end up teaching are often untrained and unsure of how to help the children learn.Viva’s citywide network is addressing this by sending qualified teachers in to train the unqualified ones. • Pray that initiatives like this would help to make sure that children get the best possible education • Pray that God would give wisdom and knowledge to every teacher in the Kisumu slum

In Rutana, Burundi, CORD set up a school for children affected by conflict.The school now teaches 700 children in only six classrooms, which means that they are very overcrowded, and the children are not learning properly because teachers cannot spend enough time with each one of them. • Pray that even with the crowded classrooms teachers would still be able to give children the individual attention they need • Pray for God to provide the money for schools like this to build more classrooms

Day 3 Being ill can make it very hard for some children to go to school. eight-year-old Anna in Thailand loves going to school, but she is HIV+ and often feels too sick to go. Even when she does, her teachers find it hard to know how to address Anna’s individual needs in a classroom full of children. • Pray for children like Anna, whose sickness or disability gets in the way of their education • Pray for more schools to know how best to help children who are sick or who have special educational needs

Day 4 Cecily and Veronica are two orphans being looked after by the River of Joy Centre in Kampala. Not having any parents means that they have no way of paying the fees for primary school.The project is hoping that they can work with a local pastor to get church members to sponsor the girls’ school fees. • Pray that more local churches would be happy to help children with their school fees • Pray that church members would understand how important education is for the children in their community

Day 5

Day 6

Nuria is 15 and lives in one of the poorer areas of Guatemala. Thanks to sponsorship, she was able to finish primary school and is now doing well in a Christian high school. She is excited that one day she may even go to university. • Praise God for blessing Nuria and others like her with a good education, which gives them a positive start in life • Pray that they would have the desire to carry on learning, so that they can get good jobs and provide for themselves and their families

Nine-year-old Solomon lives in rural Uganda and would love the opportunity to go to school, to learn and make friends. But his father drinks a lot and doesn’t care very much about Solomon’s education. He spends all the money he has on alcohol, so Solomon has to stay at home. • Pray for children like Solomon, whose home situations stop them going to school • Pray that God would give parents the strength to break free from alcohol and drug abuse and put their children’s needs above their own

Day 7 If a city’s schools, churches and childcare projects worked together then it would be easier to find the children who are missing out on education, like Solomon and Anna. Then they could make sure they are helped by the right people. • Pray for children like Solomon and Anna, that someone would find out about their situations and be able to help them • Pray that churches, schools and projects would work together more often, inspiring and challenging one another to give a better response to children at risk in their community

This week I can… Go through all my clothes, toys and school supplies and thank God for them. Then donate some of the best things I don’t need any more to a local charity shop or children’s centre.

Goal 3: Treat girls fairly

Promote gender equality & empower women

In many countries around the world, girls are treated as though they are less important than boys. They are less likely to go to school, and often have to stay at home to help with the chores or go out and find dangerous work so that their family has enough money. We want girls to be given the same opportunities as boys. They should be able to go to school, be kept safe and healthy and not have to worry about being treated badly by people who think they are not important.

2 Corinthians 8:13 ‘Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality.’ This verse inspires me to: .................................................................................................... .................................................................................................... How could God use me to help a young person suffering because they are not treated fairly? .................................................................................................... ....................................................................................................

Ananya’s story… By the age of 16, Ananya had been promised as a wife to a local Indian man. Her parents were also searching for a husband for her younger sister Khushi. Because the family didn’t have much money, and the girls would be leaving the household to get married, it didn’t seem important to send either of them to school. Thankfully, there are local projects and churches in India who see that it is very important to educate girls as well as boys. Viva has connected these organisations across the country and they have formed a group called Jyoti, which is an Indian girl’s name meaning ‘light’. They are working together to make sure girls are treated fairly. Through the Jyoti group working in Delhi, Ananya was able to receive money to help her go to secondary school. A local project is also working with her family to make sure they support their daughter’s education, and to encourage them to send Khushi to school as well. Now, whether or not they get married, Ananya and Khushi should be much better able to provide for themselves and their families in the future.

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Take a blank piece of paper and trace your hand. Cut it out and look at it. You cannot tell whether it is the hand of a girl or a boy or what colour skin the person has. The hand might be a different size than other hands, but it shouldn’t be treated differently. Some people around the world, especially girls and women, are treated differently just because they are female! How would you feel if someone of the opposite sex received great opportunities to do things and you just received extra work? God created both boys and girls and he loves all people equally. Use your paper hand to write a prayer for women and girls around the world.

Goal 3: Treat girls fairly

Promote gender equality & empower women

Day 1

Day 2

Sarah’s mother tries to earn a living by selling vegetables at her local market in Kibera, Kenya, but the money she makes is only enough to send two of her children to school. Although 14-year-old Sarah is the oldest, she has two brothers; so they are getting an education and Sarah is missing out. • Pray for girls like Sarah who miss out on education while their brothers get to go to school • Pray for more parents to be able to earn enough money for all their children to have an education

In Uganda it is illegal to get married if you are under the age of 18, but sadly it happens quite often. Dina is only 15, and would not have known that she should say ‘no’ to under-age marriage if one of the projects in our Kampala network hadn’t taught her about her rights. Now she is spreading the message to all her friends. • Pray that God would bless initiatives that protect girls and teach them about their legal rights • Pray that girls would have the courage to speak out and stand up for those rights

Day 3 It’s hard to imagine being so poor that you would give up one of your family members in order to provide for the others. But in Cambodia this is the case for many families. And since girls are often considered less important, they are usually the ones sent away to bring in money for the family to survive. • Praise God for the work happening in our partner network in Phnom Penh, helping families earn money so that they don’t have to think about selling their children • Pray that more parents would understand how valuable all of their children are

Day 4 Maria’s parents died when she was only a teenager, so she had to look after her younger brothers and sisters. This meant that she was not able to go to school. But thanks to a local project in Lima, Peru, she has recently started a course which is teaching her to sew, meaning that she can earn some money to help her properly care for her siblings. • Pray for girls like Maria, who have to give up their rights through no fault of their own • Pray that more projects would be able to give girls an opportunity to gain skills and earn a living

Day 5

Day 6

Priscilla, aged 13, was taken away from her family in Zimbabwe and brought to South Africa to work. She was far too young for the awful work she was made to do. Although she has thankfully been rescued now, it will take a long time for her to be happy again after all the horrible things she had to experience. • Pray for girls who are taken away from their families and forced to do frightening and difficult jobs • Pray that more girls in these situations would be able to escape, and that God would help them to recover from the things they have been through

In Bolivia there are children who have no families and no money, so they actually live outside on the streets. In these situations girls are especially vulnerable to being forced to join a street gang or made to work in horrible conditions for very little pay. • Pray that girls living on the streets would be protected and be able to find somewhere safe to live • Pray for the adults who are treating street children badly to stop, and learn to treat children well

Day 7 Sadly, discrimination against girls sometimes even happens within churches, as they are influenced by society.Viva’s Jyoti group is helping many local churches and projects raise awareness across the whole of India, so that Christians can stand up for girls’ rights not just in their own church but throughout their communities too. • Pray for churches all over the world to have a better understanding of what the Bible says about equality • Pray that churches in countries where women’s rights are not recognised would have the courage to go against the culture and set an example of God’s attitude towards women and girls

This week I can… get in touch with a local newspaper or radio station, telling them what I have learnt and asking them to spread the word about treating girls fairly.

Goal 4: Stop children from dying when they are still young

It is quite hard for us to imagine that some children don’t even know if they’ll live until their fifth birthday. But around the world babies and young children die every day because they and their families are too poor to get the food or the medicine that they need to survive. We want children to feel safe in the knowledge that they will get to grow up healthy and strong, and we want them to be able to look forward to the future without having to worry about being sick or hungry.

Psalm 30:2 ‘O Lord my God, I called to you for help and you healed me.’ This verse inspires me to: ...................................................................................................... ...................................................................................................... How could God use me to help and encourage very young children? ...................................................................................................... ......................................................................................................

Nabulungi’s story… Baby Nabulungi was born early, weighing only 1 kilogram – about as much as a bag of sugar. Her mother was very young and didn’t feel able to take care of her, so she was just left at a hospital in Kampala, Uganda. Nabulungi was so small that only the constant care of one of the nurses, Grace, kept her alive.While Grace was caring for Nabulungi she became very attached to her, and so even though it was a very difficult process she decided to adopt Nabulungi.Thankfully the network’s Families for Children (FFC) group were right there alongside her to help. Several projects that care for abandoned children have come together through our Kampala network to set up FFC, finding homes and families for children whose parents couldn’t take care of them and supporting the families who choose to adopt.They hold regular coffee mornings where adoptive families can meet to share experiences and encourage one another, and they also run a course to teach adoptive parents how to care well for the children they take in. Thanks to Grace’s love and care, and the support of the people and projects around her, baby Nabulungi is alive, healthy and happy. And thanks to FFC we hope to see more babies given the chance to grow up in this way.

Reduce child mortality rate

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Take a blank piece of paper and fold it in half. Use the front to draw a design for a birthday card. Sadly, many children won’t live to see their next birthday because they don’t have access to the food or medicine that might save their lives. Together we can help to make sure that children stay healthy and live to celebrate lots and lots of birthdays. On the inside of your card write a prayer for a child in a country without much food or medical help. Perhaps if your family or school sponsors a child or project you could even send the card to show the child that you are praying for them.

Goal 4: Stop children from dying when they are still young

Reduce child mortality rate

Day 1

Day 2

When Benito was five years old, he looked and talked like a two-year-old. He didn’t have much nutritious food during his mum’s pregnancy or in his early life, and he wasn’t very well looked after. But thanks to Casa Viva, a church-based fostering project in San José, he is now safe and healthy with a new family and has just turned seven. • Pray for children who may not make it past their fifth birthday because of bad health or lack of food and money • Pray that more churches and families would be willing to take these children into their homes and care for them

Masani, aged three, lives at the Potter Village Children’s Ministry in Uganda. Her parents had died, and when she was brought to the ministry she was very malnourished and wasn’t even able to crawl. Malnourishment is one of the biggest causes of death in children under five across the world. • Pray for young children like Masani, who are orphaned or abandoned and cannot look after themselves • Thank God for projects like the Potter Village Children’s Ministry, which have saved the lives of so many malnourished children

Day 3

Day 4

To tackle malnutrition properly parents and carers need to be able to guarantee their children regular and healthy meals.Viva’s network feeding centres in Costa Rica are training their staff in nutrition and basic health care, as well as growing their own vegetables so that hundreds of children get the food they need every day. • Praise God for projects like this which are helping children who are already malnourished and also trying to stop them getting that way in the first place • Pray that more projects would teach parents and children about nutrition, so that they can stay healthy

Dumi is four and lives just outside Harare, Zimbabwe. Because his home has no running water, his family has to rely on untreated water from a nearby well. Dumi is one of millions of children who suffer constantly from diarrhoea and worms because of water like this. • Pray for children like Dumi who suffer from preventable illnesses because of the situation they were born into • Thank God that you have clean water to drink and wash with

Day 5

Day 6

Three-year-old Ahsan was playing outside his house in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, when he fell and cut his leg. It was only a small cut, but because his mother didn’t have bandages or antiseptic it quickly became infected. The infection spread, and soon Ahsan was very ill. If a local doctor hadn’t heard about Ahsan and intervened, Ahsan could have died from the infection. • Pray for children like Ahsan whose lives are often endangered by things that are actually very treatable • Thank God for the doctors and nurses all over the world who do such a good job of looking after sick children

In the villages of Cameroon, the closest hospital or clinic can be a three-hour drive away. Because travel is very expensive, and so is any treatment or medicine, many people struggle to get medical care even when a child is really sick or even dying. • Pray for God’s protection over children who are not able to receive the medicines they need • Pray for better access to healthcare in rural areas, so that parents do not have to travel long distances and pay lots of money to save their children’s lives

Day 7 In this week’s story we saw how baby Nabulungi was saved because of the love of an amazing woman called Grace. But Grace couldn’t help Nabulungi all by herself – she needed the knowledge and support of others. It took a lot of people and projects to make sure Nabulungi was happy and healthy. • Thank God for people like Grace, who are willing to give their time and love to children who might not survive without them • Pray for Families for Children, that they would be able to help more people foster and adopt children who need a family

This week I can… ask a grown-up if I can hold a baby, and sit and talk with them about what this baby can and can’t do for itself at such a young age.

Goal 5: Keep mothers healthy Mums are amazing, aren’t they? They love you, feed you, clothe you and teach you more than you even realise. But sadly many children do not have a mum to look after them. Lots of mothers are too poor to get medical help when they are pregnant or when they give birth, and may get very ill and even die. Others have to work very long hours in order to provide for their children, and so are hardly ever around to take care of them. We want mums to be able to be cared for before and after their children are born, so that more children can get the love and attention they need.

Isaiah 49:15 ‘Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you!’ This verse reminds me to: ............................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................ How might God use me to encourage the mothers I know? ............................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................

Vanna’s story… Vanna’s parents died when she was very young, and she had lived and worked on the streets of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, since she was eight years old. When she was 15 she became pregnant, but the father of the baby did not want anything to do with her. The streets were very rough and frightening, and both Vanna and the baby inside her were in a lot of danger. However, our partner network of projects and churches in Phnom Penh is working to help the city’s vulnerable girls. They offer them places to live, help them with education and work and also try to keep them from living on the streets so that they don’t find themselves in Vanna’s situation. Through the network Vanna was given a safe place to stay during her pregnancy, and was helped to find a permanent home once the baby was born. She not only got the medical care she needed but also had counselling to help her try to overcome the hurt and fear she felt. Although Vanna had been very scared about having her baby, she felt so encouraged by the support she received that she called her little boy Samnang, which means ‘good fortune’.

Improve maternal health

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Find some pictures of yourself as a baby. As you look through them think about how your mum looked after you when you were in her tummy, and make a list of five things she did for you that you are thankful for. There are many mothers around the world who love their babies very much, but they can’t take care of them in the way they want to because of the circumstances in which they live. For every photo of yourself that you looked at, say a prayer for mothers and babies around the world whatever their situation.

Goal 5: Keep mothers healthy Day 1 28-year-old Kamidza from Chad has recently given birth to her seventh child. She doesn’t feel like she has the right to tell her husband she doesn’t want more children.Yet by carrying on they are not only risking Kamidza’s health - she gives birth at home with no medical care - but also the wellbeing of their other children. • Pray for women like Kamidza, who live in cultures where having lots of children is encouraged regardless of the risks • Pray that more Christians would speak up on behalf of women and girls like Kamidza

Day 3 Baby Marla’s mother worked long hours as a maid in Mixco, Guatemala, and was not well treated by her employers. She was constantly ill and tired.This meant that Marla was not always properly fed and was often left completely on her own even when she was very young.Thankfully a local project helped Marla’s mother find a new job, so now she can take better care of Marla. • Pray for mothers who get sick because of their difficult and tiring jobs • Pray that God would protect children like Marla, whose mothers cannot always care for them properly

Improve maternal health

Day 2

The number of women who get very ill, or even die, as a result of giving birth is very high in many developing world countries. Like Kamidza in yesterday’s story many women still give birth without the help of a midwife or any other kind of medical care, and this puts them in unnecessary danger. • Pray for women, especially in rural areas, who have no access to medical care before, during or after childbirth • Pray that Christian health organisations would be able to reach more pregnant women with the medicines they need

Day 4 In many countries there is a lack of understanding about relationships and sex, and this can lead to girls becoming pregnant at a young age. Sometimes teenage girls are thrown out of their homes if they get pregnant, which leaves them very vulnerable, and makes them even less likely to get the healthcare they need during their pregnancy. • Pray for girls in this situation to be met by projects that can support them, and keep them and their babies healthy • Ask God to help families of under-age mothers to be kind and forgiving, so that they can stay safely in their homes

Day 5

Day 6

Naledi is 12 and lives just outside of Cape Town, South Africa. Her mother is very ill, and so Naledi has to care for her five younger brothers and sisters as well as earn money to feed them all. Naledi’s family could not afford healthcare when her mother got sick during her last pregnancy, and she has never properly recovered. • Pray for mothers who get sick during pregnancy, that God would heal them • Pray for children like Naledi who are forced to take on parental responsibilities at a young age

Wakisa Ministries provide health education classes for women in Uganda, and also offer some financial help when they are pregnant or have young children. Without such support both the women and their children are at risk, as they do not always know how to look after themselves during pregnancy or cannot afford to give their children everything they need once they are born. • Praise God for projects like Wakisa Ministries that help make sure children are well cared for • Pray that God will provide for mothers who struggle to afford the things their children need

Day 7 This week we have seen that there are many ways mums can be at risk: they might live in dangerous places, be unable to afford medical care, get badly treated by employers, or be very young mothers like Vanna from the main story. The best way to make sure that all mothers are kept safe and healthy, whatever they are struggling with, is to work together. • Pray that more projects would join together to provide the most relevant care for mothers and babies • Thank God for the mothers like Vanna who have truly been helped because of people working in unity

This week I can… write to my local Member of Parliament, encouraging them to do everything they can to make sure mums all over the world are looked after and kept healthy.

Goal 6: Stop children from getting sick

Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases

Two of the most serious diseases in the world are AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) and malaria. You’ve probably been taught about them at some point. If you have, you know more about them than a lot of children who live in areas where they are most common. Not being taught about these illnesses means that children are much more likely to catch them, and even those who understand how they are spread may not be able to protect themselves. We want every child to know how to stay safe from disease and, if they are suffering, to be able to get treatment even if they do not have enough money.

Matthew 14:14 ‘When Jesus got out of the boat and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed those who where sick.’ This verse motivates me to: .................................................................................................................. .................................................................................................................. How might God use me to help a young person who is struggling because they are sick? .................................................................................................................. ..................................................................................................................

Dinah’s story… Nine-year-old Dinah from Kenya was used to looking out for herself. Her father was not around, and her mother was very sick from the effects of aids, so Dinah had to miss out on even the most basic things like going to school and eating regular meals. But then Viva spent some time with local projects and churches in Nairobi, teaching them how to care for people with HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) and AIDS. The project leaders and church pastors were challenged to find at least three families in their local communities who were affected by those illnesses, and to encourage others to work with them in caring for those families. It was in this way that Pastor John came across Dinah and her mother. Now through the network’s slum school project Dinah is receiving a longed-for education, and the school she is part of is able to give her a healthy meal every day. Pastor John has also been able to introduce Dinah’s mother to a project that can give her medical help, so she is not so sick and is able to take better care of Dinah.

r Activ e y a ity Pr Get a packet of plasters and a pen. On each plaster, mark the name of a disease or sickness that affects children around the world. Millions of children suffer or die from diseases like HIV and malaria every year. Unfortunately, these diseases won’t go away if you put a plaster on them. And sometimes the medicines children need are expensive or difficult to get in the areas where they live. Right now, take time to pray for the children suffering from each disease that you wrote down on a plaster.

Goal 6: Stop children from getting sick

Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases

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Betty is two years old, and got infected with HIV through being breastfed by her mother who was sick. Because her village in South Africa is so remote, Betty’s birth was never officially registered.And since she does not legally exist, she cannot receive the important medication that she needs to survive. • Pray for children like Betty, who are vulnerable because they do not have birth certificates • Pray that governments would do more to make sure that every child who needs medication can receive it

Sadly there are lots of people who don’t fully understand AIDS, and they can be unkind to children who suffer from it or whose parents died because of it.They often exclude them from school or family life, and so many children are left feeling very alone and unhappy. • Pray that the Church would defend these children, replacing judgment and cruelty with love and acceptance • Pray for a change in the attitudes of whole societies, so that children affected by AIDS can be accepted in their families or local communities

Day 3 Joseph is one of 3,000 orphans being cared for by Bala Mercy Children’s Centre. His family couldn’t afford mosquito nets, and so both of his parents caught malaria and died. Joseph was also infected, but thankfully Bala Mercy were able to care for him and he recovered well. • Thank God for places like Bala Mercy Children’s Centre, which are able to care for children affected by disease • Pray for children who suffer because they live in remote places where getting quick treatment for malaria or cholera is very difficult

Day 4 In many parts of Africa people do not know all the dangers of HIV and AIDS, especially children and teenagers.Africa Inland Mission works with churches, schools and communities in the Congo to help people understand how to stop those diseases spreading and how to look after children who are suffering from them. • Pray that organisations like AIM would have the money they need to educate more people about HIV and AIDS • Pray that young people would be responsible and act in a way that keeps them safe from diseases

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Children who are orphans as a result of AIDS not only have to deal with the loss of their parents; they have a higher risk of abuse and disease and have fewer chances to go to school.Their parents may also end up passing on the disease during childbirth or infancy. • Pray for children who are affected by AIDS through no fault of their own • Pray that more organisations would provide support to the extended family of AIDS orphans, so that they can be cared for by people close to them

When Jasmeet was 15, she was made to marry a man who already had several other wives. Because of his many relationships he became HIV+ and so Jasmeet has now also been infected with the disease. • Pray for girls like Jasmeet who are forced into relationships at a young age and stand a high chance of catching diseases like HIV • Pray for Christians to speak up for the rights of girls and young women at risk in this way

Day 7 Dinah’s story showed how Viva taught a group of projects in Nairobi about how to care for people with HIV and AIDS. This training is called Let Your Light Shine, because it is about encouraging children that even though they are sick they are very precious to God and can shine just as brightly as any other child. • Pray that this training would really help children know how valuable they are to God and to others around them • Pray for projects and churches to work together to care for families like Dinah’s who are affected by HIV and AIDS

This week I can… Search the Internet or go to the library and find out as much as possible about the diseases that affect children around the world. (Start with Kidshealth.org/kid)

Goal 7: Make sure children have clean water and fresh air

For many children around the world just drinking a glass of water means risking getting sick, because the water is dirty and can contain diseases. And in your home you have drains that take away the used and unclean water from your toilet, but many children who live in slums don’t - this water often runs into the streets where they live and play. Many families also don’t have helpful bin-men to collect their rubbish, and so their houses are surrounded by lots of dirty and dangerous things. We want children to be able to eat and drink without worrying about getting sick, and live in a safe and clean environment where they can be sure of staying healthy.

Psalm 24:1 ‘The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.’ This verse motivates me to: ............................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................ How could God use me to look after our environment? ............................................................................................................ ............................................................................................................

Tahir’s story… Eight-year-old Tahir had lived in a Delhi slum all of his life. Although he was used to it, he still hated the damp and dirty conditions, the constant smell of old food and unclean water, and the fact that he almost always had some of kind of injury or infection. But through our city-wide network Tahir was able to be part of a ‘child parliament’ - a group of children from local projects who meet together to discuss issues that affect them and try to find ways to

Ensure environmental sustainability

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Many young people in developing countries don’t have clean air or water where they live. How would you feel if breathing your air or drinking your water could make you sick? Write the words ‘CLEAN AIR AND WATER’ down the left side of a blank piece of paper, and use each letter to begin a prayer request. Here are a few to get you started: “Lord, I pray that… C – children would be taught to stay away from dirty water that could make them ill L – leaders would make sure drains are built so that children don’t have to play in dirty water E – everyone would try not to pollute the air and water that people have to breathe and drink”

resolve them. In one of these meetings Tahir talked about the conditions of the slum, and he found that many of the other children felt just as he did. They all agreed that it made them feel worthless to live in a place that even the police didn’t want to enter because it was so smelly and dirty. So approximately 60 children from the community got together and spent an entire Saturday cleaning up their slum. They cleared rubbish, dug some proper trenches for dirty water to run through and even chased out lots of unhygienic stray dogs! Tahir was so proud of their accomplishments that he now has plans to get the group to help clean up other nearby slums.

Goal 7: Make sure children have clean water and fresh air

Ensure environmental sustainability

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Katrina is eight, and has already spent half of her life on the streets of El Salvador. She has to beg for food, and just drinks the dirty water that runs between the houses. She has very bad diarrhoea and dehydration because of the unhealthy conditions in which she lives. • Pray for the many people and projects working to reach out to children like Katrina • Pray that more work would be done to keep children from having to live on dirty and dangerous streets

A project in Uganda attended a Viva training day about the importance of listening to children, and as a result decided to ask the young people in the project for their ideas. They said they wanted to start their own vegetable garden, and now they are growing enough food for all of the 300 children at the project’s school.This is saving them money, and also making the most of local and natural resources. • Thank God for initiatives like this which mean that both children and the environment benefit • Pray that more children would be able to have such an active involvement in decisions about their world and their future

Day 3 16-year-old Hamid lives in an industrial area of Lahore, Pakistan.The dust and dirt from the factories near his house affected his lungs very badly, and he had so much trouble breathing that one day he walked into a local hospital to ask for help and only just got inside before he collapsed. Fortunately they were able to transfer Hamid to a hospital in a less polluted area, and he is slowly recovering. • Pray for children like Hamid who live in places where even the air is dangerous • Pray that local councils would plan safe and clean areas for children and families to live

Day 4 In the last few years climate change has made our world’s weather much more unpredictable. As a result many children are finding their homes washed away by unexpected floods, their families hurt in earthquakes or tropical storms, or their parents unable to earn a living because their crops have failed. • Pray for children whose lives are badly affected by things that are outside of their control • Pray that more people would try to live in a way that helps and not hurts the environment

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Day 6

Jao is four and lives at Manna Children’s Home in Thailand. The project was quite poor, but last year they received a large gift of money and straight away they used it to get a new well so they would have safe water every day.They knew how important clean water is for children’s health. Jao is blessed to be growing up healthy and strong at this project. • Pray for safe drinking water for children like Jao who are affected by poverty • Pray that childcare projects would realise the importance of clean water and do all they can to get it

Karis Family Link helps children at risk in Kampala, Uganda, by educating whole families about proper sanitation.This means teaching people simple hygiene rules, such as using soap to wash their hands, and showing them how to build a latrine so that they do not have to use the streets as their toilet. • Thank God for projects like Karis Family Link, which are helping to keep children and families living in slums healthy • Pray for local governments to take more responsibility for getting clean water to every part of their city

Day 7 Tahir’s story is a great example of how people working together really can make a positive change to the environment. Although the children in the slum, and probably many of the adults, didn’t like the living conditions and were suffering because of them, they were only able to do something about it when they tackled the problem as a team. • Thank God that real change in our world is possible when people work together • Pray that we would all play a part in taking better care of our environment

This week I can… take care of the environment by always switching off the light when I leave my room and turning off the tap when I brush my teeth.

Goal 8: Get people working together to make the world a better place

Sometimes, you just can’t go it alone. You’ve probably had times when you’ve needed help to do something. Who do you ask - a friend, a sibling, your mum or dad? Well, it’s the same for the people trying to help children who are poor, hungry, or sick.They can give children much better help if they work together with other people who are trying to achieve the same things. We want to see people and projects working together so that children, wherever they are and whatever difficulties they are facing, will be able to get the care that they need.

Philippians 2:4 ‘Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.’ This verse urges me to: ........................................................................................................... ........................................................................................................... How might God use me to bring people together to do something good? ........................................................................................................... ...........................................................................................................

Philippe’s story… Philippe’s mother couldn’t afford to send him to school. They didn’t have much food, and his bed was nothing more than a sheet on the hard floor of their shanty house. His friendship with a local street gang was slowly pulling him into their life of stealing and fighting. At only 12 years old Philippe was very close to leaving his home and simply living on the streets of Peru. One project alone would struggle to help the many children who are at risk of living on the streets. But through Viva’s city-wide network people from those community projects and churches have come together as a group called Early Encounter. They have formed street teams, and they connect struggling families to local projects that can help provide whatever it takes to keep children safely at home. Together we were able to introduce Philippe’s mother to a project that trained her in tailoring, helping her to provide for her family, and another project that offered daily sports activities for Philippe so that he wouldn’t go out fighting and stealing. And now that his mother can afford good meals and a proper bed for him, Philippe no longer spends any of his nights on the streets.

Develop a global partnership for development

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In a group, take a box of paper clips and give each person five. Have each person hook their paper clips together. All around the world people or organisations have good ideas or do good things. Unfortunately, many times the groups don’t know what others are doing, like one paper clip by itself. If the groups worked together, like the chain of paper clips, many good things could be done to help hurting children. How do you feel to know that even though people who can offer help to a child might be near to them, they might never reach the child? Now hook all of the paper clip chains together. When people decide to work together, look how far they can reach! Count the number of paper clips on the chain. Pray that number of times this week for cooperation to achieve helpful things for children in need around the world. Begin with your first prayer right now.

Goal 8: Get people working together to make the world a better place

Develop a global partnership for development

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13-year-old Rogers was very sad when his school in Harare closed down. But through Viva Network Zimbabwe a group of projects and churches have been running ‘bridging schools’, which help children not getting an education to catch up with others their age. Rogers was able to attend a bridging school and has now passed all the examinations he needs to get into the local college. • Pray that more schools in Zimbabwe would have the money to stay open • Thank God for the many children who have had a good education because of the bridging schools

Many of Costa Rica’s children do not have enough to eat, but thanks to the feeding centres formed by our San José network 800 of the city’s children are now getting nutritious meals three times a week.They also get the opportunity to meet local projects that can help provide any other things they might need. • Pray for the children of Costa Rica who are not yet being helped in this way and instead go hungry every day • Thank God for all the people working together in the feeding centres, meaning that children get good food straight away and are also offered help for the future

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In Uganda, Kampala, the network is bringing churches together to teach them how to help children feel loved and included - in other words, to have a child-friendly church. Now many more local churches are getting children involved in planning and leading services, and one congregation even elected a child to their church council! • Thank God for the churches that have realised how important it is to respect and value children • Pray for local churches to reach out to struggling families and children who are not already part of the church, and offer them love and help

12-year-old Chantrea was taken away from her parents in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, and forced to work in a dangerous job.Thankfully our partner network was able to find and rescue her. Together the different organisations in the network made sure that Chantrea was given a safe place to live and a chance to go to school, so now she can look forward to a job that won’t harm her. • Pray for the people who take children away from their homes, that they would see what they are doing is wrong • Pray that more children like Chantrea would be rescued and brought back to their families

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Day 6

In San José the Casa Viva team is working with local churches and projects to help more families adopt children. And the government has been so inspired by the way these groups are working together to give children a loving family, they want to work with them to help children all over Costa Rica. • Pray for children without a mother and father, that they would know how much God loves them • Pray for Christian organisations to work together to find more opportunities to influence governments for the benefit of children

Nandani was just six years old when she was abandoned by her step-father, who left her on a train. She ended up in a hospital in Dehradun, far away from her home, where she was discovered by a local project that was part of our city-wide network.Together with other projects and churches they were able to trace Nandani’s family, find temporary care for her and make sure plenty of people were praying for her. • Thank God for stories like Nandani’s, which show that working together can be very simple but can make a huge difference in the lives of individual children • Pray that more parents would love and care for their children, not mistreat them

Day 7 In Nepal, children are often taken away from their homes and are mistreated, abused and forced to work in horrible conditions. But local churches in Kathmandu are responding - through our network they can get trained together in recognising the danger signs of a child who is at risk of being taken, and they can act as a city-wide safety net to protect children. • Pray for the girls and boys who have already been taken from their families, that God would keep them safe and help them get rescued • Pray that more churches would work together like this, showing the power of the unity encouraged by the Bible

This week I can… work together with some friends to come up with a creative idea to raise money to help projects working with children. Viva works together with more than 8,000 organisations and would like to acknowledge the great work of every one of those partners