Religious Freedom Week Resources
Religious Freedom Week Resources
Religious Freedom Weekend Booklet
Video: Religious Freedom is in Crisis
Prayer Points for the Persecuted Church1
Pray for strength (Ephesians 3:16-19)
Suffering believers need strength to endure the pain, and pressure of persecution.
Pray for provision (Philippians 4:19)
Faced with poverty, loneliness and isolation, suffering believers need our prayers for God to provide.
Pray for the Gospel to advance (Phil. 1:9–11)
Pray for believers to be bold and wise in sharing their faith and – that despite the challenges – people would come to Christ.
1From Open Doors
Prayer Points for Religious Freedom in Australia
- For the protection of religious freedom in Australia.
- For God-given wisdom for lawmakers.
- For courage and boldness for Christians who may face difficult choices under unjust laws.
- For comfort, provision and community for Christians who experience bullying or pressure or who lose friends, family or employment.
Suggested Prayers
A prayer for persecuted Christians2
Sovereign God,
we worship You
and we acknowledge that You know all of those
who suffer in Your name.
We remember those who are imprisoned for their faith
and ask that they would join with the Apostle Paul
to see that even though they remain captive,
their chains have furthered the gospel,
not frustrated it. May they inspire and embolden their fellow believers
to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly.
God of all comfort,
for those who are tortured both in body and mind,
give them the grace to endure
and to see their suffering as part of following in Christ’s footsteps.
Merciful God,
for those asked to pay the ultimate price;
who are martyred because of their love for You,
may they truly know Christ
and the power of His resurrection
and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings,
becoming like Him in His death.
Father God,
for those who are widowed and orphaned
may they know the comfort that comes from Your promised presence
even when they walk through the valley.
May they be strengthened by Your Spirit,
enabling them to rejoice with the psalmist
as they proclaim that the Lord will not abandon them in death.
Heavenly Father,
we ask that You would make us ever mindful of our brothers and sisters around the world
who need us to stand with them
as they suffer in Your name.
Teach us what it means
to overcome by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of our testimony;
we pray that we would not love our lives so much as to shrink from death.
O Lord, hear our prayer. Amen.
2From Release International
A prayer for religious freedom
O God, our ruler and our guide,
in whose hands are the destinies of this and every nation,
we give you thanks for the freedoms we enjoy in this land.
We ask for the protection of religious freedoms in Australia,
for us and for our neighbours who believe differently.
So that we might be able to practice our faith openly,
be hospitable to those who don’t know you,
and so that your Gospel might be freely seen.
We pray that Christian organisations and churches would be free to operate
according to Godly wisdom and biblical ethics,
and that Christian parents would be free to raise children in the faith,
without undue interference.
Sovereign Lord, we ask for your wisdom and guidance for lawmakers.
At every level of government, we pray that hearts would be open
to hearing from those who advocate for religious freedom.
Father, we pray for courage and boldness
for Christians faced with difficult choices under unjust laws.
We pray for your peace and love to fill their hearts,
enabling them to follow you, even at great cost.
Lord, for Christians who are experiencing pressure or bullying
because of their faith,
and for those who have lost friends, family or employment,
we ask for your provision and your comfort.
We pray that the family of believers would lift them up and support them.
In all things, we pray that your will would be done,
As we wait for the coming of your Kingdom.
Amen.
