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U.S. Christians asked to pray for peaceful elections in Sudan

The people of Sudan will participate in the country’s first democratic elections in 24 years this April, reports Michael Ireland, chief correspondent, ASSIST News Service.

According to international Christian relief organization Samaritan's Purse, it is an historic time for a nation that has endured decades of civil war, and also a time of fear and anxiety.

Free and fair elections could help lay a foundation for lasting peace, but if violence erupts, it could rekindle a civil war that has already claimed the lives of millions.

“In 17 years of doing relief work in Sudan, we’ve witnessed so much horrific violence in this nation. Yet with this historic election, Sudan sits at a crossroads and has an opportunity for long-term peace. We are asking every Christian to join us in prayer for the people of Sudan,” said Gary Lundstrom, Samaritan’s Purse International Vice President.

With so much at stake, Samaritan’s Purse is asking people across the U.S. and around the world to join together with churches in Sudan for a week of prayer March 21-27 -- culminating with a Sudan Global Day of Prayer on Sunday, March 28.

“We are praying that everything will run smoothly. We are praying for the nation of Sudan,” said James, a church pastor in Sudan.

Samaritan’s Purse, headed by Franklin Graham, has been deeply involved in efforts to help people in Sudan -- especially in the southern part of the country where Christians suffered terrible violence and persecution during the civil war.

Since 2001, Samaritan’s Purse has provided $83.7 million in relief assistance to Sudan, ranging from building a hospital and providing clean water to rebuilding 367 churches that were destroyed during the war.

Government and church leaders in both North and South Sudan agree that prayer is a key part of maintaining peace in Sudan.

Samaritan’s Purse is asking people to pray:

**That all polling places will be safe and secure

**For peaceful elections (April 11-13)

**For political stability in Sudan

**For an end to the conflict in Darfur

Samaritan's Purse is a nonprofit organization that provides immediate, no-red-tape response to the physical and spiritual needs of individuals in crisis situations -- especially in locations where few others are working. Samaritan's Purse has worked in more than 100 countries to provide aid to victims of war, disease, disaster, poverty, famine and persecution.

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TAGS: Sudan USA U.S. Christians democratic elections Samaritan's Purse civil war Sudan Global Day of Prayer Franklin Graham

[03/24/2010]

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