Preparing for Danish Summer Camps and Conferences

Once again this year, the months of July and August will see the gathering of hundreds of Danish believers in summer camps and conferences sponsored by the various free church denominations and Folkekirke revival movements. This website will shortly begin to post the dates and places of the summer camps and conferences of which we have been made aware.

Because many of these camps usually bring together large numbers of people from all over the country, the spiritual implications are tremendous. Many of the free churches in Denmark are rather small. There is a dynamic and excitement often present in the singing and worship of large assemblies that is rarely experienced in smaller local churches. There is also an appreciation for fellowship in the larger Body of Christ that comes from worshiping together with fellow believers from throughout the country. Enduring friendships are often made at these summer events.

PRAY for the intense preparations going on now for the many July and August summer camps, including the final details for each camping event, the setting up of the camp grounds, the orientation and training of camp helpers, and the ministries of camp administrators, musicians, seminar leaders and speakers.

PRAY for God’s protective mercies as camp workers and campers travel by bus, train, and auto from the far corners of the country. Some of the speakers and seminar leaders will be coming from other countries. PRAY that campers at each of the scheduled camps will be spared serious injuries or illnesses.

PRAY that the power of God’s Holy Spirit will be felt in every camping event and that speakers will confidently proclaim the Word of God with His anointing in every teaching and preaching sessions.

PRAY for revival to break out in many of the camps with numbers coming to faith in Christ and every camper, whether child, youth or adult, strengthened and encouraged toward growth in their Christian life and walk.

Urgent Need in Burundi

As a matter of policy, Pray for Denmark.com does not generally become involved with matters of funding or fund raising and does not expect to do so often in the future if at all. However, Thomas Spanner of Baptistkirken i Danmark (Danish Baptist Union) has notified us of an urgent request pertaining to the African country of Burundi, where Danish Baptists began mission work in 1928. As the work grew, and because of the need for medical care for converts and families related to the indigenous churches as well as ministry to the general local population, the Danish Baptists early on financed and constructed a hospital at Musema in Burundi’s Kayanza Province. With the cooperation of local Burundis, the hospital was long administered and staffed by dedicated Scandinavian doctors and nurses, among them for some years my dear friends Dr. Torben and Rita Rouland., now retired in Viborg.

In 1989, the property and management of Musema Hospital was taken over by the Burundi Ministry of Health. The hospital was all but destroyed during the civil war years between 1993 and 2000. The World Bank provided financial support for its renovation between 2001 and 2003. As a temporary measure, Musema Hospital has been managed since early 2005 by Médicins Sans Frontiers (Doctors Without Borders) which has very recently ended its participation. The local population had great doubts that the Burundi government could or would maintain proper hospital standards. The Burundi Minister of Health has now asked the leaders of the Baptist Union of Burundi (UEBB) to assume the burden of management of Musema Hospital.

It is essential that this Hospital continue its medical services and caring ministry for the obvious reason it is one of only two hospitals in the entire Province of Kayanza, an area with a population of nearly 560,000. There are high costs involved in managing such a large hospital operation and the Burundi Baptist Union has limited resources. Danish Baptists have continued over the years to give generous support to missions endeavor in Burundi. In a cooperative effort on behalf of the Burundi Baptist Union, the Danish Baptist Union program coordinator Thomas Spanner has launched an urgent project and appeal to churches and Baptist organizations worldwide, as well as other entities, to consider lending support to the Burundi Baptist Union in its management of the Musema Hospital project. That support is expected to take the form of medical teams of volunteer doctors and nurses; financing for specific projects such as fences and security around the hospital; provision of a building to house a radiology unit; upkeep of paths and roads on the hospital grounds; and new surgery facilities and equipment. Also needed are funds for daily running expenses for a period of at least three years. The Burundi government has been asked to contribute support, though it is not all certain that such support will materialize. In the aftermath of the civil war, the nation’s resources are still decidedly inadequate and limited. The country is still in transition from civil war to peace and reconstruction.

Those concerned for this urgent need may contact Musema Hospital project coordinator Thomas Spanner, Secretary for International Missions, at Baptistkirken I Danmark, Lærdalsgade 7, st.tv., DK 2300 Copenhagen S. He may be reached via email at spanner@baptist.dk.

PRAY that the urgent appeal for support of the Burundi Baptist Union’s management of Musema Hospital will result in widespread interest and generous response in the hospital’s ministry for Christ on the part of many individual donors, churches and other Christian organizations.

PRAY for wise leadership by Danish Baptist Union's cooperative program coordinator and Secretary for International MissionsThomas Spanner in concert with the Baptist Union of Burundi’s General Secretary Isaac Bimpenda as the needs of Musema Hospital are disseminated amongst concerned believers and churches throughout the world.

PRAY that the mercy ministries of Musema Hospital will be the means of introducing the Gospel of Christ to many unreached Burundis in Kayanza Province.

Global Day of Prayer, Pentecost Sunday, May 27

On Pentecost Sunday, May 15, 2005, Christians from 156 of the world’s 220 nations came together across denominational and cultural boundaries for the first Global Day of Prayer. The movement had its origins in South Africa in July 2000 but has now rapidly spread world-wide year by year. Believers from 199 nations, including Denmark, participated in the 2006 Global Day of Prayer.

I would like to encourage those throughout the world who regularly or even occasionally view this Pray for Denmark.com website to check the Global Day of Prayer international website for information on their country's gatherings this year and to become a part of this Christ-honoring prayer movement. See www.globaldayofprayer.com/) for further information. It will take awhile for the idea of the Global Day of Prayer to ignite the hearts and actions of Danish believers, but it is beginning to happen under the leadership of volunteer coordinator Kirsten Nielsen of Copenhagen.

In Denmark, at least three major public gatherings will be held on Pentecost Sunday, May 27, 2007: at Rådhuspladsen in Copenhagen; at Rådhuspladsen in Århus, and at Signalbakken in Aalborg. Details (in Danish) may be found on the Internet at www.globaldayofprayer.dk. We understand that thirteen local churches in Aalborg have banded together to participate in the Global Day of Prayer. May there be similar unity and participation all over Denmark.

The church I and my family attend here in California will also be participating in the Global Day of Prayer on May 27. The church’s large choir and orchestra will be singing Tommy Walker’s hauntingly beautiful and heart-searching contemporary anthem, Calling Out to You, picking up the theme of 2 Chronicles 7:14 in these words:

“Lord, You have told us;

Lord, you have promised,
That if Your people will pray,

You will hear from heaven
And you will send Your mercy,

And touch us with your strong, healing hand.
So, we’re calling out to You, crying out to You,
Forgive us of our sins and heal our land.
As we seek Your holy face

And turn from all our wicked ways,
Hear from heaven even now,

Hear from heaven even now.”

It is especially important in these troubled and dangerous times that God’s people come together in repentance and prayer for the glory of Christ and the healing of the nations. The formula for genuine revival has remained ever the same from Old Testament times to our present day: “If My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14).

PRAY that Danish believers, pastors and churches will gladly and enthusiastically unite with their counterparts worldwide in massive, passionate repentance and intercession on the Global Day of Prayer, Pentecost Sunday, May 27.

PRAY for Spirit-empowered vision, ability, and wisdom for volunteer coordinator Kirsten Nielsen as she plans and promotes the 2007 Global Day of Prayer throughout Denmark.

PRAY that as Danish pastors, churches and born-again believers unite for the Global Day of Prayer it will lead to repentance and unprecedented spiritual revival in Denmark’s churches and in turn spread with blessing and healing to all the nations of Europe.

Denmark's Island of Bornholm

Bornholm, the most eastern part of Denmark, is situated in the Baltic Sea 94 miles southeast of Copenhagen and 24 miles south of Sweden. The island has a land area of approximately 227 sq. miles and a coastline of approximately 87 miles. The current population estimate is 45,000. Rønne, the largest town and the island’s capitol, has a population of 16,000. Smaller towns include, Nexø, Gudhjem, Allinge-Sandvig, Aakirkeby, Svaneke, Listed, Hasle, Snogebæk, Dueodde, and Arnager. Bornholm has been called Denmark’s “Crown Jewel.”

The landscape of Bornholm includes rolling wheat fields and thick forests in the center of the island. The coastline is rugged with many small fishing villages and dangerous cliffs that dip down into the sea. Two thirds of the island is granite. The northern sector is very rocky while in the south the landscape changes to gently rolling and fertile farmland. The southern coastline has powdery white sand beaches. Fishing is a major industry.

The Lutheran State Church (Folkekirke) is the most prominent of Bornholm’s churches with 22 parishes located throughout the island; many of the Lutheran churches are centuries old. Bornholm is famous for its four whitewashed Round Churches (Rundkirke). The Danish Lutheran revival movements Indre Mission, Evangelisk Luthersk Missionsforening, Luthersk Missionsforening are active and have mission houses and ministries at various localities on the island. Significantly, Luthersk Missionsforening had its origins in 1868 on the island of Bornholm.

Though relatively few in number, a free church presence is maintained by Baptist (www.baptistkirkenbornholm.dk/), Methodist (www.roenne-metodistkirke.dk/), Missionskirken/Mission Covenant (www.missionskirken.dk/), Pinsekirken/Pentecostal (www.pinsekirken-tejn.dk/ and www.pinsekirken-bornholm.dk/) churches, mainly in the capitol city Rønne. A Syvende Dags Adventistkirke/Seventh Day Adventist Church is located in outlying Tejn (www.tejnadventkirke.dk). Frelsens Hær (Danish Salvation Army) has ministered on the island for many years. Further information regarding the history of Christianity on the island may be found on the website at http://www.kma-bornholm.dk/kultur/ (in Danish only).

PRAY, as for all of Denmark, for a sweeping spiritual awakening on the island of Bornholm.

PRAY that believers and their pastors and leaders will be committed to aggressive but culturally sensitive evangelism to reach every town and hamlet on Bornholm for Christ.

PRAISE GOD for the Christian radio network (BKN, Bornholms Kristne Nærradio) that operates on Bornholm with the participation of several of the Lutheran revival organizations and free church denominations (see www.bkn.nu/).

Heartfelt Prayer for Denmark at Eastertime

On Easter Sunday, the sun will rise in the east and make its way bringing the light of dawn across Denmark from Bornholm to Esbjerg, just at it did over Palestine and Jerusalem two thousand years ago. When the sun rose then, it was a day such as the world has never known--it was Resurrection Day! The disheartened band of disciples experienced a thrilling, life-changing moment when it dawned on them that the crucified Christ had truly risen from the dead!

Any human life that recognizes the fact that Jesus Christ the Son of God died for our sins and rose bodily from the grave can also have just such a life-changing experience. The New Testament makes that clear: “If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved” (Romans 10:9, 10, NIV).” Membership in a church and putting trust in its rites can in no way guarantee eternal salvation--only personal faith and trust in Christ brings salvation.

Easter Sunday in Denmark will see many Danes making their way to church services, some out of the continuing thrill of having met and known the Risen Christ personally and others merely out of curiosity, family tradition or holiday sentiment. There are not many in Denmark today who know and have experienced Christ in a genuine personal and life-changing way--thank God, there are some. A country once evangelized is always in danger in succeeding generations of cooling off and engulfing itself in a tradition of belief about Christ without personal trust and commitment in Him as Savior and Lord. That could change in Denmark through spiritual revival and a renewal of evangelical faith. We earnestly pray that it will.

PRAY that the Spirit of God will hover over Denmark from one end of the country to the other to make Easter observances this year not merely the trappings of a traditional and sentimental holiday but a day when the crucified and risen Christ becomes a personal reality for many.

PRAY for a great outpouring of God’s revival blessing everywhere throughout Denmark this Easter with many coming “to know Christ and the power of His resurrection” (Philippians 3:10).

A Potpourri of Prayer Requests

Pray for Denmark has continuing contact with a large number of friends in Denmark, including pastors and laypersons in local churches, leaders of Christian organizations, and a number of those who have initiated contact with us through the website. Some I have had the privilege of meeting personally. There are many needs that surface through these various contacts and the interchange of email messages. Let me share a few of these with you in the hope that you will join with us in prayer on their behalf.

PRAY for a young American believer who is currently playing professionally for one of the Danish basketball teams in Jutland. He first contacted us for assistance in finding a church or group with whom he could have fellowship. He needs prayer that he will be able to stand true to his faith in difficult and demanding circumstances.

PRAY for a young Scot lassie who recently arrived in Denmark and is attending a college in Sjæland to enhance her training and experience as a teacher. She is a believer who craves fellowship with other believers. In response to her request we have helped her by making some suggestions of possibilities of fellowship with Danish believers in Holbæk.

PRAY for a fine Danish couple in Kolding who are loving parents of two autistic children. They are believers and need prayer for wisdom and strength in caring for their children's needs day by day.

PRAY that a Christian faculty member and Campus Crusade advisor at a community college in Minnesota will have many opportunities for witness with Danish exchange students from Svendborg. We have been able to put him in touch with Anders Seekjær, a leader in Funen of the Danish counterpart of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship. The prayer need is that upon their return to Denmark there will be good follow-up with these exchange students who have shown some interest in having a Christian group similar to the one they attended in Minnesota.

PRAY for a newly married couple temporarily working at a Christian facility near Aalborg in Jutland. They are concerned and a bit anxious to know God's will for their future and more permanent ministry together. He has a German father and Danish mother and has had some training at an American Bible college. His bride comes from America. Some of their plans have been frustrated by changes in visa regulations. Our hope is that if it is His will the Lord will guide them into ministry in Denmark.

PRAY for a fine young theological student attending one of the universities in Jutland. He is a strong believer intending upon completion of his studies to become a minister of the Danish State Church (Folkekirke). The liberal university environment is not especially friendly to a student who espouses an evangelical and evangelistic faith. Our prayer is that he will remain committed to his faith in Christ during his time at the university.

The Salvation Army at Work in Denmark

The Salvation Army is an evangelical Christian church founded in England in 1865 by William and Catherine Booth. With its unique quasi-military organizational structure, this faith community now has work in 109 countries with over a million members worldwide (the Army calls its members "soldiers"). With its Christian heritage and motivation, the Salvation Army has been supremely successful in wedding evangelism with works of a social nature, based on its sense of the interdependence of material, emotional, and spiritual needs. It has never surrendered its essential biblical base, and has long fed and sheltered the hungry and homeless, ministering to the "down-and-outers" in countries around the world. It has been at the forefront of the rehabilitation and restoration of those having problems with alcohol. The Salvation Army is prepared and can be counted on always to be among the very first on the scene of any catastrophe wherever in the world it may occur. As an organization it casts spiritual vision on all of the dimensions of human need through its churches (corps), social work, crisis centers, work with children, youth, and adults, rehabilitation, thrift stores, and the like.

The work of the Salvation Army in Denmark dates from 1887 where it is known by its Danish branch name Frelsens Hær. Its purpose is one with that of The Salvation Army International: "Dens opgave er at forkynde evangeliet om Jesus Kristus og i hans navn møde de menneskelige behov uden diskrimination" (Its task is to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ and in His name to meet human need without discrimination). Frelsens Hær has 34 corps (churches) in Denmark with 1072 soldier-members and 172 civilian members. It operates three recycling centers and 21 thriftshops, 16 social institutions, and six "åbent-hus" centers. According to the latest available figures, Frelsens Hær provided help to more than 160,000 persons in Denmark during 2005 with Christmastime assistance offered to 6000 families. For further information, click on the following informative webpages: www1.salvationarmy.org/ihq/www_sa.nsf or www.frelsens-haer.dk/.

PRAISE GOD that though relatively small in number, the "soldiers" of Frelsens Hær are quietly and without compromise or fanfare providing for the material, emotional, and spiritual needs of thousands every year in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

PRAY for adequate financial support for the many social and evangelistic ministries of Frelsens Hær on behalf of needy Danish children, youth, and adults.

PRAY for the newly appointed leaders of Frelsens Hær in Denmark as they enter upon their many responsibilities. Lieutenant Colonel Erling Maeland will begin his work on July 1 following the retirement of Colonels Michael and Ina Marvell. Colonel Maeland's wife, Lieutenant Colonel Signe Helene Maeland, will work alongside him as the leader of Frelsens Hær children's division.