- [Chris] It's called,Love In The Face of Isis.
A book covering seven prayer strategies
for crisis in the Middle East.
- In first John is says God is love,
and so if you substituteGod in the face of Isis
there comes this wholeother powerful meaning.
But we know that God's heartis for all to be saved,
he doesn't wish any to perish.
- [Chris] Author LorraineMarie Varela and her husband
Gabriel lead a ministry called,
Inspiring Faith International.
She says her book is about
carrying God's heart into conflict.
- Jesus spoke about loving your enemies,
what does that look like?
It's easy for us to say thatwhen we're sitting in the west
from our comfortable homes andchurches to love our enemies
but when we're confrontedwith such a violent group,
it really changes the dynamicsof how we need to respond.
- [Chris] Varela adds thatfirst response must be prayer.
- I had a vision of beingseated in Heaven looking
at the earth from God'sperspective and I knew
that that was a prayer directive.
When we pray we realign ourthoughts and our attitudes,
our perspective, our eyesight,
our vision with what He's saying and doing
and then we change andthen we come into alignment
to release His strategies anddirectives over a situation.
- [Chris] In her book shelays out the strategies.
- The Lord showed me thatthrough His covenant names,
we can release strategy,
He's the Lord who's there first of all.
So we wanna cover the wholearea with His whole presence.
He is the Lord our provider.
There's a need for provision.
There's uprising taking placeonce more and so as a result
people are being displacedand women are becoming widowed
and there's a really need forphysical sustenance and help.
So there were seven differentcovenant names of God
that He led me through to release His love
over the situation over people.
- [Chris] Those namesinclude the presence,
the armies and protection of God,
as well as perseverancefor the people of God
and provision, healing and peace of God.
- What I love about the book is that one,
it awakens people'shearts for the situation
in the Middle East, but two,
it awakens their heartsto what God's purposes
is over them and their families
and their own life situations.
So all of those covenant names of God,
they're applicable nomatter where you live
and what your situation is.
- [Chris] Varela sees itas a boomerang effect.
- When we pray for the needs of others,
God brings that blessing back to us.
So if I wanna pray for Hispresence to be very real
in the Middle East and I'mdedicating my time to doing that,
He's then bringing Hispresence back on my home
and my family.
- [Chris] A film version of the book based
on real-life storiesis also in development.
It will focus on the struggleof two Iraqi brothers torn
from their family who fallinto a gang controlled by Isis.
- The purpose of the filmis to bring encounters
from Muslim people withthe heart of Jesus.
And that can happen in a movie theater,
that can happen in yourhome watching a DVD,
but it's to bringencounters in His presence,
to be real and for believersto have an awakening
of the need to be prayingfor our brothers and sisters
and those in the Middle East,
and just to have a heart change.
- [Chris] Chris MitchellCBN News, Jerusalem.
