'Please don't stop praying': plea from kidnapped Christian missionaries' colleagues

Christian Aid Ministries, who experienced the loss of 17 people in a kidnap nearly a fortnight ago, have urged people to keep praying for their return. 

The group was kidnapped when returning from a visit to an orphanage that receives support from Christian Aid Ministries (CAM). The adults held captive range from 18-48 years old and the children are ages three, six, 13, 15 years old and eight months. 

On Monday CAM updated supporters, saying: "It is now the tenth day since our workers and loved ones were kidnapped in Haiti. Today, we have a heartfelt message for you: PLEASE DON'T STOP PRAYING. Don't grow weary. We sense a great need of your prayers. Your prayers are a vital part of resolving this situation. We don't know how God will choose to bring resolution, but we desire that His will be done."

Last week, the families of those captured said in a statement that their relatives had been given "the unique opportunity to live out our Lord's command to 'love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you'."

This Wednesday, CAM also answered questions in an online statement about why they send missionaries to dangerous places: 

"We live in a very broken world. A world of broken relationships, broken trust, and broken political systems. It is a world of loneliness, fear, and violence. And Jesus came, not just so men could go to heaven when they die, but also to show the kind of a world God intends right here on earth.

"God desires a world where the hungry are fed, abandoned orphans are cared for, and where lonely refugees are provided for. Jesus came to redeem this broken world and has called His church to work with Him. We go to places like Haiti because we have found Jesus and His teachings to be the answer for our own lives and we want others to enjoy the joy, peace, and redemption we have experienced in the kingdom of God.

"We travel to Haiti to help, but we can always return to our comfortable lifestyles here in the United States. But many in Haiti do not have this luxury."
 
They have organised a 24/7 prayer chain, where people can sign-up to cover a 15-minute slot to pray for the people who have been kidnapped. 

CAM said: "The seventeen hostages need your prayers, for endurance and faithfulness, as they continue to be held. Pray for their families as they wait for this situation to be resolved. Pray that the gang members could turn to Jesus and enter the kingdom of God. One family member of a hostage expressed a desire that the gang members follow Jesus by turning their lives over to Him, and to love and serve the men, women, and children of Haiti."