Review: Operation World

Operation World book cover on blue background

Since I'm on the theme of my favourite books, I wanted to share one of the best prayer guides I've had the blessing of encountering, which is Operation World. Please note that the 7th edition was last updated in 2012; however, it is part of the Operation World Resources list which contains more recent titles, including ones that are helpful for families.

Book Synopsis

Operation World, the definitive global prayer handbook, has been used by more than a million Christians to pray for the nations.

Now in its 7th edition, it has been completely updated and revised by Jason Mandryk with a team of missionaries and researchers, and it covers the entire populated world.

Included in this updated and revised 7th edition:

All the countries of the world
Featured maps of each country
Geographic information
People groups within each country
Economic information
Political information
Religious make-up of each country
Daily Prayer Calendar
Answers to prayer
Challenges for prayer

Whether you are an intercessor praying behind the scenes for world change, a missionary abroad, or simply curious about the world, Operation World will give you the information necessary to play a vital role in fulfilling the Great Commission.

Source: Amazon

Book Thoughts

Operation World serves as both an encyclopedia and a devotional, wrapped up in one package. What I appreciate most about this book is that it provides specific details to support prayer so that Christians can pray in an informed manner about all the nations of the world. The country profiles provide further insight into each nation, with everything from population statistics to a breakdown of religious groups and the percentages of growth among Christian denominations. Although the book includes a disclaimer at the front that statistics are always ever-changing, the heart of the data is meant to give a snapshot of how God is working in the nations. Readers will be encouraged by seeing the answers to prayer, and inspired by what believers are doing around the world.

Moving beyond merely providing country snapshots, Operation World excels in listing out the challenges to prayer, which serve as prayer prompts for readers. The nature of these prayers is well-defined and precise. There is little ambiguity so that when you pray, you are not only referencing the country by name, you are given information about the ministries working in that nation, the particular challenges facing that nation due to unique political or economic circumstances, and the types of outreach that are taking place. Christians with a heart for the nations and unreached people groups will find this book an excellent resource, helping families to become educated and prayerful about the world that God has created.

Book Summary

Format of book: 📖
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Recommendation: 👍

Comments

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