Instant communication has become such an important and essential part of our everyday lives that it’s hard to imagine life without it. Smart phones, email, instant messaging, texting, G4, iPads, etc., all beckon us to be connected and stay connected wherever we are and whatever we’re doing. The goal, of course, is to know what’s going on as soon as it happens.

It’s hard to think back, then, to January, 1987, when Liebenzell Mission in Germany began sharing current prayer requests on a weekly basis. Twenty-five years ago the prayer requests were recorded on tape and accessed by telephone. Soon after, the first printed versions were distributed by fax machines; it was a time-consuming process as each telephone number had to dialed individually. In the mid-90s, email was added for distribution. Today, over 2000 people receive weekly prayer requests in German or English. The weekly prayer requests from Liebenzell Mission is Germany appear on the Liebenzell USA website as our “Current Prayer Requests,” which are updated daily.

This instant communication has changed the way we are able to address prayer concerns and requests from the missionaries on the field. What used to take almost a week in some cases can now occur within minutes. The task, however, remains the same: prayer for the missionaries and ministries proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ!