As you may already know, wildfires have been raging across our country. Although forest fires are actually a normal occurrence every year, officials are saying we are experiencing some of the most severe ever witnessed in Canada. Although we are only at the beginning of June, the fires have already burned an area the size of Belgium, which is 13 times the annual average. More than 120,000 people have been at least temporarily forced from their homes.
Although we have corporate prayer coming up next Monday, it seems wise that we raise our country up in prayer, individually before we get a chance to meet together. While fires are burning in almost every Canadian province, there are a few locations we wanted to specifically highlight.
1. Northern Alberta
- Many Citygaters have connections to friends and family in Alberta who have been impacted by these fires, including Jen MacBurnie’s brother, who lives in Edson. He was evacuated from his home and is currently on the front lines, working deep in the forest helping to fight the fires.
2. Northern Quebec
- Chibougamau and Ouje-Bougoumou are first nations communities in Northern Quebec that City Gates has sent teams to visit, once in 2007 and again in 2013.
- These communities have been forced to evacuate, displacing roughly 8,000 residents from their homes.
Let’s lift up our country in prayer, highlighting these particular communities, but also all of the areas affected. Let’s also lift up our leaders and response teams, and pray for them to have wisdom in directing resources as needed as well as safety and protection.
