Current Update & Prayer Needs:
Prayer Needs for Benin - January 5, 2026
January is the month of voodoo festivals in Benin. Initially the festival was one day, January 10th, however over the past years, the government has recognized the income this brings into the country. They have now instituted 3 official days, January 8th, 9th, and 10th as holidays. Nobody works on these days, yet are still paid their wages. Unofficially, the festivals last the entire month of January. A coven/team of idol worshippers from Brazil were invited and flew into Benin yesterday. They will be staying about 2 weeks.
Josue and his ministry team ask for your prayers during this dark time. Starting January 8th, they will hold 48 hours of non-stop prayer, initially in their own churches; on the last day, January 10th, they will gather together in their cities. Josue is planning an evening of praise and worship in a public, open space in Cotonou where the saving grace of Jesus can be celebrated. May God move mightily during this time to break open the darkness of idol worship in Benin.
Josue spent the month of December fasting and praying for God's guidance in 2026. He is doing very well, but tired. For the past 3 days, Josue has rested, including not preaching this past Sunday. Starting tomorrow, January 6th, Josue has been invited to speak at a marriage conference. This is an audience he spoke to last year and will be speaking of "Building Your Marriage on the Rock". May God bless Josue with the words to speak into the hearts of the couples attending.
The students at God's Grace for Kids Cotonou and Hevie resumed school today. The kids, as well as the teachers, enjoyed their time off. The teachers are currently preparing for the June White exams for the 6th and 9th grade students. They will be having practice exams at the end of January to see where the students are weak, and be able to focus on those areas.
7 children have now been sponsored at God's Grace for Kids Hevie!!! We are so excited to have support for these kids to gain an education. If you want to read about the students, and information on how you can sponsor a child, go to: https://www.truthunleashedministries.org/sponsor-a-child
The situation in Benin is currently peaceful. Josue heard news of a person who was preparing another coup attempt and was arrested, however is unsure if this news is true or not. Some of those who were part of the previous coup attempt were arrested, while others fled. They could be in Togo, Niger, or Burkina Faso. Because of that, the Benin government is accusing these countries of attempting to destabilize Benin.
Since the military in Niger took over, there has been tension between Niger and Benin because of the heavy involvement of France in Benin. France has never supported the military takeover in Niger and how radical is it there now. France has set up a military base in Northern Benin and have closed the border with Niger. France wants their ambassador to Niger to leave. Situations between the countries has become very difficult.
This coming Sunday, January 11th, is the parliamentary election in Benin. During the last election, the majority of members were put in place by the current Head of State, because they represent parties that support his government. The Head of State has been trying to remove the 23 members of parliament who represent the opposition party.
The government recently passed that elected officials are now in place for 7 years, up from 5 years. They have also passed law to create a Senate, which is composed of the current Head of State (once he has stepped down from this position in April), the former military chief of staff and former high court president. These are not elected positions, they will be appointed by the current Head of State, and will support his party in leadership.
In December, Josue was asked to meet with Christian businessmen in Cotonou. They brought along non-Christian friends, also businessmen, to hear Josue share his testimony. After speaking, Josue gave the opportunity for them to accept Christ, and 5 men responded! These men are going to be invited to attend their local church, with the guidance of their Christian friends.
Prayer Requests:
*Pray for Benin during this month of idol worshipping festivals. May God make His way in all the darkness, and may people realize what they need most is Jesus. Pray for Josue and his ministry team as they gather to pray and worship, and may God bless them as they do so openly in public. May people see them and be drawn to Jesus.
*Pray for the blood of Jesus to destroy any spell on the nation of Benin. Human sacrifice is a hidden part of the festivals. May God's power destroy all of these plans and lives be spared.
*Pray for ministry plans going forward. Josue has been led to structure the ministry to multiply and to strengthen the Gospel impact through 3 avenues - leadership by training more people, economic stability and entrepreneurship, and church-based systems that allow local churches to transition from being receiving churches to being sending churches
*Pray for Josue during his speaking engagement with the couples at the marriage conference. May the Holy Spirit guide him and use him to answer to couples whose marriages are shaking.
*Please continue to pray for Pam as she has had further progression of her cancer. We are thankful that Pam is at peace while she waits for God's guidance on the next steps. We pray Pam will be able to return to Benin with the mission trip being planned for next summer.
Prayer Needs for Benin - December 21, 2025
Praises:
On behalf of Josue, Prisca, their ministry team in Benin, and the entire Truth Unleashed Ministries board, we wish you all a very Merry Christmas! May God be with you during this blessed season as we celebrate the birth of our Saviour.
Josue reports God is so faithful. He is doing well during this month of fasting. Josue's family, pastors, ministry team, and school members are doing well and looking forward to this Christmas season.
God's Grace for Kids Cotonou and Hevie are currently on holidays. The kids in Hevie had a Christmas party on December 19th where they enjoyed a meal together and received their Grow Shoes and dresses that were made and donated by some of you. The kids were incredibly happy, and very grateful!
Josue has had several speaking engagements over the past couple of weeks. He was in Cote D'Ivoire for a conference when the attempted coup took place. Because his flight was cancelled, he was unable to return home right away. Josue started the couples conference via zoom while in Cote D'Ivoire. This was for non-Christian couples to hear the Word of God from Josue and Prisca. This evening, the couples gathered once again to have a meal together. They have expressed the desire for another conference to be organized for next year.
A dinner was recently held at the farm. Josue's friend and farm neighbour, Olivier, is a caterer and wanted to organize a reception at the farm. Josue and Olivier are looking to develop a plan to host people from the city who want time away from the busyness and noise. This is a new venture hopefully to start next year, with Olivier catering the meals and people staying at the farm. May God bless this as a way to provide income for Olivier, the farm and Josue's ministry.
Josue was contacted by Christian businessmen in Cotonou to attend a dinner next Saturday. Non-Christian businessmen have been invited, as an evangelical outreach where Josue has been asked to share his life testimony and share God's Word with these men. We pray God will bless all of these men as they gather together, and that He will speak through Josue into their hearts.
Pray For:
*Continue to pray for the country of Benin after the failed coup a couple of weeks ago. While there is peace right now and people have resumed normal activities, this could be temporary. The situation is not completely resolved and the people don't know what is happening. This failed coup, along with the upcoming elections in April, can lead to volatile and unstable conditions, so we pray for things to remain calm and peaceful.
*Benin has been placed on the list of countries with restricted access to the United States. This will make it virtually impossible to anyone from Benin to get a Visa for the U.S., and even those who have Visas will have a very difficult time travelling. As Isaac is still in Texas, this prevents Josue and any of his family from being able to visit him.
*Pray for the pastors and their families during this end of year season and the transition to a new year. Pray for Josue as he continues his month-long fasting, may he hear more from the Lord about His plans for the ministry in 2026.
*Please continue to pray for Pam as she has had further progression of her cancer. We are thankful that Pam is at peace while she waits for God's guidance on the next steps. We pray Pam will be able to return to Benin with the mission trip being planned for next summer.