Christians gather near Mosul to pray for embattled city

As the battle to recapture the city from ISIS persists, a group of Christians have gathered just a few kilometers away from Mosul to pray and worship God.

The group was led by a team from Burn 24-7, a U.S.-based movement founded by Sean Feucht that focuses on organizing worship gatherings all over the world.

Kelsie, a woman who works with the team in Kurdistan, told Christian Today that the prayer and worship events called "burns" can last from 12 to 100 hours. She said that the teams try to hold events in a city once a month with the aim of gathering Christians of different backgrounds and denominations to worship and exalt God together.

"It's missional, too – it's not just to worship and pray but from that place we have teams going out to evangelize and share the love of Jesus, [and] heal the sick. The heart is seeing people ignited with a first love for Jesus, to gather together in unity to see his presence established in a place," she said.

Burn 24-7 sends its volunteers to countries where Christians have encountered difficulties in living out their faith. Short-term teams have been deployed to Mozambique, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Paraguay, China and Russia.

Kelsie and her team decided to go to Iraq after learning that ISIS took over the Nineveh Plains in Northern Iraq in 2014 because they saw a "need for hope." 

In January this year, the team took part in "Light a candle" project. The group partnered with a local House of Prayer to organize monthly "burns" which usually involved 12 hours of prayer and worship.

Last year, the team assembled a group composed of Jordanians, Arabs, Kurds, Iranians, Americans, British and Canadians. In one of their monthly "burns," the group ended up praying for ISIS fighters.

Kelsie said praying for ISIS from afar is a different experience from praying near the base of militant group.

"That is quite powerful. Every time we pray for ISIS it's a powerful time. To see people who have lost everything as a result of ISIS, praying for them, is a beautiful thing," she remarked.

Kelsie and her team regularly work to aid 11 Yazidi families living in an abandoned building. Aside from providing practical and financial support, the group also uses music and art to share God's love to the families.

"For us, worshipping Jesus is one of the most effective ways to see change. When we are worshipping Jesus, we get his heart for the poor, for refugees... the best place is to be spending time with him," she said.