Sweden is the country that brought you Volvos, Ericsson phones, ABBA and of course flat-pack furniture factory IKEA.

The largest of the Scandinavian countries, Sweden has one of the most extensive welfare systems in the world, providing free healthcare, education and benefits for everyone. It also leads the way supporting equal rights for women. In 1999 the majority of the Swedish government were women – a world first.

Sweden’s latest cultural import to hit the UK was Stockholm’s very own Anders - who made the final three in the top TV show ‘Model Behaviour’.

IKEA doesn’t actually mean anything, in any language! It is made up of the initials of the man who founded the company, Ingvar Kamprad, and the name of the farm, Elmtaryd, and town Agunnaryd, where he grew up. Mr. Kamprad now owns 155 IKEA stores in 29 countries around the world which make 8 billion US dollars a year.

4000 young people come together each New Year to hang out with each other and God at the Frizon festival. 24-7 Prayer has been spreading all over Sweden and at the Frizon New Year festival in 2001 Sweden began a year of non-stop prayer! Pray that this passion for prayer would burn deeper and stronger across Sweden.

In Sweden’s secular society a whole generation has grown up thinking that church and God are irrelevant. Pray for Christians who are working to reach and disciple these young people.

Sweden has a significant heritage of Christian mission – pray that more people from Sweden would be called and trained give their lives in long-term mission.

Pray for the work of bible translators in Stockholm who are working to translate the New Testament into every non-Slavic language in the former Soviet Union – an amazing opportunity to reach millions of people across Eastern Europe.