Belgium is one of the smallest nations in Europe. An imaginery line divides the country roughly in half, with Flemish speakers in the north and French speakers (Walloons) in the south. There has been longstanding divsion and tension between these two communities and in 1993 each region was given greater political independence when regional governments were created.

Scandals throughout the '90s have left people with a distrust of political, legal andreligious leaders and because of this there's a growing skin-head fascist movement.

There is freedom of religion in Belgium and the culture has been strongly influenced by the Catholic Church. However, Belgium is one of the most spiritually needy countries in Europe.

One of the most famous Belgians is the cartoon character Tintin and the Belgians also claim to have invented chips!

The northern (Flemish) area of Belgium used to have fewer Bible-believing Christians than the French-speaking south. But in the last 10 years there had been evangelical church growth in the north.

There is growing respect and unity between Protestant and evangelical churches that are working together to represent Christians in Belgium to their government.

Belgium is a divided nation; the Flemish and Walloon areas have a long history of rivalry. Pray that leaders in Belgium can work towards a more united Belgium.

Pray for the leadership of the church in Belgium. There is a lack of Belgian pastors and priests, especially in the northern Flemish area. Less than half of the leaders in the Flemish churches are from that area. The average age of their priests is 64! Pray for new life in the church and for many Belgians to be calld into leadership in the church.

The exposure of murderous paedophile rings in Belgium in the 1990s has deeply affected society at all levels and caused many to distrust political and religious leaders.

NATO and the European Union have their headquarters in Brussels. Pray for this strategic city, where decisions are made that influence across Europe and around the world.