In This Issue: Papua New Guinea, Japan, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq
- PAPUA NEW GUINEA – Tobos Have No Word for Justification
- JAPAN – An Epidemic of Suicides
- SAUDI ARABIA – Christian Convert Released
- IRAQ – Raising up Christian Leaders to Disciple New Believers
- EVENTS – Perspectives Intensives in BC, New Missions Fest in PA
Missions Catalyst is a free, weekly electronic digest of mission news and resources designed to inspire and equip Christians worldwide for global ministry. Use it to fuel your prayers, find tips and opportunities, and stay in touch with how God is building his kingdom all over the world. Please forward it freely!
World News Briefs, edited by Pat Noble, are published twice a month.
PAPUA NEW GUINEA – Tobos Have No Word for Justification
Source: New Tribes Mission, April 30, 2009
Missionary Chad Mankins used bamboo and sticks to illustrate the concept of justification to the Tobo people of Papua New Guinea.
Chad is teaching through the book of Romans. Since the Tobos do not have a word for justification in their language he demonstrated the meaning with two bamboo joints and some dirty sticks.
One bamboo joint was old, brown, and caked with mud while the other was freshly cut and green. Chad placed several dirty sticks in the dirty tube and pulled one out to show the believers what was inside. Then he took the dirty stick out of the dirty bamboo tube and put it into the clean one.
He asked, “Is the stick clean now?” The believers replied, “No, the stick is still dirty.”
Chad explained that the dirty sticks represented all people. Then he put some sticks into the clean joint, and left the rest in the dirty one.
As he explained the concept, the believers began to smile as understanding dawned. Christ’s death made them clean and God sees their sin through the blood of Christ.
Full story with picture. See another NTM tribe from Papua New Guinea, Acts Helps Believers See Freedom.
JAPAN – An Epidemic of Suicides
Source: Operation Mobilization NewsBytes and Headlines, April 2009
Suicide has reached epidemic proportions in Japan. More than 35,000 people a year are taking their lives in this country of 127 million – almost one every five minutes. They do it individually and in small groups; websites [are] dedicated to group suicides.
Usually they are committed in isolated places. However, many throw themselves in front of trains. “Human body accidents,” as the Japanese call them, cause a daily disruption of Tokyo services.
The majority of suicides are young people. Between 10 and 15 percent of university students suffer from depression and other mental illnesses, and work-related stress is a prime motive of people in their thirties.
English teaching in colleges and universities, using the Bible as a textbook, has been successful in sowing seeds of hope. But there is a shortage of workers.
Sign up for OM News.
Editor’s note: Internet Evangelism Day says, “If you are interested in evangelism to Japan and the Japanese people, listen to audio presentations from the recent RJC conference.”
SAUDI ARABIA – Christian Convert Released
Source: St. Francis Magazine, April 14, 2009
On February 2, St. Francis Magazine requested prayer for Hamoud Bin Saleh, a Saudi national, arrested January 13 after writing in his blog about his decision to follow Jesus. Hamoud also criticized the judicial system in his country.
We are pleased to report that he was released on March 28. He has been banned from traveling outside Saudi Arabia or appearing in media. Nevertheless, additional entries have since appeared in his blog.
Following Hamoud’s arrest, the Saudi authorities blocked access to his blog inside Saudi Arabia. Google then locked the blog, for what they claimed was a technical violation of their terms of service, before restoring it on February 5, 2009 following public pressure.
Editor’s note: See our first report on this story.
IRAQ – Raising up Christian Leaders to Disciple New Believers
Source: Lausanne World Pulse, May 2009
From both Kurdish and Arab bloodlines, Orthodox Christian and Muslim backgrounds, everyone came for one purpose: to see new leaders raised up to become pastors [who will] disciple and lead [the] new believers who are coming to Christ in Iraq in unprecedented numbers.
During the conference many new disciples shared testimonies of how they had come to faith in Jesus. One man from the city of Najaf shared how he had been raised in a very strict Shi’a Muslim family. Trained from nine years old to be an imam in the local mosque, he became a part of the infamous Medhi army loyal to the radical Shi’a cleric, Muqtada al Sadr. When the Americans came to Iraq in 2003, he and his friends took up arms and fought against the Americans.
He shared that his faith in Allah prepared him to become a suicide bomber in order to defend his faith in Islam. Through a series of events he became disillusioned with Islam and someone gave him a Bible. As he began to read his eyes were opened to the reality of God and Jesus Christ. He became a believer in Jesus two years ago. He is now a fervent servant of Jesus and wants to go back to his city to preach the love of God to his friends in Najaf and to the Medhi army.
Full story with picture.
EVENTS – Perspectives Intensives in BC, New Missions Fest in PA
Source: Missions Catalyst Events Calendar
June 19 to 26, 2009 – Perspectives Intensive Course (Vancouver, BC, Canada).
An additional three-weekend intensive class will be offered in Delta, BC (Friday evenings, all day Saturday, Sunday afternoons). September 25-27, October 23-25, November 20-22. You can also attend this one remotely! “The only requirements are a computer with microphone and preferably a camera, and access to high-speed internet. The class is on the west coast [of North America], so students will have to function in the Pacific time zone.” To learn more, contact Perspectives Canada.
February 19 to 21, 2010 – Missions Fest Lancaster (Lancaster, PA, USA). You can also write for more info.
Additional Missions Fests scheduled worldwide.
Questions, comments, submissions? Contact us.