Missions Catalyst 09.16.09 – World News Briefs

In This Issue: News from Uzbekistan, the Netherlands, Yemen, and More

  • ISLAMIC WORLD: Night of Power
  • UZBEKISTAN: Baptists Face Three Years’ Imprisonment
  • NETHERLANDS: 500 Iranian Migrants Find Jesus
  • USA: Chicagoland, Gateway to the Ends of the Earth
  • YEMEN: Concerns over Kidnapped Christians
  • UAE: Migrant Workers Hear the Gospel
  • WORLD: Churches Invited to Engage in Online Mission

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.

ISLAMIC WORLD: Night of Power

Source: 30-Days Prayer Network, September 16, 2009

Depending on their location on the earth, some Muslims will spend much of tonight or tomorrow night in prayer. This event commemorates Mohammed’s first revelation of the Qur’an in a cave near Mecca in AD 610. Muslims call it the Night of Power. Only God knows how important this could be for the salvation of many.

You might pray something like the following:

Lord, may your compassion flow in our hearts for Muslims during this night. Lord, you are a father to the fatherless. You are near to those who are lowly and contrite in heart (Psalm 51:17; Isaiah 57:15, 66:2).

Lord, may you break down all thoughts of self-righteousness through religious activity among Muslims who participate in the Night of Power. May you move them toward true humility before you (Daniel 4:37).

May all glory be yours because of your loving character and for all you have done. Lord, may you be acting during the Night of Power so that people may have a revelation of Jesus, the Messiah. Lord, remember those who are genuinely seeking your help this night. May you give them the help they need in such a way that they will understand that it comes to them through the Messiah, Jesus (Psalm 34:18; Zechariah 9:9).

>> More articles from this year’s 30-day prayer campaign.

>> Editor’s note: When I read stories like these from Pakistan I KNOW God is answering our “Ramadan” prayers. Thanks to World Christian Ministries for this great report.

UZBEKISTAN: Baptists Leaders Face Three Years’ Imprisonment

Source: Forum 18, September 8, 2009

The head of Uzbekistan’s Baptist Union, Pavel Peichev, and two colleagues each face up to three years in prison if found guilty on charges of tax evasion and teaching children Christianity against their and their parents’ will at a Baptist-run summer camp.

One of the accused, Dmitri Pitirimov, told Forum 18 that as a religious organization the Union is exempt from tax.

As the leader of the “Joy” children’s camp, he insists that two parents cited in the indictment testifying against them knew “perfectly well” that they were sending their children to a Baptist camp, where the children would be taught the Bible, and signed documents to confirm their children’s attendance. He said one boy cited in the indictment had decided not to come this year as the Prosecutor’s Office had warned him it was an “illegal” camp.

>> Full story.

>> See also Migrant Express, a series of videos about Central Asians making the arduous trek to Russia for work.

NETHERLANDS: 500 Iranian Migrants Find Jesus

Source: Joel News, August 14, 2009

In the Netherlands in recent years up to 500 Iranian migrants have been baptized as believers in Jesus since seeking refuge.

It began back in 2003 when a small group of Iranian believers began a house church. Within a year, the fellowship was registered as the Cyrus Church, named after the Persian king God used to decree the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem.

Today, Iranian believers gather twice a month from all over the country. One Iranian pastor said many became believers after experiencing the love and care shown to them by Christians in the midst of insecurity, depression, estrangement, loneliness, and disorientation from having to leave their homeland. (Jeff Fountain, YWAM)

>> Subscribe to Joel News.

>> Have you seen the global directory of Iranian Christian churches? Definitely something to praise God for!

USA: Chicagoland, Gateway to the Ends of the Earth

Source: Baptist Press, September 8, 2009

[Cody] Lorance is a church planter in Chicago. Since 2005, he and a five-member team have been working among immigrants in the city. They have seen the Lord pull together congregations among Nepali, Ethiopian, and Karen people who live in rundown little apartment buildings scattered around Chicago’s western suburbs.

“This is not a superficial, drive-by ministry. You’ve got to be willing to move beyond the American 30-minute visit,” Lorance said. “You’ve got to get past the first cup of tea and eat a couple of meals with them. It takes three-hour, six-hour visits. You have to get to the point where you run out of the Nepali phrases you know and they run out of English – and you still stay with them. You become more a part of their lives – a fixture, a part of the family.”

“Chicagoland” is a gateway to the ends of the earth, Lorance said. Its 9.6 million residents speak a couple of hundred languages – 147 officially documented by the public schools – and many of those are the heart languages of overseas people groups that have never heard the Good News of salvation in Jesus Christ.

>> Full story with pictures.

>> See also: Invisible Immigrants, Old and Left with ‘Nobody to Talk to’ (NY Times)

YEMEN: Concerns over Kidnapped Christians

Source: Worthy News, September 5, 2009

Intense fighting between government forces and Shi’ite Muslim rebels in northern Yemen is hampering international efforts to locate a kidnapped German Christian family and a British engineer.

The search continues, amid government claims that Houthi rebels are involved in the abductions. The Houthi rebels say they are defending their villages against government oppression [but] have denied involvement in the kidnappings of the foreigners.

Authorities have reportedly made information about the six among their conditions for a ceasefire with Houthi rebels, and Yemen’s army has stepped up air strikes against suspected rebel hide-outs in the troubled Saada province.

>> Full story with picture.

>> See also: several short videos about Yemen recently posted by PTAP (Praying through the Arabian Peninsula).

UAE: Migrant Workers Hear the Gospel

Source: ASSIST News, August 5, 2009

Raheem left his wife and two children in Pakistan almost three years ago to make a better life. [H]e found work in the United Arab Emirates, a small, oil-rich nation of federated Arab states located in the Middle East.

Arriving at the labor camps, he met men and women from India, the Philippines, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Indonesia.

Many are fired and told to leave. Forced onto the streets, they make temporary homes in the park, hoping to beg enough money for a trip home.

Raheem becomes a statistic, losing his job. He has nowhere to sleep. In the park, Faith Comes by Hearing said, he joins a group gathered around a small black box. He begins listening to dramatized stories about another “wanderer” who teaches about God, love and faith. Raheem’s heart warms as he realizes that this Jesus knows where he’s been.

>> Full story.

WORLD: Churches Invited to Engage in Online Mission

Source: The Christian Post, September 4, 2009

The Global Media Outreach Always Ready website is an online missions program available to all churches.

“Our online presence shows us daily – moment by moment – that the fields are indeed ripe to harvest, yet the laborers are few,” said Walt Wilson, GMO founder and chair.

[T]he Internet ministry says it needs an additional 3,000, or a total of 10,000, online missionaries to meet the demand.

GMO has more than 90 websites and over 3,000 online missionaries. The ministry says the Internet and other technologies are effective tools in sharing the love of Christ and plan of salvation around the world.

Since its founding in 2004, GMO has seen the number of decisions for Christ increase from 21,066 people annually to more than 3 million people in 2008. In the months of June, July and August, there were more than 1 million people who indicated decisions for Christ in each of those months.

The ministry, which is the media arm of Campus Crusade for Christ, projects around 5 million decisions this year.

>> Full story.

>> See also Internet Evangelism Day’s list of ministry opportunities in web evangelism. You might also be interested in podcasts from the recent Christian Web Conference (just scroll to the bottom of the page).

EVENTS – Recent Additions to the Mission Events Calendar

Highlighted:

October 12 to November 2 – 21 Days of Prayer for Global Harvest (global). Just a month away! Join Christians worldwide to pray and fast for personal revival, generational awakening, and global harvest.

Recent additions:

September 17-19 – Healthcare Missions and Ministry Conference (Pasadena, CA, USA).

October 5-9 – Bible Storying Training (Orlando, FL, USA). From Storyrunners, a ministry of Campus Crusade.

October 29-31 – To Every Tribe Annual Mission Conference (Dalton, GA, USA). Theme: the privilege of suffering for the gospel. From To Every Tribe Ministries.

November 8 – International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (global).

>> More events.

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