Day: July 17, 2024

Source: Beyond, July 11, 2024

Lakshmi poured some of their precious water over John’s feet and wiped them with her hands. John wept unashamedly. As she washed, Lakshmi thanked Jesus for John and the message he had shared. You see, John hadn’t just preached to the brick-makers. He had spent time with them. He had eaten their food and drunk their water. He had shown them how to follow the God who loves them and knows them by name. Lakshmi and several others soon became beloved co-laborers with John in their community.

A few months later, monsoon season arrived, [and] the brick-making families decided to go back home to see family.

But when Lakshmi and the other leaders shared their plans with John, he was sad and confused. Why leave? A year ago, when they arrived, they had been idol worshipers. Now, there were 17 house churches among the 40 families of the community. “Why go home?” he asked. “Please stay. We can pray and wait out the monsoons. Don’t go.”

That was six weeks ago. John recently learned that each of the 17 families has started at least one new Bible study in homes among their family and friends back home!

Read the full story.

From another part of the world, read about missionary explorers venturing into Amazon jungles looking for isolated people groups (International Mission Board).

Source: Asia Harvest Newsletter

Our Christian hosts took us to a slum where a tin door to a run-down shack opened in front of us. When we stepped inside, it was as though we had passed through a portal and entered another dimension, a heavenly one—a world where Jesus reigns.

It was a church meeting of Burmese children deep in the heart of the slums, providing a ray of hope to penetrate the darkness many were living in.

Among these bare-footed believers, we were slightly embarrassed to be the only ones with socks and shoes. But that didn’t bother these children whose eyes remained closed with tears streaming down their faces as their attention was fully on their Savior.

This experience was repeated at each of the centers we visited. Healings and deliverance from demons, drugs, and crime were commonplace. Most of the gatherings consisted of believers who had come to Christ within the past few years.

[Former] prostitutes sat shoulder-to-shoulder with former murderers and gang members whose tattoos told the tale of their past, but who had now found redemption and cleansing through the blood of Jesus.

The best part of this story is that it is not transpiring based on the efforts of a single ministry, but rather through a sovereign move of the Spirit of God that is sweeping across this vast land—a move that is finally penetrating the poorest and hardest demographic in Myanmar: the 50 million ethnic Burmese people.

Read the original article It includes more stories and pictures and reports that more than 6,000 Burmese have come to Christ through a ministry Asia Harvest reports in Myanmar.

For more encouragement about what God is doing among indigenous ministries in Asia, treat yourself to something from the Asia Harvest bookstore—including whole volumes about the growth of the church in each Province of China.

See also an overview of the situation in Myanmar and how to pray (INcontext International).

Source: Global Partners, July 1, 2024

[In May], Wesleyan church leaders and pastors from more than 20 countries gathered in Chiang Mai, Thailand for the first ever Asia-Pacific International Conference of the Wesleyan Church.

The conference was centered around the theme “Stronger Together,” igniting a vision for these leaders to work together in the efforts of extend God’s Kingdom across the least-reached, most densely populated continent in the world.

Fiji-born Rev. Atu Lagi said that learning how other countries have been pursuing global missions was a helpful experience for him. In fact, after meeting and getting to know pastors from Indonesia, he hopes to stay in touch and begin sending short-term teams their way within the next year.

Rev. Lex Akers, district superintendent of the New South Wales district in Australia, also enjoyed making new connections. One exciting connection he made was with a couple from India who is interested in planting a satellite church in Australia, to reach the growing number of Indians there.

On the last day, a leader from the Philippines stood to share what the Lord had placed on his heart during the week spent together. Earlier in the week, he shared about the success the Wesleyan Church has had with expanding and church planting [in the Philippines] but took this moment to confess to the delegates from South Asia that he hadn’t considered beyond the Philippines. Then, he asked for forgiveness.

Read the full story. Praise God for using Christians from many nations to challenge and encourage one another.

Source: Forum18, July 12, 2024

On June 25, the Legislative Chamber of the parliament adopted in the first reading a draft law to allegedly “further strengthen the rights of children,” according to the parliamentary website. The draft Law would ban and introduce punishments for parents or guardians who allow their children to receive “illegal” religious education before the age of 18.

The planned amendments to existing laws would impose fines of over a month’s average wages or jail terms of up to 15 days on parents or guardians who allow or arrange “illegal” religious education for under-18-year-olds.

The Interior Ministry claims that the draft Law would prevent children from falling under the influence of terrorist groups.

Read the full story, which adds that many citizens are expressing strong opposition to the proposed law. In other news, Forum18 also reports that the courts have sentenced several women with large fines for allegedly sharing their beliefs with others without permission.

See also Chinese Officials Propose Harsher Restrictions for Christians (International Christian Concern).

Source: Mission Network News, July 2, 2024

In almost every field, artificial intelligence (AI) is making an appearance. DOOR International says that the same is true in Deaf ministry.

With the visual nature of sign language, videos, and pictures are major opportunities for AI integration. However, there are many technical aspects that could make those applications difficult to put into practice.

Effective AI pulls material from a wide breadth of information to generate new content. Rob Myers with DOOR notes that this deep pocket of online information is not available for most sign languages. In addition, he says translating the written word to [visual] sign languages is a more complex challenge to ask of AI than from one written language to another.

However, despite the limitations, AI could potentially aid Bible translation work for sign languages. For instance, rather than showing a real person on a video, AI could replace the features of the signer with an avatar. This would be a much safer option for Deaf Christians in countries where it is dangerous to show their faces.

Read the full story.

Speaking of tech advances, see this crazy interactive timeline, Calculating Empires: A Genealogy of Technology and Power Since 1500. Click on the audio tour button (via Flowing Data).

Source: Global Christian Relief, June 22, 2024

Three persecuted pastors in Eritrea, an East African country notorious for imprisoning Christians, recently marked a tragic anniversary: the 20th anniversary of their arrest and incarceration.

Despite never having been charged with a crime, these three pastors—Haile Nayzgi, Kiflu Gebremeskel and Meron Gebreselasie—are among hundreds of jailed persecuted believers in Eritrea. Abune Antonios, another church leader, died under house arrest at the age of 94 in 2022.

Eritrea, a country of 5.6 million, is home to 1.8 million Christians. Detained believers endure horrific conditions, including sexual abuse and torture, according to the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF). Many are held in metal containers left in the jungle, subject to terrible heat during the day and freezing temperatures at night. Officials who commit human rights abuse are left unpunished.

Read the full story.