Missions Catalyst

In  Iraq, Iran, and Afghanistan, it sometimes seems all hope that the gospel will penetrate is lost. But God is at work, and the church is growing. See related story below (International Mission Board).

In this edition:

1. IRAQ, IRAN, AND AFGHANISTAN: God Is at Work
2. SOUTHEAST ASIA: First Fruits in a Mountain Town
3. BUDDHIST WORLD: Diverse Pictures of Buddhism
4. JEWISH WORLD: Jesus, Jews, and the Internet
5. INDIA: Court Grants Bail to Christians Imprisoned Since 2008

Source: International Mission Board, July 19, 2019

Iraq: Northern Iraq has appeared in a lot of headlines over the past few years. As ISIS inches its way closer and closer to Iraqi Kurdistan, stability in the region deteriorates. Military checkpoints dot the land and make land travel long and stressful. [Yet] many say the region is more open to the gospel than it has been in a thousand years.

Iran: Forty years ago, the Islamic Revolution swept [Iran]. Since then, many Iranians have come to a place of spiritual openness. They are fed up with Islam and eager for other options, including Eastern religion and New Age philosophies. Within this spirit of exploration, an overwhelming number of Iranians are finding the truth of Jesus Christ and putting their trust in him.

Afghanistan: War has ravaged the country of Afghanistan for over forty years. The constant change of new regimes and power brokers has worn the people down. Yet the church in Afghanistan is growing. In today’s global environment, even the poorest of the poor own a mobile phone. People are accessing Scripture on their phones and coming to faith in Jesus.

» Full story includes links, stories, and prayer points. Encouraging!

» Another thought-provoking IMB article: Staying on Mission: What Missionaries Can Teach Us in Post-Christian America.

Source: Pioneers USA, July 8, 2019

Jay lives in one of Asia’s poorest and least-developed countries. It’s home to more than 100 people groups and further divided by variations in culture and dialect. The gospel does not easily cross such barriers. The church there was weakened when, decades ago, two-thirds of the Christians and most of the trained pastors left after facing government pressure.

But things are starting to change. Poverty and isolation are lessening. The church, though persecuted, is growing. And groups of foreign and local believers focused on church planting are working together and seeing the gospel start to go places it hasn’t gone before.

We’re encouraged to hear what God is doing in Jay, a young man from one of the people groups we’re praying for. A few months ago, Jay decided to become a Christian. Recently, he shared with his family that he is now a follower of Jesus and is planning on being baptized. They responded to this news surprisingly well… in fact, they are open to hearing more about the gospel of Jesus.

Jay is one of the first in his people group to become a believer.

» Read full story.

Source: Assembly of God World Missions, July 22, 2019

Missionaries Don and Jacquie recently finished training 300 Cuban global missions workers, 80 of whom were commissioned for worldwide service at Cuba’s Assemblies of God General Council this year.

“Everywhere we go, a vision for missions is being birthed in this nation,” says Don. “Jacquie and I have traveled this island end to end multiple times. There’s not a place we go that we don’t see God awakening a burden for missions. The church is just exploding.”

In the process of training candidates for missions, Don and Jacquie have discovered a wealth of highly skilled Cubans.

“We know chemical engineers, English professors, lawyers, doctors, and more who are called to go to the nations,” they share.

Cuban culture places a high premium on education, and this cultural value is reflected in the church. Cubans’ professional training strategically equips them to reach sensitive contexts.

And for the first in time in over 50 years, Cubans are now allowed to leave the country for up to two years at a time, providing the first official opportunity to release these uniquely gifted and highly equipped Cuban missionaries.

“It’s like God in the last 60 years has just been training a huge missionary force,” Don and Jacquie state.

» Read full story. It also describes a decades-old prophecy of all this.

» Also from Cuba, we read that a religious freedom defender in Cuba has been released after seven days in prison (Christian Solidarity Worldwide).

» Readers may be encouraged to hear that Christianity has continued to grow in Nepal, despite persecution, with more than 8,000 churches established and over a million converts to Christianity since 2008 (Premier).

Source: Jews for Jesus

[A missionary] who connects with Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) as well as formerly Haredi [men], reports, “A man raised in the Haredi community came to our website and told a volunteer on LiveChat that he had prayed to receive Jesus and wanted to be baptized. His name and contact information were passed on to me. I called John and we had a great conversation.

“John grew up in the Haredi community, but no longer believes in Orthodox Judaism. He described himself as ‘off the derekh,’ a term for ultra-Orthodox Jews who have left the community.

“John met a Christian woman who explained the gospel to him and led him in a prayer of repentance. He then searched online for Jewish people and baptism and found our website.

“At first, we spoke on the phone every few days. When we finally met in person, John described his lifelong search for the truth, including his curiosity about Christianity. He loved the idea of becoming a new creation through faith in Jesus. The topic of baptism was particularly important to him, and when I asked if he’d like to meet and discuss the New Testament together, he agreed.

“In the following weeks and months, John limited our contact to short phone conversations. After a while, he confided his fear that faith in Jesus will alienate him from his family. However, he still wants to stay in touch.

“Around the same time that I reached out to John, Zach contacted us through Facebook. He also grew up practicing ultra-Orthodox Judaism.

“Zach struggles to live up to the standards and expectations of his community. He feels compassion for us because we are Jewish but excluded by his community. He says he also feels excluded.

“We meet in person and between meetings, Zach sends me videos about Judaism. He insists that he isn’t interested in believing as we do yet continues wanting to meet.

Please pray for John and Zach, and for God’s grace to overcome the challenges that would prevent them from following Jesus.

» Read full story.

Source: OMF International, July 2019

Recently OMF International has been highlighting stories showing that Buddhists aren’t all the same. They don’t necessarily believe or behave the way you might expect from a textbook!

Jane, a devout Buddhist in Taiwan, shared what Buddhist means to her without ever mentioning the “noble truths” or the “eightfold way.” Instead she talked about loving her family, the importance of listening to others, respect and treating all people equally.

Japanese Buddhism is hard to define, acknowledges an OMF worker in Japan, though it focuses largely on keeping the traditions of one’s ancestors. Confucianism and Shintoism are also part of the Japanese worldview. “Teasing out the differences between the three is nearly impossible.”

“We were surprised to hear the branch of Buddhism they belonged to also teaches salvation by grace,” say other missionaries, also in Japan, with friends who follow Pure Land Buddhism. They grapple with the implications of having similar but different understandings of grace and faith.

» See also OMF’s new infographic about Buddhism. Well done.

Source: International Christian Concern, July 24, 2019

India’s Supreme Court has granted bail to Bijaya Sanaseth, one of seven Christian prisoners who were wrongfully charged and convicted of murdering a Hindu priest in 2008. Sanaseth is the second of the seven Christians to be released on bail.

This false accusation triggered months of anti-Christian riots that swept across the Kandhamal District of Odisha. As a result, over 100 Christians were killed, 8,000 homes were burned or looted, 300 churches were destroyed, and 56,000 people were displaced.

As the riots raged, police arrested seven Christian men and wrongfully charged them with the murder of [the Hindu priest]. On little and often contradicting evidence, these seven Christians were found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment in 2013.

» Read full story and pray for the men still imprisoned.

» See also a story from Delhi about a missionary’s dream, a passage from Ephesians, and an Uber driver who came to faith (God Reports).