Missions Catalyst

Proclaiming the gospel through Christian radio programs remains an essential way to get the message of salvation to those in bondage to voodoo.

Benin, West Africa is known as the birthplace of voodoo, and signs of this ancient practice are entangled in the culture, especially in the southern parts of the country.

At a recent Fulani women’s conference, one participant described how she was set free from the bondage of demons and idols after she had listened to the “Programs of Life” radio broadcasts. For years Fulani herdsmen have heard the gospel in their mother tongue on eight local radio stations. Many of the women listen faithfully and have now started to support the radio work financially to mark their commitment.

Gospel broadcasts in the Adja language recently touched the hearts of a respected Voodoo deity and his assistant, as well as the leader’s three wives and many children. All came to faith in Jesus Christ.

Radio goes where people cannot easily go, and it is perceived as official, true, and important. Prominence is given to the gospel message as radio continues to open new areas for church planting.

With the Winter Olympics being held in Sochi just a short distance from the troubled Caucasus region, it’s a great season to remember God’s heart for unreached people groups there.

A narrow 300-plus mile sector lying between the Black and the Caspian Seas, the Caucasus region is home to some 50-60 minority people groups, most of whom are of non-Slavic ethnicity and Muslim.

Operation World identifies the Caucasus region as Europe’s least-evangelized region, with little in the way of Scripture translations or churches. The Caucasus region is not only one of geographic Russia’s least stable regions, but also the poorest, with the highest unemployment and the highest birthrates as well.

People groups of the region are isolated from one another by the rugged terrain and by the violence of their historical conflict with one another – violence that has even reached parts of the world unaware of the religious and political realities of that region.

From the point of view of 12 disparate militant Islamist factions functioning in the region, the Sochi Games are a perfect time to raise awareness of their plight and worldview – perhaps with violence. The security at the Olympics and of the rest of the region is a critical component in the coming weeks.

“Many people know little of the geography or existence of these unreached peoples,” [says a cross-cultural worker]. “Our prayer is that believers everywhere will learn about and awaken to the spiritual need of every single tribe and tongue represented in the North Caucasus.”

An appeals court judge in Morocco today overturned a conviction against a Christian convert from Islam who had been sentenced to 30 months in prison for alleged proselytizing.

The judge in the Court of Appeal in Fez dismissed the case against Mohamed El Baladi, 31, because of lack of evidence, sources close to him said.

In the remote town of Ain Aicha, Taounate Province, 50 miles from Fez, security officials arrested El Baladi for alleged proselytizing of two Muslims after someone complained to police about a conversation he allegedly had with them about his faith.

Having a conversation about one’s faith is not generally considered proselytizing in Morocco, but sources confirmed reports that El Baladi was set up by an uncle with whom he had a previous dispute. The uncle hired two teenage boys to feign interest in Christianity, and police were on hand to arrest him for proselytizing minors when he met with them a second time.

The below is from “Pierre,” who has asked me to ask you to get involved. It’s incredibly humbling to read – what he and his family have gone through, the love and commitment he has for his nation and for Muslims, his unshakeable trust in the Lord – all are profoundly challenging. Day after day he sends me updates of arbitrary lynchings, rapes, and wanton destruction. The scale of this crisis is horrific.

“Some time ago, I was helping to try to alert and educate the body of Christ concerning the rise of Islam, but religious leaders and Christians said it could never happen here. What seemed like a utopia yesterday has become reality today. The church in the CAR is poorly prepared, very poorly prepared to face persecution, and now it is paying a heavy price for its earlier lack of concern.

“For nearly a year now, the ministry has no longer functioned according to schedule. Various programs had originally been planned to be held at intervals throughout 2013. Everything has been postponed indefinitely. The rise of the Seleka followed by that of the anti-Balaka has constituted a major obstacle and created a situation of chronic insecurity, preventing us from getting out to visit our brothers in the field.

“Sister Nathalie, who cares for the orphaned children, has been in Chad for some months for surgery. The children and the families they are staying with are often moving about, and the meetings with them can no longer be held regularly; nevertheless we continue to follow them up and assist them. We enrolled some of them in school for the new academic year; unfortunately, as mentioned earlier, the schools are still not running. Pray for the children to persevere in faith.”