Monthly Archives: January 2011

Week of January 30, 2011

January 30 : True Knowledge and Freedom. Please pray for college students all around Pakistan. Students leave their villages and tribal areas, often for the first time, to come and study at major universities in Pakistan’s largest cities. For many, it is a time of freedom to do whatever they want without relatives to correct them or an appearance to maintain. With this freedom, many also have the opportunity to interact with believers or to study other religions without worrying what anyone else thinks. Most will decide how they will spend the rest of their lives based on their time in college. Workers are interacting with these college students on a weekly basis and have the opportunity to see many believers grow in their faith through taking religious classes, participating in Bible studies, and learning stories that they can then teach to others. Muslim students, at the behest of their friends or from curiosity, also participate and ask questions. Please lift up the students of Pakistan, asking that as they begin their studies, they will also find the God in whom all knowledge begins and ends.

January 31 : Modeling Discipleship. What do you do when it gets too cold in your town? Turn up the heater? Get a blanket? Stay inside? Well, Kashmiris just leave town! At least half the population of the valley shifts to warmer locations during the cold winter months. During this three-month vacation, the small group of believers has for the past few years hosted an intensive residential discipleship course for seekers and new believers in another area, and they will do so again this year, along with a two-week focused time for wives and children in January. Worship, Bible study, prayer, outreach and fellowship will fill their days from morning until night. Three new people groups will be represented among them. Please pray for unity among this diverse group, sincerity for all who attend, and wisdom and integrity for the leaders and teachers of the Word. Pray also that seekers will come to full saving faith, and new believers will become leaders of house churches as they return to the valley in the spring.

February 1: Christmas Follow-up. Christmas was a great time for sharing Jesus in the city because of people’s interest in the Western holiday. It presented great opportunities to tell of God becoming a man in Jesus. Pray for those who watched a movie about the life of Jesus that was shown on local television during the holidays. Ask God to convict every person of the truth of God’s gift of grace in Jesus. Pray for national believers who will be following up on those who seek more information.

February 2: Man on the White Horse. “I had a dream last night of someone riding on a white horse. His face was shining with purity and righteousness, and he was wearing white clothes.” H told this to a worker who had given him a Bible. Last month, you prayed for a spiritual breakthrough among the religious leaders of the valley. Praise God that He is working through dreams, visions and revelations of His Word among them!

February 3: Successful Retreat.  “We asked for prayer for a cluster-wide retreat that was held in November. Give thanks to God for answering your prayers! He blessed team members with safe travel to and from the retreat. He also brought together a wonderful group of volunteers from a church in Texas to lead us in worship, instruct and encourage us from God’s Word, and provide our children with a learning experience they all enjoyed. Deeper relationships were forged, a team spirit was nurtured, and everyone left with a feeling of encouragement to re-enter the harvest and pursue God’s kingdom in north India.”

February 4: Love Breaks Barriers. Pastor S brought 10 to 12 leaders to the evangelism and discipleship training that was held in October. In November, international Christians went back to his church for a follow-up training and to add a new group. Pastor S shared how he had been concerned about his unsaved, aging parents, who were Buddhists. He had brought them into his home earlier to have a greater influence over them. During a tea break, the international Christians went to his home and shared the EvangeCube with his 75-year-old father, and he accepted Christ! His mother then shared that she had previously believed, but had backslidden into Buddhism. Now she wanted to follow with her whole heart! Thank the Lord for this pastor’s heart that caused him to bring his parents into his home to care for them. Thank the Lord that the love of Christ that had already flowed through that house softened the heart of this devout Buddhist man. Pray that God will continue to grow these dear parents in Him. Pray that local believers will not think those who have been Buddhist all their life have no hope of coming to Christ. May they remember that God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

February 5: South Asians in East Africa. You have been praying for four South Asians who were seriously seeking truth to receive Christ; recently two of them asked the Lord into their lives. Praise the Lord! Pray that their faith will continue to grow as they attend a weekly Bible study.  Pray for the electronic media presentations that are being developed using bold, courageous testimonies of South Asian believers. These will be posted on multimedia-enabled cell phones and used as evangelistic tools.

New believers learn God uses their testimonies to change lives

By Willy Ackley*

DELHI, India — The language barrier was really tough at first. But at the end of six weeks, it basically disappeared. This was just one of the many prayers God answered during my time in India

In the area where I served, a lot of people say they’re Christians, but they’re not. And, there’s a lot of people who are believers, but no one to teach them.

When we went into a community, the goal was to spend two days prayer walking, sharing testimonies and telling stories of Jesus. We started out just preaching a little bit — visiting house churches with the goal of discipleship work. The first time we led a small group for new believers. We gave them a little bit of Scripture, but mostly we taught them how to tell their testimonies and stories from the Bible. Then, we told them to go out into the streets and share their testimonies.

I didn’t see how it was going to work. During the first class, I asked them why they had come. They answered, “I came because I don’t know how to follow Jesus. I don’t know how to get closer to Jesus.” They were heartbroken because they just didn’t know how to serve God. Given this, I didn’t see how they would be able to share their testimonies with just two days of discipleship. So, I just prayed, “I think You can do it, God.”

Two days later, these same people shared their testimonies in the streets. They said, “We didn’t know that we could do that!”

Like these new believers, it was harder for me to share my faith before I came. Honestly, I didn’t know how to do it. I was really taught how to share my faith better here. The biggest thing that I learned here is just how powerful my testimony is. Before, I would get into discussions about the Bible, or about God, but I would never just share my testimony. And then I came here and I learned to share what God did in my life — not what I think about God, or what another person thinks about God, but what God has done in my life.

We saw 22 people come to know Christ. All we ever did was just share our testimonies. We shared what God had done in our lives and explained how they could have a relationship with Him. It was that simple.

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Willy Ackley is a student at the University of Alabama, Huntsville and a member of Thompson Chapel Baptist Church in Pulaski, Tenn. He recently spent six weeks in India as an SA101 volunteer. For more information on SA101, visit the website for South Asian peoples, http://southasianpeoples.imb.org/special-interest/sa101/

*Name changed.

Pakistan murder darkens blasphemy case

By Asher John/Compass Direct News 
Jan 6, 2011

Baptist Press, Jan 6, 2011: http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=34389

LAHORE, Pakistan (BP)–The case of Asia Noreen, the first Christian woman sentenced to death in Pakistan on blasphemy charges, suffered a major setback when her most vocal supporter, the governor of Punjab province, was gunned down by one of his police bodyguards Jan. 4 in Islamabad.

The lives of Noreen (also identified as Asia Bibi by some media) and Salman Taseer were at risk since Taseer, his wife and daughter visited Noreen Nov. 22 in jail, after news of her conviction appeared in the media.

Taseer had openly criticized the blasphemy statutes and vowed to try to repeal the “black laws” in parliament. He also promised Noreen he would recommend a presidential pardon for her.

The governor’s assurance and his support for Noreen gave new hope to the impoverished mother of two children and step-mother to three others — and drew violent condemnation from Islamist forces, sparking countrywide protests.

“The governor’s visit gave us hope that all was not lost,” Sohail Johnson of Sharing Life Ministries Pakistan, which has pursued Noreen’s case from the onset, told Compass Direct News. “We believed that God had sent the governor to help us … his words of support boosted Noreen’s morale, and she was actually quite optimistic about the outcome of her appeal in the high court.”

The fact Taseer was murdered in broad daylight shocked all those opposing the blasphemy laws, leading them to feel “there is little hope of these laws ever being repealed,” Johnson said.

Authorities have taken extra measures to protect Noreen’s life in prison after intelligence agencies had learned Islamists were plotting to kill her, Johnson added.

“The local Islamist forces believed that President [Asif Ali] Zardari would pardon Noreen on Taseer’s recommendation, and this was unacceptable to them,” Johnson told Compass. “Noreen was earlier allowed two hours in the morning and two in the evening to go outside her cell to relax. After the intelligence information, the jail authorities restricted her movement, and now she is kept in the cell at all times. A security guard has also been deployed with her.”

News of the assassination of the governor would surely panic the Christian woman, Johnson said.

Noreen’s appeal of her conviction has not yet been taken up by the Lahore High Court, but the murder would definitely affect the course of justice, Johnson said. “The governor’s brutal murder has diminished our hopes for justice for Noreen,” he said.

Noreen’s family has been in hiding since Islamist parties started protests in favor of the blasphemy laws, Johnson told Compass.

Noreen was convicted under Section 295-C of the defamation statutes for alleged derogatory comments about Muhammad, which is punishable by death, though life imprisonment is also possible. Section 295-B makes willful desecration of the Quran, or a use of its extract in a derogatory manner, punishable with life imprisonment. Section 295-A of the defamation law prohibits injuring or defiling places of worship and “acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class of citizens.”

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Asher John is a writer for Compass Direct News (www.compassdirect.org). Based in Santa Ana, Calif., Compass provides reports on Christians worldwide who are persecuted for their faith. Used by permission.

Pakistan leader who defended Asia Noreen is murdered

By Staff

Baptist Press, Jan 5, 2011: http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=34379

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (BP)–The murder of a powerful politician in Pakistan by a member of his own security squad highlights serious instability in a nuclear-armed country where extremist Muslims are fighting for control.

Salman Taseer, governor of Pakistan’s Punjab province, was murdered by Mumtaz Qadri, an elite commando who had been removed from counter-terrorism duties because of his Islamist leanings but still was assigned to protect Taseer, an outspoken critic of Pakistan’s infamous blasphemy law. Taseer had publicly advocated a pardon for Asia Noreen, a Christian woman condemned to death for alleged blasphemy against Islam’s prophet, Muhammad.

Qadri apparently had told other police officers in advance of his plans to kill Taseer, but no one acted to stop the plot, The Wall Street Journal reported Jan. 5. Six police officers, who also were on guard duty and failed to stop the shooting, reportedly have been detained.

Taseer had openly criticized the death sentence imposed on Noreen, a Christian farm worker, by a Pakistani court for her alleged blasphemy. An investigation by Pakistan’s minister for foreign affairs concluded in November 2010 that Noreen (also identified as Asia Bibi by some media) was innocent and had been accused “on the basis of religious and personal enmity,” according to media reports. A court in Pakistan blocked President Asif Ali Zardari from pardoning Noreen until an appeals court had heard her case. Radical clerics have openly called for Noreen’s death in recent weeks, with one putting a $6,000 bounty on her head, The Wall Street Journal reported. Noreen remains in jail while appealing her sentence.

‘LAST MAN STANDING’

Taseer had taken a stand in favor of a pardon for Noreen and noted in a Dec. 31 Twitter statement that he was under “huge pressure” to back down from his defense of Noreen but would refuse “even if I’m the last man standing,” the Associated Press reported.

Taseer’s murderer boasted he had killed the governor because Taseer supported pardoning Noreen, according to media reports.

Extremist Muslim clerics had been infuriated by Taseer’s stance, and one group, Jamaat-e-Ahl-e-Sunnat, released a statement signed by more than 500 clerics calling Taseer’s murderer a “true soldier of Islam” and warning Muslims not to mourn Taseer’s death, according to news reports.

“It is a warning to all intellectuals and politicians who want to change Islamic laws,” the statement said, according to The Wall Street Journal. The statement added: “The supporter [of Noreen] is as equally guilty as one who committed blasphemy,” the AP reported.

Taseer’s supporters were demonstrating against his death in spite of the warnings. Hundreds of supporters chanted slogans outside Taseer’s house in Lahore, while crowds in Multan burned tires and demanded the attackers be punished, the AP reported.

Human rights activist Ali Dayan Hasan of Human Rights Watch, praised Taseer. “Taseer showed himself to be a rare politician, willing to risk his life in espousing an unambiguous position against discrimination and abuse,” Hasan told the AP. An editorial in Pakistan’s Dawn newspaper, as reported by The Wall Street Journal, noted: “The governor of Punjab had been an outspoken critic of the blasphemy laws and he paid the ultimate price for his rejection of the cancer of intolerance that has aggressively eaten away at this country for over three decades now.”

USCIRF CONDEMNS MURDER

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom condemned the murder.

“Governor Taseer had been courageous in his criticism of Pakistan’s flawed blasphemy law, comments which ultimately may have cost him his life,” USCIRF chairman Leonard Leo said in a Jan. 4 press statement. “His murder sadly demonstrates how the blasphemy law has fueled a culture of impunity that threatens both Muslims and members of minority religious communities. We urge Pakistan to eliminate its blasphemy law, which impedes freedom of religion and belief and can only weaken its internal security and stability. And, we urge the authorities to bring the attacker to justice.”

While the United States and other Western countries are providing billions of dollars in aid to strengthen Pakistan’s secular government, radical Muslim elements permeate virtually all levels of the government. Their influence complicates efforts to extinguish extremist movements like the Taliban, which is deeply entrenched in Pakistan’s lawless northwestern region. That area’s warlords provide safe harbor to radicals fighting in neighboring Afghanistan and other parts of the world.

Taseer was a leading figure in the governing Pakistan People’s Party, whose leader, former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, also was assassinated in 2007 by religious extremists. Bhutto’s father, also a former prime minister, was executed in 1979 after a military coup led by Gen. Zia-ul-Haq, who began a movement to make Pakistan a thoroughly Islamic society. Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari, who was Benazir Bhutto’s husband, has been struggling to stabilize Pakistan’s government since a key partner of his coalition abandoned him in January.

The failure to protect Taseer highlights the deep divisions in a government at a time when extremist Muslims are fighting to control a nuclear-armed country, said a Jan. 4 statement released by Stratfor, an organization that monitors significant global political, economic and military developments.

“The assassination of such a high-ranking state official at the hands of one of his own security guards over an argument on blasphemy laws underscores the nature of religious-secular conflict in the country, which has already been weakened due to a raging jihadist insurgency and a weak economy sustained only by International Monetary Fund loans,” the Strafor statement said. “The assassination also comes at a time when the fragile coalition government that took office in elections after the fall of Musharraf’s military regime nearly three years ago has had a prominent party abandon it, raising questions about its ability to hold onto power while the military has its hands full with a major counterinsurgency campaign against jihadists.”

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Compiled by Baptist Press assistant editor and senior writer Mark Kelly.

Week of January 23, 2011

January 23 :  Living the Faith. “In the Book of Romans, Paul tells us that the Christian life is a progression. There are many factors that contribute to our own salvation. In the same way, after we pray ‘the prayer,’ our journey continues. Our goal is to be Christ-like, and we all know that this is not always as easy as it sounds. Thankfully, we serve a merciful God who wants us to succeed. There is a group of 200 to 250 followers of Jesus located in various villages north of our city. Each one of them has a unique story about how they came to faith. And just like us, they now need to follow Jesus more and more every day. Please pray for these believers and seekers, asking that they will read their Holy Bible or have the Holy Bible read to them every day, and that they will meditate and pray to God regularly. Pray that they will live out their faith.” http://www.IsaMasih-Lucknow.org

January 24 : Vision Trip. “Over the past year, you have consistently prayed for more laborers. Currently there are a few foreigners who are praying about joining the work here. Please continue to pray for them as they seek the Father in this matter. Also pray for possible ‘vision trips’ they may take. There is one woman who has committed to come later this year. Please pray for her as she finishes a degree and makes preparations to join us. You have also prayed for language learning. One team member may have the opportunity for a language intensive/immersion in another area. Please pray for all the details to come together. Pray for a home stay or a housing situation that is furnished and provides lots of language practice as well as suitable language teachers who can help with grammar. There is at least one church in the United States that is considering partnering with the work in K state. Please pray that they and others will sense God’s call to join us in reaching the Muslims of this state.”

January 25 : Love of Christ Demonstrated. Many flood-affected families are returning to their villages now. A team will be rebuilding homes in a village where there has been no known witness of Christ. Pray that the Holy Spirit, through the love of Christ demonstrated through believers, will bring many people to God. Pray that the holiday outreach events held during the Christmas season – hospitality opportunities, caroling, home group meetings, prayer meetings and worship services – will bear lasting fruit. Pray for receptive hearts.

January 26 : Reaching Out. Three thousand believers in the south of the island are launching a program that will culminate in March. Believers are making a prayer list of 10 unbelieving family and friends each – that totals 30,000 people – whom they want to begin praying for and sharing truth with. Wanting to have people prepared to disciple before the harvest is “cut,” leaders have asked Pastor R to head up the discipleship training process. Please pray diligently for Pastor R, as this is a huge task. Pray that he will abide daily in the Word and in prayer so that he will be sensitive to the Spirit’s leadership. Ask for him to have wisdom from above in how to proceed. Pray that leaders will willingly be trained so that they will be ready. Pray for believers who make commitments to pray for their lost family and friends to remain faithful in prayer. Intercede for the lost who are being lifted up, asking that God will begin working in their hearts so that as Christ is proclaimed, they will respond in obedience to the truth. Pray now for volunteers whom God is calling to labor in this harvest to hear and respond as the Spirit leads.

January 27 : Obedient Though Persecuted. A cross-cultural worker in India reported that more than 5,000 people were shared with and almost 1,000 made decisions for Jesus from September to November 2010 through their networks. He submits this prayer request: “Please continue to pray for your Indian brothers and sisters who are working in extremely difficult and Gospel-resistant areas. Praise God for their faithfulness to obey even in the face of persecution.”

January 28 : Additions Made to Hospital. Pray for the hospital as they dedicate a new radiation cancer center and also a new floor in the hospital with 120 patient beds. Pray that the dedication ceremonies will be a testimony regarding God’s provision. Pray that all of these new facilities and services will be used to help many people, both physically and spiritually. Thank you for praying for the student retreat at the hospital. There were 178 students who participated, and several made first-time commitments to follow Jesus as Savior. Pray for the spiritual growth of these students, and especially intercede for the discipling of the new believers.

January 29 : Total Commitment Required. In 2010, more than 40 Muslims chose to follow the Lord Jesus Christ. Many have made the jump from calling Jesus merely a prophet to calling Him Lord God. Many are learning right now how to abide in Christ. Yet there are pressures pulling at their souls, pressures that can sometimes feel overwhelming. How would you feel if your mother or wife disowned you because of your faith in Jesus? How would you feel about entering 2011 knowing that your friends and neighbors were treating you with contempt and anger because of your faith in Jesus? Please pray for these, your new brothers and sisters in Christ, asking that they will abide in Jesus in spite of (and because of) these pressures. Pray that they will not succumb to the pressures from without or the feelings of rejection from within but will be driven to a greater depth of love, faith, obedience and worship. 

Student volunteer experiences God among children who have nothing

By Stephan Chasteen*

Chasteen plays around with some of the children from the slums.

BANGALORE, India — Jesus helps you love people more than you thought you could. We visited a village while I was in Bangalore. The people there don’t have anything, but they will do whatever they can to get you a cold drink and the last little bit of food that they have. In this village, there isn’t even a feeding program.

One day, we asked children for prayer requests. Over and over again, the same request was: “Supper, supper.” Just food. They wanted food and clean water.

This kid came up to us, wanting prayer. He had tears in his eyes. He had been having heart problems. He fainted often and no one knew what was wrong. He had no money to go to the doctor even though medical expenses are very cheap here compared to America.

This boy had absolutely nothing and his only hope was to ask God. That was his only hope. It touched me because I had heart problems in the past. One time, I even had to be rushed off in an ambulance. I really felt compassion for him and identified with his need.

It is easy to feel bitter, to think “Why me, God?” I kept thinking, “That should be me — I should be in his spot, and he should be in my spot. Why am I able to be provided for, and he’s not?”

But, I realized that I shouldn’t ask that question. God has given me things and I need to be a good steward of what He has given me.

So, we prayed for this little boy. I don’t know the ending of his story, but I know that my life changed because of getting to love on children like him.

I saw so much during my time in Bangalore. There are so many faces. But it all comes back to just one person — Jesus Christ. He changed my life. He’s become my everything. Before I went to India, I wanted to say that, but now I know it.

In Job, after his trials and sufferings, he said, “Not only have I heard about God anymore, but now I’ve experienced Him.” And so I, too, can say after this time: No longer do I just hear stories about God, but I’ve experienced God.

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Stephan Chasteen is a member of Thoroughbred Community Church, Nicklesville, Ky. While working at Crossings Camp, Ky, he recently spent six months in India as a Hands On volunteer. For more information on Hands On or other volunteer opportunities for students, visit http://southasianpeoples.imb.org/connect/.

*Name changed.

Week of January 16, 2011

January 16 : Animists Need Jesus. “Please pray for the reaching of a village of people in South Asia who are still animists. Thank God with us for a group of believers in Asia who have sent their own missionaries there to witness to these people. Pray for them as God’s Holy Spirit prepares the hearts of those who need Jesus, asking that many will hear and respond affirmatively to Jesus’ invitation to them.”

January 17 : Partnering for Prayer. A team of volunteers will be visiting India in late January, and your prayers will help make their visit productive and God-honoring. They will be prayerwalking in a major city alongside national pastors whose hearts have been burdened to reach new areas of the city. They will also actively seek invitations to the homes of Indians whom they meet on the street, desiring to experience India in ways most tourists do not. They will also spend time training local church leaders in such topics as “the ministry of the Holy Spirit,” “biblical marriage principles,” and some basic doctrines of the church. Please pray that God will use each volunteer in a very special way to bring about His purposes for their journey. Pray that they will get to visit in many homes, sharing the Gospel in each, and ask God to give them a harvest from their labors. Pray that the ones they teach will be faithful, obedient stewards of what they learn.

January 18 : Seeking the Truth. A., whom you prayed for last month, reported a greater amount of responsiveness than he had ever before experienced! He is not sure if those responding are all believers or are simply Deccani Muslims who are well on their way to believing, but he and those he is training have run into many who are genuinely receiving the Word of Truth! Please pray that these will prove to be the good soil (Mark 4) and that God will protect them from Satan. Pray that these people will seek the Lord with all their heart, soul, mind and strength and that the Lord will bring them to true repentance and faith in the blood of Jesus

January 19 :  Cobblers Need Jesus. “As they fashion shoes in humble shops or sweat in the oppressive summer heat harvesting crops, the Bhar may not appear to be the descendants of kings, but this Hindu people group in Uttar Pradesh, India, indeed hail from a lineage of ancient rulers. Its members worship the Hindu god Shiva, regarded by many as the religion’s supreme deity.” Pray with us: “Father, there are more than 3 million Bhar who are lost and in need of You. We pray that the Gospel will come with power and spread rapidly among the Bhar so that they may turn from idols to serve the true and living God.”

January 20 : Original Artist. The Devanga of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, India, believe themselves to be the descendants of the Hindu gods, created to make cloth for the gods and man. As a result, more than 600,000 Devanga throughout Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka weave cloth for a living. Pray that they will come to know the “Original Artist” who created all the beautiful things that they copy in their designs on cloth. Pray that the Devanga can truly become children of the Creator God. More than 300 years ago, a number of the Devanga in Karnataka became Catholic. “Lord, we pray that You will be truly known by the descendants of these men and women. Lord, we also ask that they will have Your heart for their own people who have yet to hear the truth of salvation through Jesus Christ.”

January 21 : A Child Shall Lead the Way. More than four years ago in this city, God began an outreach to young beggar girls and their families. Nine girls have confessed a relationship with Christ within the last year and a half. Please pray for these girls to be continually growing in their faith, and ask that their mothers will come to know and follow Christ as their Savior and Lord. Please also pray that an outreach to their mothers will come to fruition.

January 22 : Resting in Him. Thank you for praying for the leaders of a small team trying to plant churches among Bihari Muslims as they made plans to return to the field. During the summer, you were asked to pray that they would receive the necessary visas for their return. Late into the fall, they still did not have the paperwork they needed. After consulting and praying with the leaders of their home church, they all agreed that the Lord seemed to have closed the door for them to return at this time. The family said they are experiencing “a deep sense of sadness and loss.” Please continue to pray for this family as they grieve not being able to return to the Bihari people for whom God has given them hearts. Pray that they will rest in the Lord and His will, and ask the Lord to refresh them and guide them during this season. BihariBride@pobox.com

Korea-born missionary opens heart to Nepalese, Bhutanese

Baptist Press, Nov. 10, 2010: http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=34049

By Laura Sikes

Samuel Cho, a North American Mission Board missionary who is pastor of both The Nepal Baptist Church of Baltimore and The Bhutan Baptist Church, shares his personal testimony and gives an invitation to accept Christ in a joint worship service preceding the Nepal church's fifth annual medical block party.

BALTIMORE (BP)–Gray skies and steady rain outside did not dampen the spirits of those who came to the Sunday service and fifth annual medical block party for the community surrounding the Nepal and Bhutan Baptist churches in Baltimore.

Inside, pews were filled with worshippers clothed in colorful ethnic dress who celebrated as some 30 men and women made professions of faith during the joint service.

An excited Samuel Cho, 72, pastor of both The Nepal Baptist Church of Baltimore and The Bhutan Baptist Church, welcomed the diverse congregation of 170, a mixture mostly of Nepali and Bhutanese as well as some Korean, Filipino, Indian, white and African Americans. The First Secretary for the Nepali Ambassador for the United States, Ananda Sharma, was an honored guest and speaker.

“I’m going to give you one of the best messages of the Bible, because I love you so much,” Cho said from the pulpit.

The sermon, “You Must Be Born Again,” taken from John 3, is Cho’s favorite for inviting people to know Jesus. And Cho, a North American Mission Board missionary, is no stranger to giving that invitation wherever he goes, wasting no time sharing the Gospel and praying for a harvest.

Seventy-nine-year-old Prem Singh came with his wife and family to the United States eight months ago from a refugee camp in Nepal. They now attend The Bhutan Baptist Church of Baltimore, a church started by Samuel Cho, a missionary with the North American Mission Board.

After worship, the group joined in with about 80 others who had come for the Nepali festival and free medical fair. Volunteers from the church served traditional Nepali food while festival-goers could choose to receive haircuts and clothing, along with blood pressure checks and other tests, dental exams and doctor referrals.

During lunch, Cho presented Nepali Bibles to those who accepted Christ that morning. Twenty-three-year-old Hari Karki, who had arrived in the United States only 25 days earlier, received a Bible. She beamed and said, “I’m so happy.”

Baltimore is home to about 3,000 Nepalis and about 500 Bhutanese refugees. To serve this growing community, the medical fair was launched five years ago by The Nepal Baptist Church of Baltimore along with Global Mission Church, a Southern Baptist church in nearby Silver Spring, Md., which provides medical volunteers for the fair.

In 2005, Cho planted The Nepal Baptist Church, the first Nepali Baptist church in the United States. The medical fair helped introduce the new congregation to the community and allowed the church to provide some much-needed medical service.

In 2008, Baltimore began receiving some of the first wave of Bhutanese refugees coming to the United States. Cho went to the airport to meet some families and invited them for fellowship.

In the next couple of years, he said, the city likely will receive another 500 Bhutanese out of the 60,000 total refugees who eventually will immigrate to the United States from Nepal. In the 1990s, more than 100,000 ethnic Nepalese of Hindu background were evicted from Bhutan. Many have lived in refugee camps in Nepal for the last 18 years. In 2008, they were allowed to immigrate to the United States and other countries.

In Nepal, outside a Bhutanese refugee camp while on a mission trip in 2008 with his wife Young, Cho began reaching the Bhutanese people. Not allowed inside the camp, Cho said he would sit under a tree outside and talk and share the Gospel with the refugees one by one.

He said mothers would ask him, “How can we protect our children if we come to America?” They had heard of the high crime rate and of sexual assaults and were fearful and concerned about their daughters, he said.

That summer 200 people made professions of faith, Cho said. The next year when he returned to the camp, another 500 accepted Christ. As a result, Cho planted three Baptist churches in Nepal with support from The Nepal Baptist Church of Baltimore.

Cho has been busy planting churches ever since he finished seminary in 1999 at the age of 66. When he accepted Christ at age 40, the former accountant said he bargained with God that if He would let him pass the CPA exam and heal him from his debilitating headaches, he would be about the Lord’s work. Little did Cho know, though, how God would use him after accepting his offer.

In 1999, Cho first planted a Korean church, begun in an apartment complex in Baltimore County with Global Mission Church, where he served for five years as pastor.

At the time, he and Young frequented a Korean restaurant where they soon met a Nepali waitress and her husband. The Chos became friends with the Hindu couple and led them to Christ. The friendship seemed providential as it sparked an interest for Cho in the Nepali people, though he said “it’s hard to explain how the Spirit moves.” Cho also had been reading articles about the Nepali and the plight of the Bhutanese refugees. Cho, who at 15 had to leave his home in Korea for some months during the Korean War, said he could somewhat identify with the refugee life.

Later in 2005, the waitress, Nina Shrestha, helped Cho start the The Nepal Baptist Church by opening her home in an apartment complex in Baltimore County — where many Nepali lived — for fellowship and Bible study. Sometimes just a few would come and then small groups of 10 or 12 began coming weekly, she said.

“Once I believed in Jesus, I told my friends and family,” Shrestha said.

“What Jesus sacrificed for us really touched my heart. As a Hindu, there are lots of gods, and we didn’t have any god like that,” she said.

The church grew and later met in the conference room of the Baltimore Baptist Association, officially forming in 2006. Today, Cho said the church has about 50 members and meets in the chapel of Govans Boundary Methodist Church.

“Right now,” Shrestha said, “people are understanding the difference between Hindu[ism] and Christianity, and the church is growing.”

In 2008, Cho planted The Bhutan Baptist Church. Small groups first met in homes in the apartment community where the incoming refugees first settle. After Sunday morning worship with The Nepal Baptist Church, the tireless Cho heads over for an afternoon service at The Bhutan Baptist Church which meets at The Moravia Assembly of God which is within walking distance of its members. The church has grown to about 70 members and works with the Maryland Food Bank to distribute food to the community.

Cho helps members of the Bhutanese congregation look for work and gives them referrals when he can.

Together both churches are supporting Cho’s new free-of-charge Bible school, The International Bible Study of Baltimore, which held its opening session in September at The Nepal Baptist Church. Cho says his dream is to disciple and educate the Nepali and Bhutanese so some can become missionaries or pastors and spread the Gospel in the United States as well as in their native countries.

Cho said he teaches them, “When you were a refugee, you were mistreated. But now you are equal and made in the image of God.”

–30–

Laura Sikes is a photojournalist in Alexandria, Va.

Family Man on Mission

By Brad McBrayer

Keller Dougherty* and his family make a new entry in their Family Prayer Notebook. They write their prayer requests in black ink with the hope and expectation that one day soon they can write God’s answer next to it in red.

“We regularly review our prayer requests,” says Keller. “It is always encouraging to flip through the notebook and see how much red ink there is!”

This is one example of how the Dougherty family handles the challenges of serving among South Asian peoples as International Mission Board missionaries. Being a family on mission presents many interesting issues, so tangibly handing over their petitions to God and seeing how He takes care of them is uplifting.

“We live in a fishbowl,” Keller explains. “People in this country have many misconceptions about Jesus and His followers. For example, people here assume that all Americans are Christians and what they see on television is typical of American life. We have to repeatedly, patiently tell them that those people do not represent Christ. Our task is to consistently exalt Christ by speaking the truth in love and to do our gut-level best to live authentic, holy lives in front of our curious neighbors.”

Under this type of scrutiny Keller and his family lean on God. Sermon podcasts, worship music and family prayer times sustain them in their ministry. Staying in touch with accountability and prayer partners or stateside family keeps their spiritual tanks filled as well. Then, there are those “red ink” moments.

“When God gives a victory, we celebrate,” Keller says. “Sometimes it’s tempting to celebrate only when a whole village turns to the Lord, but Jesus said there’s joy in the presence of the angels over one sinner who repents.”

One victory in which the entire family played a part surely caused widespread celebration. Keller met a family in a nearby village and during a visit he shared the Gospel. Despite none of them being persuaded to follow Christ, they wanted Keller to return. He agreed as long as he could show them The JESUS Film. On his second visit, he showed the movie and preached, but again there was no interest. Still, they wanted him to come again, but urged him to bring his family. He agreed. What happened on the third trip was miraculous.

“The whole village came out to see my family,” Keller expounds. “We spent over six hours in that village, and nearly everyone stayed to watch God’s Story, a movie that tells the story of the Bible from Creation to Christ. That night, despite some technical difficulties with the DVD player, I preached the Gospel and 25 people made public decisions to trust in Christ. We attribute this, in part, to the involvement of the whole family.”

Keller believes his family benefits his ministry by giving him instant credibility.

“Relationships are very important in this country,” he says. ”Whenever I meet people who are unfriendly or skeptical about me, I just whip a photo of my family out of my wallet and they melt instantly. People don’t feel threatened by this strange American visiting their village when my kids are with me.

“By coming over here as a family,” he continues, “people realize that we really love them and that we really believe Jesus is worthy of our devotion. People want to know what would be so important that we would leave family, friends and the conveniences of home to come share His message.

“The vision from Revelation 7 of a great multitude from every nation, tribe, people and language praising God inspires us,” Keller concludes. “We pray for a vast multitude from our country in South Asia to be among that number. We long to hear our Savior and Lord glorified by people from our country, in their mother tongue, hand-in-hand with believers from all over the world.”

It will be amazing to see that answered prayer written in red ink.

–30–

*Names have been changed.

Keller Dougherty and his family are from Florida and have served the Lord in South Asia for more than three years. Brad McBrayer lives in Marietta, Ga., and is actively involved in the recreation ministry and sports missions at Johnson Ferry Baptist Church. He works in sports television production full time and is a freelance writer “on the side.” This article is used by permission of BMEN Online, an e-publication of the North American Mission Board available at http://www.bmen.net/.

Week of January 9, 2011

January 9 : The Man in White. Pray for the people of Karachi to have dreams and visions of Jesus. Ask that they will know clearly who this man in white – a very bright white with radiance – is. Intercede for “divine appointments” between believers and those who have had dreams or visions of Jesus. Claim Matthew 17:2 for the people of Karachi: “He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light.”

January 10 : On Their Knees. “2011: Long-term workers are starting this year on their knees before the throne for the millions of lost people in this city. We have strategized, planted seeds by area and population segments, looked at maps and demographics, and prayerwalked the land. Every day, more die and spend an eternity separated from God. We are going back to our knees, where the battle is truly fought, and asking others to join us. ‘D’ is for dying: Pray for the 15 million-plus people who are dying without Christ; pray for God’s truth and His Word to reach them. ‘H’ is for hopeless: Pray for the people on Dhaka’s streets to exchange their hollow and sullen hearts for the overflowing love of the Savior. ‘A’ is for abandoned: Pray for those who live in this concrete maze on their own; some were sold or sent to the city in hopes of earning money and having a better life, and many end up in slums as drug dealers, prostitutes or beggars. ‘K’ is for kids: Pray for the millions of young people in this nation who are being raised without proper sustenance, care and purpose in their lives; ask God to save this generation for His glory. ‘A’ is for advance: Pray for the advance of His kingdom in this dark land, and ask that the believers will be filled with passion to share with their neighbors. Pray for new workers to join the harvest fields. Ask God to move in a way that no one can foresee or imagine.”

January 11 :  God-sized Task. “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9). “Just as Abraham, Moses and David were chosen by God, so each one of us who believes in and follows Jesus as our Lord is chosen. We are each chosen to ‘proclaim the excellencies of Him.’ For the 12 units (couples and singles) who make up the South Cluster, comprising southern India, the Maldives and Sri Lanka, we have been chosen to ‘proclaim the excellencies’ to more than 108 million Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists and others. If you break that down, it is an average of 9 million people per unit! It is more than obvious that sharing the Gospel with all the lost of the South Cluster is a God-sized task! That’s why your prayers and support are so vital to people here coming to faith. Let’s intercede together for these dear people to come out of darkness and into His marvelous light, and let’s always be willing to give sacrificially so they will have an opportunity to hear.”

January 12 : Makar Sankranti. “May the name of God be praised forever and ever, for wisdom and power belong to Him. He changes the times and seasons; He removes kings and establishes kings. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding” (Daniel 2:20-21, HCSB). Friday, January 14, is Makar Sankranti, when Hindus celebrate the beginning of the end of the winter season and the sun moves into the Northern Hemisphere. Hindus in south India celebrate it as a time of harvest, the end of the rainy season. Depending on where it is observed in India, the festival may feature kite flying, bonfires, bathing in an auspicious river, offering rice cooked in milk to the sun god and rain god, or decorating the family cattle with flowers and bells as a means of thanking them for their hard work in the past year. It is believed that auspicious and sacred events can now be planned for the coming year. Many call it the Festival of the Sun God and regard him as a symbol of wisdom. While seasons change and harvests come in, pray that Hindus will understand that God Almighty, the Creator of the seasons, is the sovereign, omniscient God. Pray that they will turn to Him for wisdom and for direction, acknowledging Him as the source of life and salvation.

January 13 : Volunteers Help with Training. “The sound of praises being lifted up in a foreign language still resounds in the American’s ears. It is his first opportunity to attend a training, and although he cannot understand the words, he is humbled by the worship that is taking place. In the new year, lots of volunteers from the United States will be coming to our state to lead conferences in order to equip and disciple national believers. More than 100 nationals will be attending. God is at work in K state! Please pray for safety during these trainings, and ask that the hand of the evil one will be stayed from hindering any from coming who plan to attend. Please also pray for the health of the trainers, and ask that those coming from the United States will return home and spread the word of what God is doing in South Asia.”

January 14 :  Unreached & Unengaged. Unreached. Unengaged. Those are two words that should make all of our stomachs sink. Unreached and unengaged means that there is no Gospel witness among a people group. It means that aside from God revealing Himself directly to those people, there is no one among them who can share the Gospel with them. None of their own people are believers, and there are no Christian workers there to share the Gospel with them. Those two words describe more than 5.5 million people who live in South India, the Maldives, and Sri Lanka – and that number only represents the 12 unreached, unengaged people groups who number more than 100,000! Now, has your stomach sunk? God said to Isaiah in Isaiah 6:8, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Please go to the Lord in prayer on behalf of the 5.5 million unreached, unengaged peoples of the South Cluster (South India, the Maldives, and Sri Lanka). Please go to the lost of the South Cluster and share the Gospel with them or support others through the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering so they can go. Unreached. Unengaged. Together with the Lord, let’s eradicate those two words!

January 15 : Bible in the Market. Please pray for K, a 19-year-old woman from a Lohar Muslim family. Recently her hunger to read God’s Word led her to search in the local market for a Bible. When some workers were providentially led to her family home to share God’s Word, K revealed that she had a Bible. The family sipped chai (hot spiced tea) as they listened carefully to the story of the demon-possessed man in Mark 5, narrated by the workers. The family also heard the Good News of Christ during this same visit. Please ask God to reveal Himself to K and her entire family. Pray that they will read God’s Word and find the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith in Christ.