Desperation Spikes in Burma – and Faith Grows
Military conflict in the first three weeks of March increased the number of Internally Displaced Persons in Burma (Myanmar) by nearly 100,000, bringing the total since the 2021 military coup to 1.76 million. Desperation in Burma is growing but, amid opposition and restrictions, in many areas only native workers have the knowledge and networks to meet needs. They are risking their lives to do so.
Tribal Priest in South Asia Finds True God
Villagers feared the chief priest of a tribal religion in South Asia because they believed he had received great power from a god, but Christians feared him for another reason. Born to a family of tribal priests, Mayank Markam* led worship and animal sacrifice at religious festivals and was well known beyond his community. Local people followed his directives in fear, but Christians feared him because they did not follow him – incurring his wrath.
God Demonstrates His Power in Iran
Three Christians told a seriously ill, elderly man in Iran they had come only to help him and offered him fruit and meat. He reviled them for 20 minutes, questioning why they had come and who had sent them. When they asked to pray for him, his only response was, “Never! Prayer can’t help me. I’m waiting to die!”
Persecutor of Church in Kenya Accepts Christ
A village chief in Kenya who had jailed Christians for years never heeded their message until he attended a funeral – officiated by a native worker he had often arrested. A member of the Teso tribe, the chief had arrested the pastor and other native Christian workers for 10 years for steering people away from tribal religious customs, the leader of the local ministry said. Addressing mourners at the funeral, the pastor spoke not only of the hope of eternity with Christ but the need of salvation from corruption, death and God’s wrath.
Christ Revealed amid Disaster in Turkey
Efforts to help victims of the earthquakes that devastated Turkey have led to gospel opportunities, though ministry workers were seeing such openings grow even before the disasters. One worker, a Syrian refugee who accepted Christ and began helping to distribute aid, recently received a call at 10 p.m. from one of his countrymen – a refugee who had taken his sick child to a hospital emergency room. “He said that the doctor wanted to meet with me,” he said. “I was surprised and a little worried why the doctor would call me.”
Witchdoctors Keep People Sick in Kenya
The spiritual battles fought in outlying areas of Kenya are literally matters of life and death. In many areas, witchdoctors tell sick villagers that medical treatment would be futile against the curses placed on them, the leader of a native ministry said. “During our outreaches, we meet people who are desperate and helpless because of life’s challenges – many are bound by sicknesses and demonic spirits,” the leader said. “Some people opt not to seek medical help because they believe they are bewitched due to the falsehoods they are told. This is causing many people to die.”
Gospel Interest Grows in Post-Pandemic Philippines
Native Christian workers in the Philippines are taking a more holistic approach than they did five years ago, making gospel outreach even more effective, a ministry leader said. The coronavirus crisis of the past three years accelerated the new emphasis as workers were compelled to meet more physical needs. “Poverty and sickness are prevalent,” the native ministry leader said. “Addressing these needs together with the gospel is effective.”
With ISIS in Pursuit, He Couldn’t Save His Daughter
The father of a displaced family in Iraq recently told Christian workers how he loaded up 21 relatives onto a pick-up truck to flee Islamic State (ISIS) terrorists in 2014. “Fadhil* suddenly saw in the mirror that his daughter, Lina*, had fallen from the vehicle, and the wheels of ISIS were not far behind them,” the native ministry leader said. “He was faced with a painful choice: Should he stop for his daughter, or continue on to save the rest of his family?” Silently agonized, Fadhil said nothing to his relatives of what he had seen.
You Can Send Emergency Aid to Victims in Turkey and Syria
Two devastating earthquakes and hundreds of aftershocks in Turkey and Syria have killed over 41,000 people, with the death toll continually rising, as people dig through the rubble of collapsed buildings in search of loved ones. Tens of thousands of people are now homeless in the bitter cold of winter.
You can help meet people’s greatest needs for items such as food, water, diapers, and blankets with your gift today. Ministry workers are on the ground in the hardest-hit cities to help uncover bodies and distribute emergency aid, but the needs are immense. In Turkey alone, over 5,600 buildings were destroyed. Syrian cities devastated by years of war were further demolished.
Tribal Peruvian Trusts Christ in Fierce Conflicts
His children tended to side with his wife in their fierce arguments, so a tribal man decided he would let them live without him. Living alone, he was stewing in a mixture of grief and resentment when native Christian workers paid him a visit and asked him why he was troubled. “Immediately he replied that he had fought with his wife, and that his children are always against him,” the leader of a native ministry said.
