June 2006
South Asia is not an obscure place where nothing ever
happens. Each of the seven countries in the South Asia
region is frequently in world news reports. India and
Pakistan are key players in the struggle for economic and
political stability in the region, while Nepal, Bangladesh
and Sri Lanka strive to keep peace with frequent clashes
between rival political factions. The King of Bhutan is
allowing his people more access to the outside world than
ever before. Maldives continues to keep a tight grip on
independence through Islamic dominance. Beyond the
economic and political concerns, South Asia proves to be
a difficult place for Christian service. David Garrison,
South Asia regional leader, shares the need for Southern
Baptists to heed the call of South Asia's lostness: "Half of
the world's unreached people groups (UPGs), more than
70 percent of the world's unengaged UPGs, and one out
of four lost persons on the planet are in this region ... Its
unreached millions have been shielded from the Gospel
by barriers of language, culture, climate and persecution
for centuries. But South Asia is where God has called us.
It is the final shore of the Great Commission and though
it sometimes seems impossible to reach, God is hearing
our prayers. Help is on the way. The tide is rising."
"... If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Who¬
ever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of liv¬
ing water will flow from within him " (John 7:37b-38, NIV).
1 SOUTH ASIA. What defines South Asia region? Seven
I countries - Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal,
Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Five major world religions (Islam,
Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity and animism, 1.45 bil¬
lion people and no, we won't name all of them. Great di¬
versity, yet with two primary characteristics in common:
vast numbers of lost souls and church-planting movements
growth potential. The love of Christ binds these two to
make our hearts beat as one, expressed in Habakkuk 2:14
(NIV): "For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of
the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea." The
Gospel is being shared across South Asia more than ever
before, yet the task is still huge. Pray that the love of God
will be shared widely and abundantly. Ask God in faith for
a bountiful harvest. Ask Him to make the harvest force
grow according to the need.
NAIROBI, KENYA (ny-ROH-bee). A counselor shares
these requests: "We need wisdom from God as we work
with clients at the Nairobi Women's Hospital. When small
children are raped or defiled, we need to work with the
parents or guardians, as well. Some of the cases are so sad,
and we need wisdom to know how to help the client. Pray
for the younger, recent graduate counselors who are find¬
ing it more difficult to listen to these sad stories. They can
bum out quickly. Pray for the perpetrators that God would
convict them of their sin."
3 COLOMBIA (northwestern South America). Sometimes
the new churches develop their own system of rule keep¬
ing: church attendance, insisting that the only way to evan¬
gelize is getting someone to "pray the prayer of faith,"
putting up a good front of moral behavior, etc. Pray that
Christians in Colombia will realize that the rules are not
bad in and of themselves, but they are not to be their guide¬
line for life or license to judge others. Pray that they will
leam to live in God's grace and extend that grace to others.
Most Egyptians do not know Jesus as Lord. They never
will, except through prayer. That's why the peoples of
Egypt - all of them - are the focus of today's Day of Prayer
and Fasting for World Evangelization. Please focus on lov¬
ing the peoples of Egypt through prayer, uniting your
hearts and voices with Southern Baptists and other Great
Commission Christians before God's throne of grace.
BEJA OF EGYPT, SUDAN AND ERITREA (BEE-ja). Please
intercede for Beja women. There are currently no known
female believers in this group of 2 to 3 million. Pray that
God would send His message to them in both word and
deed and that their hearts would be softened to receive
such Good News.
PAKISTAN (Southern Asia west of India). Can you make
a difference in Pakistan? Can your church have an im¬
pact for the kingdom of God in this country? Yes! South
Asia region is beginning a special one-year focus on Pakistan
this month called "mPak Pakistan. Make the difference."
More than 100 districts in Pakistan have been identified for
adoption by Southern Baptist churches that would work
alongside a strategy coordinator to see church-planting
movements sweeping the country. God is at work already,
stirring the hearts of Pakistan Muslims. Join us in praying
that, through this emphasis, God would call out more work¬
ers for Pakistan. Ask God to show churches how they can
make a meaningful difference in the evangelism of an entire
country! Ask God if your church is meant to be part of mPak
Pakistan. (For more information, visit impactpakistan.org)
