October 2007
East Asia is a region where ancient and modem are
converging, creating a new society. It is a place
where people practice the ancient movements of Tai
Chi on the front steps of Wal-Mart, and rice paddies
become cities in just a few years. As China, Mongolia,
Macau, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Tibet become more
open to the outside world, their people hunger for things
that do not satisfy. The current generation believes suc¬
cess is the only way to happiness in life and that competi¬
tion and hard work are the only way to get there. In an
atheistic environment, they are encouraged to renounce
all religion and believe only in themselves. As more
Chinese are reaching the top of the ladder, many are real¬
izing that their hearts still ache for something more.
Praise the Lord for faithful workers in East Asia who are
sharing how Jesus can fully satisfy the hearts of those
who love him. Although the church is growing rapidly,
China still remains the largest
country of lostness in
the world. Please join
us in praying
that the people
of East Asia will
be able to say in their
hearts, "I'd rather have Jesus
than silver or gold, men's applause
or worldwide fame" as Rhea F.
Miller wrote in a familiar hymn.
Oh, give thanks to the LORD! Call upon His name; Make
known His deeds among the peoples! Sing to Him, sing
psalms to Him; Talk of all His wondrous works! Glory in
His holy name; Let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the
LORD! (Psalm 105:1-3, NKJV)
El EAST ASIA. For workers in East Asia, sharing their faith
“is just the beginning of investing in local people. When
someone makes a decision to follow Christ, workers disci¬
ple him or her and eventually a new church is formed.
Once a new group of believers is committed to following
Christ, they are trained to share with others, eventually cre¬
ating a church-planting movement. Pray that workers who
are discipling new believers will rely on the Lord for en¬
durance, wisdom and perseverance to overcome obstacles.
UNENGAGED PEOPLES OF SOUTH AMERICA.
Please lift up in prayer the Afro-Argentines. In Argen¬
tina, there are 50,000 Afro-Argentines who are animistic,
with no known evangelicals among them. Pray that the
Argentine believers will reach out to the Afro-Argentines
with the Good News of Jesus Christ. Ask the Holy Spirit to
convict them of their need for the Savior.
CHINA. Although China's economy is booming, the
wealth is not spread evenly among its 1.3 billion people.
Many are forced to work 14-hour days in markets or as day
laborers, sometimes starting during their teenage years.
Praise the Lord that despite desperate work conditions,
many people all across China are coming to know Christ.
Ask that the Lord will provide times and places for them to
meet together, so that they will grow in unity as the body
of Christ.
ISRAELI JEWS OF ISRAEL. A worker felt led to take a
bus in Jerusalem, which is usually discouraged because
of suicide bombers. The bus was full of religious Jewish
men and women. One Jewish woman leaned forward and
whispered to the worker, "Are you a Christian?" The worker
replied that she was. The woman wanted to know about
Jesus! The worker shared the Gospel with her in whispers.
Names and numbers were exchanged. Please pray that
Jewish people like her in Israel will have a hunger to know
about Christ!
H MONGOLIA. There are several groups working in the
” countryside to gather Mongols together and begin house
churches. Logistically this is hard because the climate is ex¬
treme and there are long distances between homes. Please
ask God to give wisdom to those who are striving to see
His church built in the countryside of Mongolia. Pray that
Mongols will gather together in worship no matter how
difficult it might be.
UNENGAGED PEOPLES OF THE PACIFIC RIM.
Please lift up the Magahat people (who also call them¬
selves the Bukidnon people) on the island of Negros in the
Philippines. This is the only people group in the Phili¬
ppines that is not engaged. The population is just over
10,000. There is a government-related group that has kept
all religions away from these people. Communist rebels are
also fighting in the area, preventing workers from having
access to this group. Pray that God will send laborers into
