Christianity Growing In Afghanistan

Isaiah 6:8
"Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me."

Coming across a news article on Christians in Afghanistan struck a chord in my heart so much so that I thought I'd share it with everyone out in cyber-land. I'm asking that you please include this nation and its peoples in your daily prayers. I'm copying the text of the news article, which was originally linked by The Weekly Standard. The main news source, Mohabat News has been linked in this post.

(Source:  Mohabat Iranian Christian News)

Afghanistan, a country long suffering from civil wars, has not experienced peace for many years. Ongoing bombings by fundamentalist Muslims have stolen peace from the lives of Afghanis. However, the country has recently seen signs of change as people hear the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Bigger Afghan cities tend to have underground "Bush Markets" where stuff that "falls off the back of the truck" like these MREs intended for American troops are sold for as little as 20 cents

According to Mohabat News, “Informed Afghan authorities acknowledge that Christianity has obtained a special place not only among youth, but also among various layers in society. (In addition), house churches are growing tremendously.” Further, an independent Shi’ite website in Iran reportedly quoted a knowledgeable Afghan official as saying, “There is evidence of widespread Christian propaganda in Afghanistan, and the existence of more than 10 churches that operate secretly in residential houses have been proven.”

This beggar in Herat suffers from elephantiasis, which afflicts over 120 million people, primarily in Africa and South-East Asia

 

 

News reports indicates that some members of the News country's parliament have embraced Christianity. A Farsi news service also published a report on these conversions, writing, “Evangelism and Christian propaganda is taking place in the country at a high level, but this is the first time that those who call themselves representatives of the Afghani people not only have become ‘apostates’ but have joined Christian ministries to evangelize. This time they want to present their Christian services to Muslim people through parliament.”

Along the road vendors sell freshly caught Kabul river fish or scavenged mountain flora

Muslims make up the vast majority of Afghanistan’s population at 99.85 per cent. Christians account for 0.05 per cent. While there is limited freedom to practice other religions, there is no freedom to propagate another faith or to convert from Islam.

During a picnic at the walls of the ancient city of Balkh, "Sheikh" (center right) unfurled the red carpet and served us fatty lamb, flat bread, sugary tea and Coca Cola

Thank the Lord for the way He is working in this nation. Ak Him to Afhani Christtians a strong and mature faith with a bold desire to share the gospel. Pray the Lord will continue to work to bring many more to repentance. Pray for protection of believers in Afghanistan.

Instead of an iPod, workers in the field bring their song birds to entertain them through the day

NOTE: Photos and captions courtesy of Paretz Paretnsky who took the pictures and wrote the captions. More can be seen at Through the Eyes of An Independent Contractor

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He has called us to the reaping,
urgently sent out the call.
What a shame if at His coming
we have brought no sheaves at all!

Face to face, I shall behold Him
on His glorious judgment seat.
What a shame if at that meeting,
I lay nothing at His feet.

In the Beginning, Anew

Matthew 28:6

"He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay."

I have a friend I haven't seen anymore. Her home is in Los Angeles, but she lives in her head inside a dream. Other friends tried calling her to see if she can come out. And, help her lose the down that she's found. Unfortunately, she cannot be reached. Friend, what if your world should fall apart? Will you implode, too?

Think about a time when your heart was broken because your expectations were dashed and your world fell apart. That is exactly what happened to the women who came to Jesus' tomb. They had put all their hopes in Him as Israel's promised Messiah and had given Him their love and devotion.

Now He was dead.

Can you imagine the sudden change in their emotions and outlook when an angel told them He had risen? Hope sprang to life again. Even though this event happened 2,000 years ago, the empty tomb still holds a message for us. Like these women, we can be dramatically changed when we consider the ramifications of Christ's resurrection. It should affect how we live from this day forward.

Jesus' resurrection proves that there is life after death. So many people today think that earthly existence is all there is. But this belief robs life of purpose and meaning. God created us as eternal souls, and Jesus demonstrated that death is not the end - much more awaits us.

The empty tomb also gives us hope and dispels our fears about death. We have One who has gone before us and shown us what's ahead. Those who trust Him as their Savior (Rom. 10:9-10) will be resurrected to new life just as He was.

By accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour, you begin your life anew that very moment. In a way, it's your own Genesis 1:1; that is, God creates you through the blood of Jesus to be a new creature. Consider II Corinthians 5:17-18,

"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;"

And, Romans 6:4 goes even further: "Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life."

Thus, walking - not sitting, resting or convaslescing on a mountain top - but walking in the newness of life is what we're called by Christ to do. To be sure, we are to walk all the days of our life in the Spirit (Gal. 5:16) and redeem the evil days (Eph. 5:16) with the Gospel of peace (Rom. 10:15).

None of us know what day the Lord will call our name, signaling the end of our earthly life. Yet we do know that He has promised to prepare a place in heaven for us (John 14:1-3). Death is not the end, but simply the stepping into eternity and beginning the greatest adventure of our lives: Coming home to Christ.

Dear Reader, one day you will die (Heb. 9:27). When that day comes, where will you be spending eternity? Are you going home to Christ?

Settle it now! I Want To Spend Eternity With Christ!

Oh, for the wonderful love He has promised,
Promised for you and for me!
Though we have sinned, He has mercy and pardon,
Pardon for you and for me.

Come home, come home,
You who are weary, come home;
Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling,
Calling, O sinner, come home!

(portion of this posting is courtesy of Dr. Charles Stanley)

Send the Light

Galatians 5:24-25
"And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit."

In 1838, when James Calvert went out as a Christian missionary to the cannibals of the Fiji Islands, the ship captain tried to turn him back, saying, "You will lose your life and the lives of those with you if you go among [them]."

To that, Calvert replied, "We died before we came here."    

In a nutshell, that is the story of the missionary. However, it is a daily dying and not a one time proposition. Our church recently concluded a 3 day home missions conference. And it got me to think about how our missionaries are in the outer limits of their comfort zones all in the name of taking the Gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ to lost peoples.

In October the church hosts a missions conference. In both conferences, there are missionaries who give their testimony on how the Lord is working in their lives and through their lives. What incredible stories of faith, courage, and love for the Gospel!

About courage, G.K. Chesterton said, "Courage is almost a contradiction in terms. It means a strong desire to live, taking the form of a readiness to die."

It's obvious that Christian missionaries need our prayers. But, what to pray for? Here are some suggestions compliments of the pamphlet, "Praying for Missionaries" (Wonderful Word Publishers), which our church distributes:

1. Pray for their basic needs and missionary needs to be met. When you have an opportunity, talk to missionaries and find out about the country they're serving. Ask about the religion, language, culture and customs. Thus, your prayers will be more specific than just the generic prayer of "Lord, please meet their needs."

Consider these quotes -

"We talk of the Second Coming; half the world has never even heard about the First."
— Oswald J. Smith

"I have but one candle of life to burn, and I would rather burn it out in a land filled with darkness than in a land flooded with light"
— John Keith Falconer

2. Pray for Christian character during trials, troubles and temptations as well as during times of repose, peace and boredom. Pray for strength during physical trials and spiritual ones, too. Usually one type of trial leads to the other kind. After all, they are ambassadors of Christ.

Regarding strength, Hudson Taylor questioned, "How often do we attempt work for God to the limit of our incompetency rather than to the limit of God's omnipotency?"

Thus, prayer for strength and wisdom is very critical for the missionaries. I think about Zechariah 4:6, which states, "Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts."

3. Pray for victory over stagnation. The missionary may have little or no time for personal reading and studying.

4. Pray for freshness in prayer and Bible teaching.

5. Pray for  the recently converted soul, that he or she doesn't backslide.

6. Pray for deliverance from the temptation of pride. Because missionaries are looked up to, it may be easy for some to fall into conceit. So pray for humility.

7. Pray for wisdom in relations with other missionaries - victory over irritations, resentments, criticisms.

8. Pray for a saving sense of humor and to guard against becoming morbid or unbalanced, especially those in the midst of filth and terrible sin.

9. Pray for the nationals, many of whom the missionaries are training into assuming leadership roles. They need wisdom and grace.

10. Pray for strength to overcome the temptations of loneliness.

And while you're at it, please be mindful and prayerful about missionaries needing encouragement from us. So, when they visit your church, please let them know how much you appreciate them. If you can't financially support them, at least keep them in your daily prayers.

With respect to missions, there are only three kinds of Christians: burdened goers, burdened senders, and the disobedient. Which one are you?

Final quote:

"If you found a cure for cancer, wouldn't it be inconceivable to hide it from the rest of mankind? How much more is it inconceivable to keep silent the cure from the eternal wages of death?"

— Dave Davidson

Let us not grow weary in the work of love,
“Send the light! Send the light!”
Let us gather jewels for a crown above,
Send the light! Send the light!

Send the light, the blessed Gospel light;
Let it shine from shore to shore!
Send the light, the blessed Gospel light;
Let it shine forevermore!

To find out why missionaries are burdened about telling others of Jesus Christ, Click Here!