When Marilyn Owusu-Sekyere first heard God tell her that he would send her to a people enslaved by sin, she responded with “I’m not …”: “I’m not a man,” “I’m not married,” “I’m not white.” She thought that all missionaries were men, married, and white because she had never seen someone like her — a single, African American woman — come to her church as a missionary. She didn’t think she was capable or worthy of doing this “crazy thing” God had put on her heart. Three years and ten short-term missions trips later, she embraced God’s purposes for her life and His call to minister to the youth and children of West Africa.
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Is Côte d’Ivoire the Ephesus of West Africa?
The nation of Côte d’Ivoire in West Africa may be similar to first-century Ephesus in its strategic role for reaching surrounding regions with the gospel. With the strategic potential of Côte d’Ivoire, Kevin and Moriah Thompson are currently strategizing to combine their history of dramatic conversions to Christ, training they have received and will continue to receive at the Daloa Basecamp, and tabernacle evangelism to reach the northern regions of Côte d’Ivoire – with a goal of facilitating outreach throughout West Africa.
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Say “Hello” and Shatter a Worldview
Around the world today, there are countless Muslim women living in shame and despair. Their worldview tells them that no one sees them. Just like the Samaritan woman at the well, these Muslim women of today are thirsting for the honor and dignity that only Jesus gives. And they are poised to tell their Islamic community about Jesus, the Savior who knows their deepest needs. Ryan and Lauren Plute are investing their lives to train Christian women to reach their Muslim counterparts through Christ-pointing friendships.
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Dramatic Conversion from Islam to Christianity in Central Asia
FROM ADVANCING NATIVE MISSIONS:
Dramatic Conversion from Islam to Christianity in Central Asia
Rastin and Maryam (not their real names) grew up in a Central Asian country that was formally a Soviet republic. Rastin grew up as the son of a nominally Christian Russian mother and an East German father who thought God was a tyrant, punishing those who misbehaved. Maryam was the daughter of an observant Muslim family. Both Rastin and Maryam came to faith in Christ, met each other, married, and now pastor a house church and support themselves through a bee-keeping business. Click the button below to read the rest of the story!
Photo courtesy of Advancing Native Missions. Used by permission (personal correspondence).
The Extraordinary Re-Evangelization of Europe
FROM THE LAUSANNE MOVEMENT:
The Extraordinary Re-Evangelization of Europe
“No other continent (but Europe) has been exposed to Christianity for such a prolonged period and in such an extensive way. Yet just as Europe was the first continent to be Christianised, it was also the first to be de-Christianised … Many see Europe as thoroughly post-Christian or secular, yet the reality is much more complex than that. And out of the spotlight, an extraordinary re-evangelisation of Europe is taking place. Three dimensions of this can be identified: diaspora churches, church planting movements and platforms, and the next generation.”
Map courtesy of Wikipedia. Used by permission.
Thor Is Beating the Lutheran Church in a Battle for Believers in the Land of Fire and Ice
FROM NEWSWEEK:
Thor Is Beating the Lutheran Church in a Battle for Believers in the Land of Fire and Ice
Iceland’s fastest-growing religion is Ásatrú, a revival of the worship of Viking deities. It tripled in size from 2007 to 2017 while the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Iceland that once made up 90% of Iceland’s population in the 1990s but has now fallen to 64 percent of the population.
Photo courtesy of Caleb Charters. Used by permission.
While Iceland has been called “the most godless country in Europe,” in reality God has not abandoned this nation of about 300,000 inhabitants. After reading the Newsweek article, read this 2017 article by Gunnar Gunnarsson, the pastor of Loftstofan Baptistakirkja, the only Baptist church in Reykjavik: Europe’s Most Godless Country May Surprise You.
