Carrying a mystery to term

 “For with God nothing is ever impossible and no word from God shall be without power or impossible of fulfillment.” (Luke 1:37, Amplified Bible, Classic Edition)

The mystery both enfolded by and enfolding the Christmas season never really ends. It didn’t even begin that first Christmas. It simply revealed itself to us: to all and any who could see or hear, listen—who had ‘eyes to see’ and ‘ears to hear’—in the eons to come.

In Mary’s encounter with the angel and then with the Holy Spirit those 2,000-plus years ago, the divine seed was planted. Young Mary treasured and wondered at the words spoken to her, and her body nurtured the precious ‘Word’ to term. A mysterious Word, existing since the beginning of time, wrapped in a baby and born into a world so already full of its own words, wonder, beauty and noise—that hearing, seeing, the capital-W Word and Wonder beyond and behind it can be nigh on impossible.

Imagine carrying and giving birth to a mystery. In a way every mother does, but can you imagine carrying and giving birth to a world-changing mystery that both pre-existed you, life itself, and contained the answers of time and eternity? Completely impossible to comprehend, and that’s the point. Mary embraced what she did not understand, nurtured and treasured it. The holy seed came to term and the world would never be the same.

Have you ever had an inexplicable, dramatic encounter with holiness, with God? By its very nature you can’t explain it to anyone else, but like Mary, you can treasure and nurture it. Trust that the divine seed will come to term.

People who hold onto and nurture what God has said to them or allowed them to experience—even though they may not understand it—carry the fruit of the revelation from God that says: ‘Nothing will be impossible with God.’ That’s the commonly translated version of the angel’s words to young Mary when she wondered aloud how on earth she could give birth. A more accurate translation from the Greek would be more like ‘no freshly spoken word of God will ever come to you that does not contain the ability to perform itself.’ What an astonishing gift!

Pre-Christmas jungle ministry results in hundreds of new Christians!

For the first week in December—while most of us prepare for, or at least think about preparing for, Christmas—Pastor Paul and a team of Bibles for Mideast missionaries visited with villagers living in mud huts by a forest in Karnataka, near the southern tip of India. Hinduism, sorcery and fear formed the shaky backbone of these tribal people’s belief system.

Living so close to the forest, the villagers often forage there for food and medicines, sometimes selling their excess to other locals to help support themselves.

A serious and growing problem in recent years has been an alarming rise in deaths—both of people and domestic livestock—due to wild animals encroaching on human settlements. Efforts to conserve wild animal species have been successful, but when those species lose their natural habitat to development, too many clashes with nearby settlers result. The resulting fear for villagers had brought further misery into their already difficult lives.

Elephants alone kill about 500 people each year in India, far more than any other wild animal. Leopards and tigers kill fewer, but the numbers of deaths continue to rise as the animals’ habitats diminish. Government officials and forest managers have been trying without much success to strike a balance in the competition for land between people and animals.

Wild elephants kill about 500 people each year in India

None of the fearful villagers had ever heard the Good News of Jesus until one of our pastors visited with them shortly before the larger team arrived. His witness and the receptivity of a few opened the way for the larger team of evangelists to make their recent trek. The team managed to visit every home in the village and by the end of their time there, a new ALG church had been established, with about 500 new believers.

Pastor Maruga has been put in charge of the new church, and since most in the area are illiterate, he has also launched literacy classes for them.

Please pray for these dear new believers, and for Pastor Maruga as he leads and teaches them. The new congregation will celebrate with joy their first real Christmas, but as Christians in a country opposed to the gospel and those sharing it, they also need divine protection.

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Bibles for Mideast establishes its 500th church!

The ministry of Bibles for Mideast reached a milestone recently, establishing its 500th church in Haima, central Oman. That same day, 54 former Muslims were baptized to become new members of this newest church!

Pastor Paul, Director of Bibles for Mideast, travelled from India to lead both the baptismal and dedication services.  Pastor Peter Haneef, President of the Assembly of Loving God churches along with Pastor Musthafa (Overseer of Africa for Bibles for Mideast),  Pastor Muthalib (who oversees the work in the Middle East),  Pastor Khani (who oversees the work in Bangladesh) and many other leaders assisted in the programs. Holy Spirit moved powerfully throughout the services, which included wonderful worship and concluded with a celebration of the Lord's Supper. 

Because of security concerns in this mostly Islamic nation, the dedication service began shortly after midnight on the chosen day. Everyone then boarded three buses for the trip from Haima to the Gulf of Masira in the Arabian Sea. A police van followed the buses for part of the route, but the travellers were relieved when they saw it turn back. Finally reaching the seashore about 3:30 in the morning for the baptism, Pastor Peter Haneef and the others could palpably feel God’s Presence and pleasure.

“Our Lord gave us a very blessed and bright moon light!” Pastor Peter recalls. “It felt like daylight! The sea was calm and quiet. Nobody felt afraid going down to the sea.”

The baptismal candidates reaffirmed their faith in Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior and were baptised. All then knelt down together, praising and thanking the Lord before returning back to the newborn church in Haima. A worship service with the Lord’s Supper followed, with believers from many different ALG (Assembly of Loving God) churches taking part.

Pastor Mubarak and his wife worked long and hard, facing much persecution along the path to establishing this newest Bibles for Mideast church. The couple spend hours meeting people in the street, sharing their own experiences with and in Jesus, and distributing sample gospels. They often face abuse and beatings.

One evening a man brutally dragged Mrs. Mubarek by her hair through the street. Another time, someone grabbed their bibles and sample gospels and set them on fire. When Mrs. Mubarek lay down on the bibles in an attempt to squelch the flames, she was brutally kicked by the attacker. Even so, midst all the persecutions, the Lord rescued even some of the persecutors as He built His new church.

The pastor, his wife, and the growing flock continued in prayer and fasting as the small band of believers multiplied in numbers and power. When healings began to manifest, even more attended. And so the church was born!

We request your prayers for Pastor Mubarek, his family and all the members of this church as they continue to face persecution. We do remember you in our regular prayers as well, and thank you for your support of the ministry.

Muscat, capital city of Oman. Religion in Oman is dominantly Islam as Muslims account for a total of 88% per cent of the entire population

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Pakistan faces floods and fears—BUT GOD

“The Lord controls [ is enthroned over] the flood [controls chaos].
The Lord will be [is enthroned as] King forever.”
— Psalm 29:10 (Expanded Bible)

As the devastating flooding in Pakistan recedes—the worst in that South Asian nation’s history and affecting as much as a third of the country—many people’s lives have been changed forever. Several thousand perished as homes, vehicles, animals, businesses and livelihoods were washed away.

Parts of Pakistan seemed “like a sea," Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif pronounced after visiting some of the flood-hit areas.

wadeing through flooded streets in Dadu District, Farid Abad Sindh province, Pakistan [SHUTTERSTOCK]

No doubt you have seen some of the horrific scenes on the news, but we want to share with you just one story of God’s amazing, saving Grace midst the onslaught in one once-beautiful area of northern Pakistan.

The region, known locally as ‘Pakistani Switzerland’, has long been a popular destination for its majestic mountains, lakes and rivers. But homes and properties along the banks of the mighty Swat River proved no match to the power of the record-breaking flood waters brought on by the monsoon rains which had pummeled the country since mid-June.

About two weeks ago, a luxurious, multi-storied hotel by the Swat River quickly crumbled before being completely washed away by the surging waters. Thankfully, it had already been evacuated. The video below shows the moment the hotel collapsed:

Just a mile away, members of a local Bibles for Mideast congregation had bravely gathered for prayer and fasting in a small house.  As the waters raged all around, killing thousands and leaving many more missing, this small home miraculously remained intact!

A helicopter flew overhead shortly after the hotel collapse and rescued the believers taking cover nearby, ‘under His wings’. Flown to the safety of a camp set up for survivors, some soon found themselves witnessing to the Pakistani Muslims sheltering with them about the saving power of our amazing Lord. They know it’s risky, but clearly have little fear taking risks for Jesus!

While we do praise and thank God for protecting His children (Ps. 124), they—as have many, many others—lost homes and belongings. Please keep these precious ones in your prayers, that our Lord would provide all they now need.

The concern as the waters recede is over the spread of waterborne diseases among thousands of flood victims.

The development has forced the government to deploy additional medical teams and dispatch medicine besides providing clean drinking water to survivors, many of whom are living in tents and makeshift homes.

Thank you for your support and prayers as we all do what we can to help.
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Can you help in our work?
Please click HERE: BLESSING Bibles for Mideast

Deep floodwaters in Peshawar city, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan [GETTY]

Summer PROGRESS AND PRAYER report: help us keep going!

We apologize for the months of seeming silence here, but want you to know that the mission and work of Bibles for Mideast continues apace. Following is a brief update on some of our boldest and bravest missionaries and their activities. All need prayer to keep going, and in some cases, to stay alive.

As reported a few months ago, our Pastor Ashwin had been hospitalized after a brutal attack by radical Hindus (Hindu festivals always mean trouble for converts from Hinduism: Please pray for Pastor Ashwin in India). After sixteen days in ICU and a week or so in a regular room, he was finally released in mid-May. He thanks all who prayed for his recovery!

Not to be kept down or out—and not that he had anything to prove but God’s goodness and saving grace—our indomitable Pastor Ashwin was soon back in frontline ministry.

In June we got the tremendous report that he and his team had ministered in a small rural village in western India, and the entire village came to faith in Jesus! With your help and prayers we are trying to supply him with the needed Gujarati language bibles for the many new Christians.

Rejoicing unfortunately soon turned to more struggle when the team began feeling sick with what they at first thought was simple stomach flu. Unbeknownst to them, the village they had just spent time ministering in had been in the midst of a cholera outbreak. Their symptoms turned out to be cholera as well, and the pastor and two of his team ended up needing hospitalization. While they were released a week later, by then Pastor Ashwin’s children had also come down with cholera and likewise spent a week in hospital.

Being the prevailing warrior he is, the recent trials have only strengthened Pastor Ashwin’s will and determination. He has returned to ministry with even more spiritual power, proving yet again the amazingness of our ‘upside-down Kingdom’.

Stranded people being evacuated following heavy rains in village of Chhara, Uttarakhand State,India [Reuters]

Intense monsoon rains across India have caused heavy flooding and landslides in many areas. Nineteen of our Bibles for Mideast families lost their homes but thankfully, managed to escape to the safety of refugee camps. With much prayer, fasting and hard work, church members—including Pastor Paul and his family—rebuilt the homes within two weeks. All the displaced families have now returned to their restored homes.

We have two more urgent prayer requests from this past week. Pastor Subhash, one of our pastors in North India, was brutally attacked by extremists while sharing the gospel with a group of villagers. They then handed him over to the police, who charged him with ‘forcefully converting people to Christianity’. The officers refused to allow him to be taken to hospital for proper treatment. It took Pastor Paul three days (while church members prayed and fasted) to get the police to finally release the pastor, who was then admitted to hospital. He, his family and his church are all poor—please pray for them.

Our Pastor Ram Behadur in Nepal has also suffered a brutal attack and been hospitalized. He had actually been praying for the sick, sharing the gospel and giving away New Testaments in a Nepalese hospital when a group of Hindu militants caught wind of it. Enraged, they grabbed him, dragged him outdoors, tied him to a tree and ruthlessly beat him. When someone let the police know, they fortunately had pity on him and brought him back into the hospital. Please pray for this brave pastor, his church and his family. He is still hospitalized.

Please also keep Pastor Paul, his wife Mercy and myself (Susanna) in your prayers. We all have had some health challenges but know God hears the prayers of faithful friends like you.

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“But He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest on me.”
—2 Cor. 12:9, Berean Study Bible

“I can do all things [which He has called me to do] through Him who strengthens and empowers me [to fulfill His purpose—I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency; I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him who infuses me with inner strength and confident peace.]”
—Phil. 4:13, Amplified Bible