shamilla | Beyond

A Caroling Calamity

Dec 13, 2018 | South Asia, Stories

When Sanjay* and some fellow followers of Christ decided to celebrate the Christmas season with caroling, they knew to be discreet. After all, they lived in northern India, where persecution of Christians is an everyday threat. Casually going into the streets singing to random strangers was not an option. No, they purposed to only go to the homes of friends like Raja. Raja was not yet a follower of Jesus but he was regularly participating in one of the local Bible studies. Surely it would be okay to sing outside his house? They assembled at Raja’s home and had begun singing when the front door flew open and a man shot into their midst. It was Raja’s older brother, Charan.

With a machete-like knife in his hand, the irate man lunged into the crowd of carolers. Charan first destroyed the drum they were playing and then began slashing wildly toward the people. He got close enough to cut one man’s shirt, but thankfully no blood was drawn. The carolers quickly left and reported this incident to the police. Some officers accompanied them back to Raja’s home, but by the time they arrived, Charan had fled. After the officers left, Sanjay and the others prayed for Raja and his whole family.

About one week had passed when Sanjay’s phone rang. It was Charan. He explained that he had turned himself into the police and asked if Sanjay could come down to the station. As soon as Sanjay arrived, Charan bent down, touched Sanjay’s feet three times (a gesture of respect) and said, “I am very sorry. You are a good person.” God had been at work in the lives of Raja’s family, and, because of this incident, all of Raja’s family except Charan decided to become Christians!

This Christmas, whenever you hear your favorite carols, please be praying for God to open the hearts of those who are violently opposed to him. Pray they would accept Christ and become conduits for many others to receive him.

Joy to the world, the Lord is come!

Let Earth receive her King.

Let every heart prepare Him room.

*pseudonym

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GOD STORIES CHANGING LIVES IN INDIA
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OWNING THE GREAT COMMISSION
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ONE ILLNESS, 63 HOUSE CHURCHES
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Navigating Difficult Conversations with Family

Dec 6, 2018 | Stories

The Christmas holidays can often be made more stressful by difficult family members. Sometimes we gird ourselves up just knowing that that person will be at the family gathering. Ibu Sayang in Indonesia knows how we feel . . .

When “Uncle” called Ibu Sayang to his home for a family gathering, she had no idea of the storm she was going to walk into. Questions about her faith pelted her from every direction. Guided by the Holy Spirit, Sayang was able to share about how she struggled with finding truth and meaning in Islam despite having been on the Hajj (a spiritual trip to Mecca) twice and having earnestly sought God as a Muslim. She shared how, in her frustration, she had cried out one night, “God! Please reveal to me your truth!” Boldly, she told her family of the man with white hair dressed in white robes and a golden sash who appeared in her dreams that night. In his hands this man held a book on which was a large cross with her name written below. He handed her the book, and Ibu Sayang awoke. Immediately, she knew that the man was Isa al Masih (Jesus the Messiah) and that truth was found in him. She confidently explained that the dream was the reason she had removed her traditional Muslim clothing and claimed to be a follower of Jesus.

After hearing all she had to say, Ibu Sayang’s uncle, who is a respected leader in the Islamic community, declared, “If I receive a vision from Allah as you did, I and my whole family will receive Isa al Masih!”

Sayang and her teammates are rejoicing over this announcement and praying for this very thing. They are also in awe of the ready answers the Holy Spirit provided during this tense encounter. Aware that she can only plant seeds while salvation belongs to the Lord, Ibu Sayang has already made an appointment to go back and share more with her family!

As you prepare to meet with your extended families over the upcoming holiday season, please be praying for your Christian brothers and sisters around the world who will be meeting with family and sharing with them why they have chosen to follow Christ. Pray also for Ibu Sayang’s uncle; that the vision he has asked for, he will have.

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HAVING CONVERSATIONS THAT MATTER
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A BOLD SPIRITUAL CONVERSATION
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SEEKER: What is Up with all this BLOOD

Dec 2, 2018 | Stories

Having just moved into a new neighborhood, Julie and her husband deeply desired to connect with their neighbors in a way that would allow them to share Christ with those who didn’t know him. Learning that there was a monthly ladies’ Bunco night that met in the neighborhood, Julie decided to attend even though it meant forgoing her usual weekly Bible study at church. The ladies soon learned Julie was skipping Bible study for Bunco night, and one month as they were ribbing her about it, one of the ladies jokingly remarked, ”I need to go to Bible study!” Another woman retorted, “If you need to go to Bible study, then so do I!” Sensing an opportunity, Julie invited them to study the Bible with her, and they both said they would.

As Julie tried to figure out the best way to go about showing her new friends how to study the Bible, another friend described the Discovery Bible Study (DBS) process to her. Julie said, “That’s it! I just want to read the Word and talk about it, not over-complicate it.” Finding Beyond’s website featuring an upcoming Nugget training titled “How to Facilitate a Discovery Bible Study,” Julie signed up right away. At the training, Julie was able to participate in a Discovery Bible Study for the first time. She was astounded.

And the results speak for themselves. One day, about six months into doing Discovery Bible Studies together, the ladies were reading about the sacrificial system in Leviticus when one of them exclaimed, “What is the deal with all this blood!” The other non-believer who had some church background responded, “Doesn’t it have something to do with Jesus and his blood on the cross?” Following her training and not wanting to shortcut the discovery process, Julie answered, “Yes it does! We’ll get there in a few lessons.” But the woman insisted, “You need to tell me now!” Feeling the Holy Spirit prompt her that this woman was ready, Julie shared a gospel presentation and both women confessed their sins and decided to follow Jesus. “Wow, this is amazing!” one of them exclaimed. Julie testifies that by their next DBS together these women were completely different, the Holy Spirit clearly present in their lives.

HOW YOU CAN PRAY:

Pray that many new DBS groups will start from this group of ladies
Pray that the Holy Spirit will create a desire in the hearts of these women to share their experience with friends and family.
Pray for our upcoming Nugget Training on DBS, that many will participate and want to start DBS with their friends and neighbors

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Making Inroads . . .

Nov 19, 2018 | Austronesia, Stories

A worker in Austronesia tells of how the disciple making process is changing lives.

Chad has been enjoying getting to know “D” through their mutual work for the last several months. Diving into the Word together using Discovery Bible Studies(DBS), the men discuss how they need to be focused on lining their vision up with God’s Kingdom and his purposes for the surrounding areas and people. So when “D” shared that he planned to use his Discovery Bible Study tools when he spent some vacation days in an area his family is originally from, Chad helped him select several studies so he’d be prepared.

The first night D spoke with a man, Aziz, a broker, about the parable of the sower and the seeds. Feeling uneasy because of the powerful message, Aziz suddenly began sharing that he often “played with the numbers” to earn more in sales from his customers. Through D, God’s word brought about a conviction that made Aziz feel uneasy about his dishonest ways.

D also shared the gospel story of the Pharisee and the tax collector in the temple (Luke 18:9-14) with Panuta while in this village. Panuta is a coffee farmer in his 60’s who was struck by God’s acceptance of the humble tax collector. Crying, Panuta confessed that, though married, he had been involved in many affairs. Wanting to distance himself from these women and his sinful actions, Panuta burned items of clothing he had collected from the various encounters.

Encouraged by seeing God’s powerful word at work and wanting to continue the growth of these two men, Chad and D are now looking for reasons to keep returning to this village. A business connected to the coffee trade would be most likely. When you drink your morning cup of coffee or drive past a coffee shop will you be praying with Chad and D for the right inroad into this village and the hearts of those who live there?

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Giving Thanks Amid the Rubble

Nov 18, 2018 | Stories

As we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving this week, we want to share some stories from the earthquake-ravaged region of Austronesia. If you recall, several strong earthquakes hit the island of Indonesia over the summer. They brought devastation, but also opened doors for workers to bring aid, comfort and hope.

Another team reports of the medical help, temporary housing, toilets and physical needs they were able to provide, but, of much greater importance, the trauma counseling, prayers for healing in the name of Isa Al Masih (Jesus the Messiah) and the Discovery Bible Studies (DBS) they were able to hold with hurting people needing a touch from God. They now report that there are over 30 continuing DBS groups with some already starting a second generation!

Mrs. Harum was caught inside her house when the earthquake hit. Her family was with her but able to run out and away from the house. Roofing, beams and walls crashed onto her.

The next day her neighbors found her alive, but paralyzed. Sadly, most of her family were killed. One of our national partners counseled her, her daughter and one granddaughter who survived. After sharing how Isa Al Masih healed the paralyzed man in Mark 2:1-12, Mrs. Harum said, “I believe that story.” She then welcomed prayer for the healing of her leg. After praying in the name of Isa Al Masih, Mrs. H stood up and was able to move her leg! Crying, she embraced the team, amazed at the power of the Holy Spirit. Since then, Mrs. Harum has participated in her second Discovery Bible Study and all of her neighbors have come to her tent to hear the Good News!

This Thursday, as you gather with your family, give thanks with us for the work God is doing in Indonesia and pray that many more Discovery Bible Studies will take place creating a disciple making movement among this people group that God loves so much.

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