Unreached Peoples

Sharing Jesus Stories in the Market

Mar 11, 2026 | Stories

As Amy* looked at the group of women gathered around her in the humid, wet market, studying Bible stories together, her heart was deeply moved. The noise of vendors calling out and customers bargaining filled the air. It was hard to believe how it had all begun.

Not long before, Amy had been walking through the same marketplace, quietly praying and asking God to lead her to someone who wanted to know Him. As she passed stall after stall, her eyes were suddenly drawn to a woman named Diwi*, who was selling vegetables.

After a friendly conversation, Diwi began sharing about some of the struggles she had been facing in her life. Amy listened intently, then asked if she could tell Diwi a story from the Bible about Abraham—one that might encourage her as she faced these difficulties. Diwi agreed.

As Amy shared the story, Diwi listened closely. When the story ended, her eyes were filled with tears. She was deeply moved by Abraham’s willingness to trust God and follow Him wherever He led. Seeing her response, Amy gently asked if there was anyone else who might want to hear the story as well. The next time they met, Diwi brought a friend.

Other women working nearby noticed the small gathering and became curious. One by one, they began joining the group. Before long, a faithful circle of women vendors met each week in the market to listen to stories from God’s Word and learn about His love for them.

What began as a simple prayer walk through the marketplace had become a place where women now gather regularly to hear about the God who sees them, knows them, and calls them to follow Him.

Pray that these women will continue studying the Bible and come to believe in the One who knows and loves them.

WHEN CHURCH LEFT THE BUILDING
A workshop on “simple church” stirred something deep in *Jin. The idea was beautifully uncomplicated. Church could happen anywhere read more …

A BOLD WITNESS
*Yeng is Khmer (most Khmers are Buddhist) who comes from a big family. Her husband, Pouch, is blind; her 97 years old mother-in-law and three grandsons read more …

CHURCH SIMPLIFIED
During an early morning taxi ride, Amy* struck up a conversation with the driver. It was obvious that Mr. Wu was a Christian read more …

When Church Left the Building

Mar 4, 2026 | Stories

Don’t miss the video, scroll to the bottom of the page..

A workshop on “simple church” stirred something deep in *Jin. The idea was beautifully uncomplicated. Church could happen anywhere—without walls, without pews, without formality. For months he prayed and wrestled with what that might look like in his home town in Taiwan.

The answer came to him in a place he already loved—the campgrounds of eastern Taiwan.

Jin and several close friends often escaped there twice a month. They were outdoor people who preferred hiking boots to dress shoes, and open skies to sanctuary ceilings. What if church could meet in a campground?

So Jin began showing up with intention. Tucked in his backpack were a short Bible story, a thoughtful discussion question, and one or two simple praise songs anyone could sing around a fire. After breakfast, he and his friends casually invited nearby campers to pull up a chair and join them.

It started small. Just a few curious neighbors lingering by the campfire.

Jin would chat, listen, and build connections. Then he would pose a question, one that everyone could answer from their own experience. As the group warmed up, he would share a Bible story and ask a few simple follow-up questions. Conversations deepened. Needs surfaced. Laughter mixed with vulnerability.

Before long, Jin would offer to pray, lifting up the personal requests that had been shared and speaking a blessing over every camper gathered there. They closed their time singing together, voices rising into the open air. It was becoming a church! Simple, authentic, and alive.

The first to respond to the invitation to follow Jesus was one of Jin’s closest friends. His wife watched quietly at first, taking it all in, until she too chose to follow Jesus too.

Soon, the couple began facilitating the Bible discussions themselves. Jin walked alongside them for a season, coaching them in Bible storytelling and worship, until they felt confident to facilitate on their own.

Today, they are training others to bring this same simple expression of church to more campgrounds. What began as a small circle around a fire is multiplying into a growing movement of people meeting Jesus under the wide Taiwanese sky.

Pray that this simple, uncomplicated way of sharing Jesus would spread like wildfire, that many would become disciples who make disciples.

*pseudonym

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FINDING GOD’S PREPARED PEOPLE
Disciples in SE Asia have seen many people come to Christ in the past few years and have helped establish many new village house churches. A BEYOND worker who relates read more …

LIVING OUT LOUD
Grace* had recently returned to Southeast Asia when she was flagged down by a familiar face: Her house helper’s husband ran across a busy street to greet her. He insisted that read more …

DON’T GIVE UP
When Ying Kai was a young student in Taiwan, he worked hard to pass an important exam that would enable him to get into a good middle school. read more …

Chinese New Year

Feb 5, 2026 | Festivals and Holidays, Stories

This year, Chinese New Year (CNY) begins on Tuesday, February 17, marking the new year’s arrival (on the traditional Chinese calendar) for nearly one-sixth of the world’s population. The whole celebration lasts 16 days, from New Year’s Eve through the Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the new year. For a portion of those days, nearly 1.4 billion people return to their family homes, making it the largest annual migration of people on earth.

Once home, families usher in the New Year by eating a family meal together, honoring their ancestors with offerings, exchanging gifts of money, and generally welcoming good fortune into their lives for the upcoming year.

The reunion meal, eaten on the Eve of Chinese New Year, is considered to be the most important meal of the year. Before the meal begins, the family honors their ancestors by offering food and lighting incense. Then the family enjoys many symbolic foods, which, when consumed, are believed to ensure a happy, healthy, and prosperous year. On the stroke of midnight, fireworks are set off to scare away evil spirits and bad luck. Many cities have huge public displays, but some families and businesses also have private ones.

Liberal use of the auspicious color red also courts good fortune in the new year. Red lanterns, banners, couplets, and symbols decorate businesses and homes. Red clothing is a must and is thought to protect people and bring good luck and fortune.

Giving money in bright red packets is a way to pass on good luck. Children delightedly receive the envelopes from family members and close friends. Married people pass these packets to their single friends, and businesses often give them to their employees and loyal customers.

During this time, people adhere to many rituals and taboos. There is to be no cleaning of the home, laundry, or even oneself on New Year’s Day. To do so would be to sweep or wash good fortune away, ensuring a difficult year. One should not use sharp objects such as knives, get a haircut, break anything, say unlucky words (“death” or “sickness”) or do anything taboo that could cause good fortune to leave the family.

Please pray that people would realize that wealth alone can blind one to their true state of being. As Revelation 3:17 says: “You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked.”

Numerous traditions and beliefs are associated with each day of the Lunar New Year, and each can serve as a unique prompt to pray. Click the button to access a prayer guide that will name one tradition or belief for each day and a related prayer request.

15 Days of Prayer for the Lunar Year

Discipleship Begins with Relationship

Jan 27, 2026 | Stories

Discipling someone to Jesus includes far more than persuading them to make a decision. It involves relationship—long-term, often messy, always intentional. True discipleship grows out of trust, vulnerability, and willingness to let others into our lives. It’s organic, not a formula. There are no “five easy steps” to sharing the gospel. It requires prayer, perseverance, listening to God, and following His lead.

*Wes, a U.S.—based recruiter with BEYOND, recently shared a story about his friendship with *Sumon, and how God used their relationship to open unexpected doors for friendship and potential discipleship.

Wes and a friend often prayer-walk around nearby apartment complexes in their neighborhood in Arkansas. On several occasions, the Holy Spirit brought them across the path of two young men from Bangladesh—*Rafi, a Muslim, and Sumon, a Hindu. The four began playing pickleball together, and good conversations naturally followed.

A few weeks later, Wes was delivering furniture to a Bangladeshi woman who had just moved to the area for school. As he prayed about the encounter, Wes sensed the Holy Spirit urging him: “Don’t go alone—invite someone with you.” Almost immediately, Sumon came to mind. Wes called him, and to his surprise, Sumon answered right away and agreed to help.

When Wes arrived at Sumon’s apartment to pick him up, he realized the woman they were helping lived in the same complex. It was Wes’s first time visiting Sumon’s home, and as they were catching up, a woman knocked on Sumon’s door, spoke briefly with him in Bangla, and then left. Moments later, when they delivered the furniture, Wes was stunned—the woman answering the door was the very same person who had just been at Sumon’s apartment!

As it turned out, Sumon had already been helping her settle in. The Spirit had woven their stories together, guiding Wes to call the very friend who was already connected to her. Over snacks and drinks after the delivery, Wes told Sumon: “God told me to call you today. I believe He wanted you here with me. Do you have any idea why?”

Sumon replied that he wasn’t sure—but that he would ask God. Wes is eager to meet with him again and hear what God has shown him.

Pray that God would continue drawing Sumon’s heart and reveal Himself to him in a powerful and meaningful way. Pray also for the young woman who received the furniture—that she too would encounter the love of Jesus and come to know Him as Lord.

*pseudonym

READ RELATED STORIES

THE POLICE CHIEF DEMANDED A SONG
A BEYOND team was recently sitting with an Indian disciple-maker from the Bhojpuri network, asking questions as they measured the growth of a movement. read more …

PASSING THE TORCH
Our focus for the last year has been on equipping young leaders (ages 18-30) to actively engage in ministry. These leaders fall into four distinct categories, read more …

BREAKING BARRIERS WITH THE GOSPEL
Sharitha* was the house helper of movement catalysts Ethan* and Nicole* while they lived in India. They remember the day Sharitha heard the story in read more

A Story of Faith, Courage, and Unseen Impact

Jan 14, 2026 | South East Asia, Stories

*Scott and *Saeng report that this year has been the most fruitful in their 30 years of ministry in Southeast Asia.

For years, they have prayed for Lao believers to join the harvest in Thailand. Last month, their prayers were answered when two Lao women in their 50s visited *Tai (a ministry partner) and his wife. Every day, these women went out with local team members, sharing their faith in nearby villages. The Isaan people responded positively, with many expressing interest in Jesus daily.

As the month went on, Scott encouraged Tai to invite local women to a spontaneous training led by these two Lao women. The event drew about 20 participants. Each morning, they studied Scripture together; each afternoon, they shared the gospel and each evening, they debriefed over dinner.

One Isaan woman, *Hom, was particularly moved during the training. Since becoming a disciple of Jesus in 2019, she had been vocal about her faith in her village. However, her husband, who did not believe, eventually stopped the Bible study meetings in their home, causing Hom to cease sharing her faith.

During the weekend training, Hom was inspired by the testimonies of the two Lao women. Both had faced opposition from their husbands, yet one husband had since become a disciple of Jesus. The other husband, though not a disciple, had accepted his wife’s faith and no longer opposed her sharing her faith. Encouraged by their stories, Hom has begun sharing her faith again in her village.

Please pray for Hom’s husband, that he will soon become a disciple of Jesus, and for follow-up with the many Isaan people who heard about Jesus this past month through the testimony of these Lao workers.

*pseudonym