News and Views
We have our fingers on the pulse of modern missions. Mission work is changing rapidly as the world's cultures and global conditions are changing. Ease of travel and communication impact how the Gospel is spread. But at the heart of missions, there is the work of the Holy Spirit, the Word of God, and the obedience of the Church to carry out Jesus' command to go into all the earth.
We want to present challenging biblical truths, insights into today's missions environment, and progress reports on reaching the entire world with the Gospel. Please keep checking our blog regularly for updates, stories and challenging thoughts from Scripture!
How do you spend your evening after a long day at work? I try to relax by reading a book or watching my favorite TV series. Sometimes I need to send a message to several people in the evening. And, of course, it’s easier to do this by creating a group message instead of sending a message to each person individually. I send it once, and everyone receives it at once. This saves me time, and I can relax more.
What do you think Christ’s evening looked like after a long day at work? The Gospel of Luke, chapter 4, gives us a glimpse. “When the sun was setting, all those who had any that were sick...
“And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope” (1 Thessalonians 4:13).
I vividly remember attending my first Buddhist funeral in the 1970s as a young missionary in Thailand. The woman who died was the relative of one among the tiny minority of Christ-followers at that time.
As the attendees stood together, I looked at the swollen, tear-stained eyes of the immediate family. Some were still wailing in grief and sorrow. Others were placing clothes and belongings into the open, wooden...
You may have heard the news from on Friday, March 28th about the devastating earthquake that has struck Southeast Asia. This disaster is a crushing blow to the nation of Myanmar, where civil war has been taking place for almost four years.
We have been in communication with Michael, the National Director of Myanmar. In his opinion, he believes there could be tens of thousands of people who lost their lives. Many temples and mosques are on mountaintops, and worshippers were there on Friday. These buildings crumbled during the earthquake, and hundreds were crushed...
The end has not yet come.
In the Gospel of Mark, chapter 13, we read about a conversation about the end times between Jesus and His disciples. The descriptions of the final events are terrifying: deceivers will come in Christ’s name, wars and rumors of wars, nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, earthquakes, famines, and troubles.
But this is not the end.
Interestingly, in Greek, it is not simply the beginning of sorrows, like an epidemic of the flu or other diseases. It is the beginning of birth pangs! Who is giving birth? Who is born?
In the book of Revelation...
Eight days after the birth of Jesus, Mary and Joseph took Him to the temple in Jerusalem to be dedicated to God. As they entered the temple, an old prophet named Simeon approached the family, saw the baby, and said, “I have seen your salvation, which you have prepared for all people. He is a light to reveal God to the nations, and he is the glory of your people Israel!” (Luke 2:30-32). This was a confirmation of everything they had been told by the angel who had appeared to them.
Simeon was referring to the prophet Isaiah, who clearly stated that God intended for all the earth to hear about...
"…in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (1 Thessalonians 5:18)
It isn't easy to be thankful for everything. That's a fact! In general, we struggle with gratitude. Our parents had to teach us to say thank you. Someone would give us candy, and mom would say, "Say thank you." And how we didn't want to say it! Sometimes, parents had to insist and force us to say those difficult words, "thank you," several times. And it's good if our parents were persistent and we learned to be grateful for the good things they gave us in life.
Our Heavenly Father...
When the Holy Spirit is preparing hearts, and believers are obeying God’s command to go and tell, the Church on earth will continue to grow. God is presenting a new opportunity for Reach A Village to be part of that growth.
“As believers share the Gospel in Albania, Reach A Village is now ready to come alongside them and support them,” said Bob Craft, founder and president of Reach A Village. “We are already engaging with new ministry partners there. Strategic planning is taking place, and excitement is growing. There is a great need for people to know Jesus in this predominantly Muslim...
Reaching the “unreached people groups” (UPG) has become the buzzword for Christian mission efforts in recent years. But that idea raises some good questions. Where did this idea come from? What defines an unreached people group? Does Reach A Village work to reach the unreached people groups?
These are very important questions for those engaged in trying to reach the world with the Gospel. Jesus commanded, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit...
I have two sons, and I know them well. When I enter the kitchen, I know exactly who ate the last meal there. One son cleans up everything after he eats, and there is no evidence he has even eaten there. Everything has been washed, wiped and put away.
After a long process of upbringing and correction, my second son now also cleans up after he eats at the table. But he continues to leave something unfinished! He may leave his chair pulled away from the table. He may wash the dishes but leave a dirty pot on the stove.
Yes, I know my sons well. And I have no doubts about who has been in the...
Truth and wisdom sometimes come from unexpected sources. Consider the Old Testament story of Balaam (Numbers 22). Balaam had a reputation as a mighty prophet. A king from a nation hostile to Israel sought his services. This king wanted Balaam to curse the Israelites, hoping that would enable him to defeat them in battle and run them out of the land. Though Balaam knew that God would not allow him to curse Israel, he eventually agreed to go with the king's men.
Balaam rode on a donkey, and along the journey, the donkey suddenly refused to continue down the path. Three times, the donkey...
